Melinda French is speaking out on her ex-husband's Bill Gates appearance in newly released files related to Jeffrey Epstein.
Over the weekend, newly released emails from the sex offender were released that implicated both new and previously tied people to the late financier, including Donald Trump, who is mentioned more than 38,000 times in the latest batch of Epstein files, according to a New York Times review of them, as are Elon Musk, Prince Andrew, Peter Attia, and Steve Tisch, among others.
How Bill appears in the emails
The Microsoft founder's latest appearance in the files is especially sordid. Though it is unclear who wrote what appear to be draft messages from 2013, the email features a message seemingly from Epstein conveying a feeling of betrayal aimed at Bill, accusing him of asking for help after allegedly contracting a sexually transmitted infection from "Russian girls."
One draft message from July 18, 2013, reads: "To add insult to the injury you then subsequently with tears in your eyes, implore me to please delete the emails regarding your std, your request that I provide you antibiotics that you can surreptitiously give to Melinda, and the description of your penis."
Melinda's response
Melinda, who has previously opened up about her husband's betrayals and his well-documented relationship with Epstein, appearing on NPR's Wild Card podcast, was given an opportunity by host Rachel Martin to "respond in whatever way you want to" to the "newest tranche of Epstein files."
"I think we're having a reckoning as a society, right? No girl should ever be put in the situation that they were put in by Epstein and whatever was going on with all of the various people around him," Melinda, who divorced Bill in 2021, said.
"It's beyond heartbreaking, right? I remember being those ages those girls were, I remember my daughters being those ages," she added.
The philanthropist then noted: "So for me, it's personally hard whenever those details come up, right, because [it] brings back memories of some very, very painful times in my marriage."
She however maintained: "I have moved on from that," adding that "whatever questions remain there of what I don't — can't even begin to know all of it — those questions are for those people and for even my ex-husband. They need to answer to those things, not me."
"I am so happy to be away from all the muck that was there," she ultimately emphasized.
Bill's denial
Bill has previously admitted to spending time with Epstein, though he has called his past meetings with him a mistake, maintaining it was foolish to have spent time with him and that he was seeking charitable support.
Still, he maintained that the new claims are "absurd and completely false." In a statement to the New York Times, his rep said: "These claims — from a proven, disgruntled liar — are absolutely absurd and completely false. The only thing these documents demonstrate is Epstein's frustration that he did not have an ongoing relationship with Bill and the lengths he would go to entrap and defame."