Epstein case, Lutnick to testify in US House
The US Commerce Secretary would maintain relations with Epstein until 2018. Trump: 'He is an innocent man'
Howard Lutnick, US Secretary of Commerce and very close to President Donald Trump, will have to account for his ties to Jeffrey Epstein, the former financier convicted of child sex crimes who died by suicide in prison in 2019. Lutnick has in fact voluntarily agreed to appear before the House Oversight Committee as part of the investigation into the Jeffrey Epstein case. This was announced by the chairman, Republican James Comer
Lutnick in the Epstein files
Files released by the Justice Department show that Epstein and Lutnick planned to meet years after the Commerce Secretary had claimed to have broken off contact. The two formerly lived next door to each other on Manhattan's Upper East Side, and last year in a podcast Lutnick said he had severed ties with Epstein after a 2005 interaction he found disturbing.
Today it emerges that in December 2012, Lutnick and his family planned a visit to Epstein's island, Little St. James. Later, in 2018, Lutnick tried to mobilise Epstein against proposed renovations by the Frick Collection. One response Lutnick received suggested that Epstein was involved: "Jeffrey replied: I WILL!"
Lutnick's defence
During a recent appearance before a Senate committee, the commerce secretary said he had barely had anything to do with Epstein, and claimed that Lutnick pointed out that his wife and four children were with him on the island visit.
But further explanations may be required in the future. House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer said Lutnick could be called to testify in the House investigation into Epstein. Comer added that there was a "possibility that his name will come up in some questions today" as he prepared to depose former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and former President Bill Clinton.
