Billionaire philanthropist Melinda French Gates claimed Jeffrey Epstein “could have been stopped” in an interview published after lawmakers questioned her ex-husband, Bill Gates, over his ties to the late sex offender.
In an interview with The Guardian, French Gates hit out at the US justice system, claiming it “didn’t do its job” when it came to Epstein, who died in jail seven years ago after prosecutors said he sexually exploited and abused dozens of underage girls, The Independent reported.
French Gates told the newspaper, “The justice system didn’t do its job. It did not do its job. Full stop. This could have been stopped. I think that’s why, finally, we are having a reckoning in society. If we don’t want children to be harmed, the justice system has to work.”
The interview, published Saturday, June 13, comes just days after Microsoft founder testified about Epstein during a closed-door House Oversight Committee hearing.
He told lawmakers Epstein attempted to blackmail him with explicit details about his personal life, including his extramarital affairs.
The tech mogul said Epstein “sought to build an image of legitimacy around himself, using connections to reputable and powerful people to deflect scrutiny and attempt to rehabilitate his reputation.
French Gates said she met Epstein one time, and the experience gave her nightmares.
“Have you ever in your life been around somebody that you just know is evil? ... We need to listen to our feelings about people. He was an abhorrent human being, a horrid man, and so in these situations, this is a hard topic for me, you need to know that, my heart goes out to the young girls,” she added.
French Gates is currently advocating for more women to take on positions of power, and has recently committed $215 million toward funding women’s healthcare initiatives.
