Les Wexner Reportedly Ignored Warnings About Jeffrey Epstein
Les Wexner, the billionaire founder of L Brands, maintained a close friendship with Jeffrey Epstein despite repeated warnings about the late, disgraced financier’s character from those in the retail mogul’s personal and professional circles, according to a Vanity Fair report published Tuesday.
According to Vanity Fair, at least three people—including
two of Wexner’s former employees and a close friend—told the billionaire, who
has said he knew nothing of Epstein’s alleged sex trafficking of underage
girls, to stay away from him.
Robert Meister, an insurance mogul who introduced the two in
the late 1980s, said he and his wife “begged” Wexner to cut ties with Epstein
soon after they heard concerning stories about his sexual proclivities.
“Think of whatever the worst thing anyone could do is, and
Epstein did them all,” Meister told Vanity Fair, claiming he and his wife urged
Wexner to cut ties with Epstein “hundreds of times” over many years.
Harold Levin, Wexner’s financial advisor, and Jerry Merritt,
who ran security for L Brands (then named The Limited) for 25 years, also said
they warned Wexner about Epstein’s trustworthiness.
Levin said he told Wexner that Epstein was a fraud after he
visited his office in New York and found no signs of the trading operation he
claimed to run, and was shocked to see Wexner hire Epstein a few months later.
Citing an anonymous source, Vanity Fair also reported Wexner
was warned that Epstein was presenting himself as a Victoria’s Secret scout in
New York in the early 1990s as a way to coerce women.
A spokesperson for the Wexner family declined a request for
comment from Forbes.
CRUCIAL QUOTE
“I told Les, ‘I wouldn’t trust Epstein to cross the
street—why are you trusting him with your money?” Merritt recalled to Vanity
Fair.
KEY BACKGROUND
Wexner gave Epstein power of attorney over all his legal and
financial matters, meaning he had the power to buy and sell property, borrow
money on Wexner’s behalf, hire people, sign checks and more. “Les gave him free
rein over his checkbook,” said Merritt. Reports that Epstein leveraged his
connection to Wexner to coerce girls prompted an investigation into Wexner and
L Brands in 2019. Though the results of this probe were never made public,
Wexner has since stepped away from all official roles at L Brands. The billionaire
claims he wasn’t aware of the criminal activity Epstein has been accused of,
including trafficking underage girls for sex, and has accused Epstein of
misappropriating more than $46 million of his personal fortune while serving as
his money manager. However, the billionaire has refused to expand upon the
scope of the alleged theft and news outlets have pointed out that Wexner never
sued Epstein or reported the alleged crime to the FBI. Epstein was found hanged
in his jail cell while awaiting trial in August 2019. His associate, Ghislaine
Maxwell, who has been charged with the crimes of enticement of minors and sex
trafficking of underage girls, is now awaiting her own trial in a jail in
Brooklyn, New York.
BIG NUMBER
$6.6 billion. That’s how much Wexner is worth, according to
Forbes estimates.
FURTHER READING
“Report: Leslie Wexner Says Jeffrey Epstein
'Misappropriated’ At Least $46 Million From Him”
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