Even after his death by alleged suicide, the case of defamed billionaire and convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein continued to make waves this week after court documents revealed on Tuesday claimed that former Prime Minister Ehud Barak is one of the men accused of having sexual relations with Epstein accuser Virginia Roberts Giuffre.
Giuffre's accusation, details of which had been sealed by a court, became known this week after attorney Alan Dershowitz issued a new filing refuting her claims. Dershowitz sued Giuffre for defamation after she claimed that she had been forced to have sex with him and other high-profile figures, including Barak and Prince Andrew of England, when she was a minor.
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Dershowitz's filing, which was first revealed publicly by the Miami Herald, states that Giuffre alleges that she was forced to have sex with Barak.
Dershowitz, who is suing Giuffre for what he says is a defamation of character, went on to argue that Giuffre "has offered no proof other than her own uncorroborated word, which has been thoroughly discredited by her proven lies."
He represented Epstein in the first criminal investigation into the financier's alleged sex trafficking in 2005, for which Epstein pled guilty to one count of procuring an underage prostitute.
A statement on Barak's behalf said: "Mr. Barak's name was inserted into the [Miami Herald] article in order to push aside the allegations against Dershowitz. In Dershowitz's paper, it's stated that the woman's testimony is false. Barak does not comment on imaginary rumors or false affidavits. Moreover, neither did Barak know nor did he meet Epstein in 2002, when the woman [Giuffre] supposedly left the US for Australia."
Senior US District Judge Loretta Preska is expected to issue a ruling in the coming days.
In 2019, Barak played down his ties with Epstein, saying the two formed a limited partnership company in Israel in 2015, called Sum (E.B.) 2015, to invest in a high-tech startup then called Reporty, now named Carbyne, which developed video streaming and geolocation software for emergency services. A large part of the money used by Sum to buy Reporty stock was reportedly supplied by Epstein.
According to US tax records, Barak received some $2.3 million in grants last decade from the Wexner Foundation – a philanthropic organization that supports Jewish causes founded by US billionaire Leslie Wexner.
The documents say the grants were for unspecified "research." At the time of the grants, Epstein was a trustee of the foundation.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accused the media of remaining "silent" about the matter and the Likud party last year submitted a request to Attorney General Avichai Mendelblit to launch an investigation.
According to the Likud, Barak and the Wexner Foundation refuse to reveal the purpose of the payment, which was never made public while Barak was in public office.
"Mr. Barak was photographed leaving Epstein's apartment in 2016. The two were so close that Barak's name even appeared in Mr. Epstein's 'black book' [of acquaintances that was seized by US authorities]. In this context, there is a real need to examine whether the 'grants' Barak received from the Wexner Foundation and/or Mr. Epstein ceased in 2006 or whether they changed shape in the ensuing years and continued to be provided," an attorney for the Likud party said in the official request to Mendelblit.
In a radio interview at the time, Barak said he met Epstein several times but that he "didn't support me or pay me."
He said he has met many people over the years, some of whom turned out to be involved in "problematic things," including Harvey Weinstein.
"I also met Netanyahu," he quipped a the time.
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