Jeffrey Epstein: MIT and Harvard Admit to Taking Millions, Brown Says No Direct Ties
Friday, September 13, 2019
The influential web of money -- and power -- of sexual predator Jeffrey Epstein is creating chaos among many of America's most elite universities -- and Brown University is not immune.
A GoLocal review of the donations by the Leon and Debra Black Foundation — a foundation that has been managed by billionaire investor Leon Balck, his wife Debra and Jeffrey Epstein -- show that it made at least one donation to Brown University.
They were the three decision-makers for millions in charitable donations. According to IRS documents, Epstein continued to be a decision-maker even after he pled guilty to sexual assault and deemed a sexual predator. GoLocal reviewed IRS documents from 2000 through 2013, when Epstein was removed as a director, but replaced by Brown University Trustee John Hannan, who himself made a $166,667 donation to Epstein's C.O.U.Q. Foundation, according to PERE News.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTLeon Black is the co-founder and Chairman of Apollo Global Management and Hannan is another co-founder of one of the firm's affiliates.
GoLocal has unveiled a series of links between Epstein and some of Rhode Island's most influential including Rhode Islander and Clinton Health Access Initiative head Ira Magaziner who flew repeatedly on Epstein's private jet across the globe. Magaziner is the father of Rhode Island's General Treasurer Seth Magaziner.
According to federal tax records, the Debra and Leon Black Family Foundation made donations to a range of not-for-profit organizations including Harvard University, the Michael J. Fox Foundation, the New York Jets Foundation, and the Tony Blair Foundation — the former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
“We have reviewed our records on giving to Brown by Leon and Debra Black and their foundation. We are confident that the conversations related to their giving included no interaction between Brown and Jeffrey Epstein,” said Brian Clark, spokesman for Brown University.
Brown received a $33,000 gift from the Black Foundation in 2004.
Epstein served as a director of the Foundation through 2012 — four years after he was prosecuted for sexually abusing teenage girls.
The board was reconstituted in 2013 and Epstein was removed and Hannan joined the Black Foundation Board.
Hannan was “elected” as a Trustee of Brown in 2011.
“John J. Hannan, a Brown parent, is a co-founder (1990) and senior partner of Apollo Management LP, a private equity firm specializing in buyouts, distressed assets and corporate restructurings. Hannan is also the chairman of the board of Apollo Investment Corp., a public investment company and affiliate of Apollo Management,” Brown announced in May of 2011.
On Thursday, Harvard's President issued a statement that unveiled significant financial ties between Epstein and the Ivy League school.
"I want to emphasize that this review is ongoing. Our review to date indicates that between 1998 and 2007, Epstein made a number of gifts to support various faculty and institutional research activities across the University. The largest of these was a $6.5 million gift in 2003 to support the Program for Evolutionary Dynamics. The University received other gifts, which totaled approximately $2.4 million, based on current information. Each of these gifts from Epstein and his affiliated foundations to Harvard University predates his guilty plea in June 2008," wrote Lawrence Bacow. READ THE REST OF THE STATEMENT HERE
Brown Fundraiser is on Leave for Ties to Epstein
As GoLocal reported on Sunday night, a top fundraiser at Brown University has been placed on administrative leave -- not for any actions at Brown, but for potential issues tied to his previous role at the Massachusetts Institute for Technology.
According to Clark at Brown University, “Peter Cohen began working at Brown in October 2018 as Director of Development for Computer and Data Science Initiatives. We are aware of the content of recent news reports about Mr. Cohen’s work at MIT’s Media Lab, which received funds from Jeffrey Epstein. Brown has not in its history received any funds from Jeffrey Epstein.”
Epstein’s donations to MIT include many that were hidden under “anonymous” -- due to his conviction as a sex abuser -- which reportedly was encouraged and managed by top MIT officials.
In a feature story published in the New Yorker published on Saturday, Cohen’s role masking Epstein’s donations was exposed.
“In October, 2014, the Media Lab received a two-million-dollar donation from Bill Gates; [MIT Media Lab Director Joichi] Ito wrote in an internal e-mail, 'This is a $2M gift from Bill Gates directed by Jeffrey Epstein.' Cohen replied, 'For gift recording purposes, we will not be mentioning Jeffrey’s name as the impetus for this gift.' A mandatory record of the gift filed within the university stated only that 'Gates is making this gift at the recommendation of a friend of his who wishes to remain anonymous.' Knowledge of Epstein’s alleged role was usually kept within a tight circle. In response to the university filing, Cohen wrote to colleagues, 'I did not realize that this would be sent to dozens of people,' adding that Epstein 'is not named but questions could be asked' and that 'I feel uncomfortable that this was distributed so widely.' He wrote that future filings related to Epstein should be submitted only 'if there is a way to do it quietly.' An agent for Gates wrote to the leadership of the Media Lab, stating that Gates also wished to keep his name out of any public discussion of the donation,” reported the New Yorker.
Beyond Gates, Apollo Global Management’s Black is also tied to Epstein and directed funds to MIT.
In August, GoLocal reported that Black’s Apollo Global Management is financing the merger of GateHouse Media and Gannett with a $1.79 billion term loan — a loan that comes with a steep interest rate of 11.5%.
The person who is nearly guaranteed to make the most money on this mega-merger deal -- a close friend of registered sex offender Epstein -- is Black.
Black is one of the titans of Wall Street and over the past 20 years has had a close personal relationship with once convicted pedophile Epstein.
The federal indictment filed in June by the Department of Justice cited multiple cases of sexual abuse by Epstein, “In or about 2002, Minor Victim-1 was recruited to engage in sex acts with EPSTEIN and was repeatedly sexually abused by EPSTEIN at the New York Residence over a period of years and was paid hundreds of dollars for each encounter. EPSTEIN also encouraged and enticed Minor Victim-1 to recruit other girls to engage in paid sex acts, which she did. EPSTEIN asked Minor Victim-1 how old she was, and Minor Victim-1 answered truthfully.”
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