Simon Andriesz, the British former Wall Street banker who flagged US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick's alleged links to Jeffrey Epstein, has died by suicide aged 57. He was living in Cornwall as of July but was confirmed dead last week.
Email chain exposed alleged ties
Mr Andriesz exposed the reported relationship earlier this year when he shared an email chain from 2018. The emails appeared to show Lutnick and Epstein discussing Adfin, a digital advertising company in which both men had invested.
The emails were found among the Justice Department's release of millions of Epstein files, and Mr Andriesz shared them with House Oversight Committee lawmakers. It was previously reported that he searched the files for "HWL", Lutnick's initials, which uncovered materials showing a reported relationship between Lutnick and Epstein.
Lutnick's denial contradicted
This came despite Lutnick, who has served as the 41st United States commerce secretary since 2025, claiming he cut off contact with Epstein shortly after first meeting him in 2005. The email chain reportedly shows that the pair remained in contact until at least 2018.
As reported by The Banker, this was a decade after Epstein was convicted of soliciting prostitution and soliciting prostitution from a minor. He was jailed in 2008 and released around 13 months later, in July 2009.
Epstein's criminal history
Epstein was then jailed for a second time on federal charges of sex trafficking minors and conspiracy on July 6, 2019. However, he was never convicted as he died by suicide in his cell on August 10, 2019, while awaiting trial.
Mr Andriesz previously spoke to the FBI in 2020 and 2021, alleging that Lutnick had undeclared business ties to Epstein. However, the FBI did not investigate the accusations.
Death confirmed by transparency group
His death was confirmed by Andy Agathangelou, who founded the Transparency Task BGForce, a group advocating for greater transparency in finance that had previously hosted Mr Andriesz at whistleblowing events. He said: "It is with great sadness that we share the news that Simon Andriesz, a valued member of our community, passed away last week."
His death comes after Virginia Giuffre, one of the most prominent survivors and whistleblowers of Epstein's sex trafficking network, died by suicide at her farm in Western Australia on April 25, 2025. Her family said her death came after the impact of her sexual abuse became unbearable.
Jean-Luc Brunel, a prominent French model scout and close associate of Epstein, also died by suicide on February 19, 2022. He was arrested at Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris in December 2020 following a French investigation into Epstein's network, but died awaiting trial.
