WASHINGTON — Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick admitted Tuesday that he visited late sex predator Jeffrey Epstein’s private island — after FBI files debunked his claim that he broke off contact in 2005.
Lutnick, 64, confessed to senators that he had two encounters “that I can recall” with Epstein after 2005, including a 2012 trip to his so-called “pedophile island” and drinks in 2011, as revealed by the FBI’s Jan. 30 release of case files.
“We had lunch on the island, that is true, for an hour,” Lutnick told a Senate subcommittee, describing the stop as an innocent and brief stopover with his family.
“We left with all of my children, with my nannies and my wife. All together. We were on a family vacation. We were not apart… I don’t recall why we did it, but we did.”
That visit occurred about seven years after Lutnick previously claimed to have broken off relations with his infamous Upper East Side neighbor, who pleaded guilty in 2008 in Florida to soliciting prostitution from a minor before facing federal charges in 2019.
Lutnick told The Post in October that he and his wife Allison were so revolted by a tour of Epstein’s townhouse in 2005 that he “decided that I will never be in the room with that disgusting person ever again.”
In the same interview, the former Cantor Fitzgerald CEO described Epstein as “the greatest blackmailer ever” and said “that’s how he had money.”
Lutnick, who has been an important trade negotiator in President Trump’s second term, insisted that his evolving recollection didn’t hint at any wrongdoing and that “I have nothing to hide — absolutely nothing.”
In addition to the island visit, Lutnick copped to a May 2011 meeting with Epstein, which also was documented in emails mass-released by the FBI pursuant to a congressional transparency law.
“I met Jeffrey Epstein when I moved to a house next door to him in New York. Over the next 14 years, I met him two other times that I can recall — two times — and that is none for six years,” Lutnick said.
“I looked through the millions of documents for my name, just like everybody else. And what I found was there was a document that said I had a meeting with him in May, I think, for an hour at 5 o’clock,” he said, confirming the second additional meeting.
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In further questioning, Lutnick said that he wasn’t aware of the reason Epstein wanted to meet one of his nannies, as indicated by a document in the FBI cache, and brushed off emails indicating they may have partnered in business, philanthropy and neighborhood activism.
“There may be 10 emails connecting me with him — probably about 10 emails connecting me with him over a 14-year period,” he said.
“I did not have any relationship with him. I barely had anything to do with that person. Okay?”
Members of Congress have a called on Lutnick to resign for his Epstein ties, including Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Robert Garcia (D-Calif.)
‘Really cracks our narrative’
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt admonished reporters Tuesday afternoon for continuing to focus on the Epstein case, arguing that it amounted to a distraction from news with broader public impact.
“This week, national median rents have fallen to a four-year low [and] mortgage affordability this week surged to a four-year high, but not a single mention of that in this briefing room today,” Leavitt chided.
“For an unprecedented ninth straight month, there were zero illegal border crossings at the southern border.”
Leavitt said that “Secretary Lutnick remains a very important member of President Trump’s team, and the president fully supports the secretary.”
In Trump’s first term, a different member of his Cabinet, then-Labor Secretary Alex Acosta, resigned in 2019 after scrutiny of his role brokering Epstein’s 2008 plea, which critics called a slap on the wrist.
The enormous volume of documents released by the FBI has led to a steady trickle of revelations — as members of Congress on Monday began reviewing unredacted files.
A 2019 FBI file surfaced Monday quoting a former Palm Beach, Fla., police chief recalling that Trump, who says he broke off relations with Epstein in the early 2000s, called him in 2006 to encourage him to look into “evil” Ghislaine Maxwell, the only other person prosecuted in a vast sex-trafficking ring the Justice Department says had more than 1,000 victims.
“I’m sure many of you, when you read that, that alleged FBI report, probably thought to yourself, ‘Wow, this really cracks our narrative that we’ve been trying to push about this president for many years,’” Leavitt said.
Trump has described Democratic interest in the Epstein case as a “hoax” designed to damage him politically, while Republicans have focused on former President Bill Clinton’s own Epstein links.
The lack of prosecution of men associated with Epstein — including an array of the world’s most powerful politicians and businessmen — has stoked sustained bipartisan outrage and public interest.
Six associates of Epstein were “likely incriminated” by their inclusion in files detailing the years-long investigation of the notorious financier, Reps. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) and Massie told reporters Monday after reviewing undredacted documents at the Justice Department.
Khanna read those names on the House floor Tuesday — which grants him legal immunity — naming billionaire Victoria’s Secret businessman Les Wexner and Emirati businessman Sultan Ahmed bin Saleem, and lesser-known men Salvatore Nuara, Zurab Mikeladze, Leonic Leonov, and Nicola Caputo.
Massie claimed in September that the FBI knows of 20 powerful men who allegedly victimized young women and girls — naming just one, Barclays bank CEO Jes Staley, who quickly resigned his job.
Allegations involving Epstein have tarnished the reputations of many others, including Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the brother of King Charles III, who revoked his kin’s title of “prince” last year after sustained coverage of rape allegations by Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is also on the rocks over his appointment of Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the US despite his ties to Epstein.
