U.S. House issues subpoena for Ohio’s richest man, Les Wexner

The U.S. House of Representatives has escalated its investigation into Jeffrey Epstein by issuing a subpoena to Ohio’s wealthiest resident, retail magnate Les Wexner, on Wednesday.

The U.S. House Oversight and Government Reform Committee voted to issue a subpoena for Wexner, along with other people tied to the Epstein case, as part of a continuing probe into Epstein’s financial and personal associations, according to Ideastream.

U.S. Rep. Robert Garcia, D-California, said that “these subpoenas for the executors of Jeffrey Epstein’s estate, and billionaire benefactor Les Wexner, are an enormous step forward in our investigation to deliver justice for the survivors and truth for the American people.”

“Oversight Democrats know how important it is to follow the money to identify anyone who enabled Epstein’s horrific abuses and illegal activities,” he said. “We are now one step closer to ending this White House cover-up.”

Wexner’s spokesman said on Wednesday that Wexner “will cooperate fully with any governmental inquiry into Epstein, just as he did regarding the U.S. Attorney’s investigation into Epstein in which Mr. Wexner was told that he was neither a co-conspirator nor a target in any respect.”

Wexner had a documented relationship with Epstein, who managed Wexner’s finances in the 1990s and early 2000s. Congressional leaders are now seeking to question him about those ties and other matters relevant to the broader investigation.

Former Ohio State athletes and others have raised Wexner’s name in connection with separate sexual abuse controversies, juxtaposing his legacy with ongoing investigations into abuse by Ohio State’s former team doctor Richard Strauss.

This led to protests against officials at Wexner’s Medical Center at the Ohio State University last month, during which demonstrators held up photos of Wexner with Epstein.

The Ohio State lawyers later said that Wexner should not be deposed in the sexual abuse case, filing a motion on Dec. 10 in federal court, saying that “none of the discovery taken to date suggests that Mr. Wexner has any specific information ‘relevant to any party’s claim or defense’ in this litigation.”

“Specifically, Ohio State has not identified Mr. Wexner as a witness in this litigation, and none of the complaints in the litigation, none of the Discovery Plaintiffs’ fact sheets, none of the responses or documents produced by any of the parties in response to discovery requests, and none of the depositions taken to date contain any specific allegations, testimony, or information suggesting that Mr. Wexner interacted with Strauss or possesses any information regarding any plaintiff’s alleged interactions with Strauss,” the lawyers said in the motion.

At the end of the last month, according to reports, Wexner was named as an alleged “co-conspirator” in the Epstein case. However, his lawyer refuted the classification, saying the word “co-conspirator” was not accurate to the FBI’s investigation at the time.