Bill Gates has been photographed smiling broadly at the Australian Open tennis tournament, just one day after his spokesperson issued a furious denial of explosive allegations contained within the newly released Jeffrey Epstein files. The Microsoft billionaire appeared alongside his girlfriend, Paula Hurd, watching the men's doubles final in Melbourne on Saturday, seemingly unperturbed by the serious claims.
Shocking Allegations in Epstein Email
Among hundreds of thousands of documents released by the US Department of Justice on Friday morning was a particularly astonishing email drafted by Jeffrey Epstein on July 18, 2013. The email contained extraordinary claims about Bill Gates, including an allegation that Gates had requested medicine to treat sexually transmitted diseases allegedly contracted from "sex with Russian girls."
The lengthy email, which appeared to be a draft intended for Gates's then-top advisor Boris Nikolic, lashed out at Gates for ending their friendship. It stated: "TO add insult to the injury you them (sic) 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."
Gates's Forceful Denial
In a rare statement that conveyed clear anger, a spokesperson for Gates vehemently refuted all allegations made in the Epstein documents. "These claims are absolutely absurd and completely false," the spokesperson told the Daily Mail. "The only thing these documents demonstrate is Epstein's frustration that he did not have an ongoing relationship with Gates and the lengths he would go to entrap and defame."
Gates has previously expressed regret over his friendship with the late paedophile financier, who died in a New York City jail in 2019, but has consistently denied any wrongdoing or inappropriate behaviour throughout their association.
Australian Open Appearance
Despite the serious nature of the allegations, Gates appeared cheerful and relaxed at Melbourne's tennis tournament. The couple could be seen chatting and grinning as they watched Australians Jason Kubler and Marc Polmans face American Christian Harrison and Great Britain's Neal Skupski in the men's doubles final.
The release of files on Friday also included multiple new undated images showing Epstein and Gates together in various locations, adding visual evidence to their documented association.
Marital Fallout and Foundation Resignation
The Epstein email controversy intersects with Gates's personal life and professional relationships. In the same batch of documents, another email appearing to be from Boris Nikolic offered his resignation from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
"I have been caught up in a severe marital dispute between Melinda and Bill..." the email stated. "In my role as his right hand man I have been asked and wrongly acquiesced into participating in things that have ranged from the morally inappropriate, to the ethically unsound and have been repeatedly asked to do thing (sic) that get near and potentially over the line into the illegal..."
The email specifically mentioned "helping Bill to get drugs, in order to deal with consequences of sex with russian girls" among other alleged activities.
Divorce and Epstein Connection
Bill and Melinda Gates were married between 1994 and 2021, with Melinda citing Gates's affairs and his friendship with Epstein as reasons for their divorce, though she did not provide further details. According to reports, Melinda hired lawyers to plan her separation from Gates in 2019 after learning about his repeated meetings with Epstein, contrary to the Microsoft founder's previous public denials.
She reportedly retained counsel after becoming concerned about her husband's alleged business dealings with the convicted paedophile financier, highlighting how the Epstein association had profound personal consequences for the Gates family.
Epstein's Criminal History and Aftermath
Jeffrey Epstein killed himself in a New York jail cell in August 2019, just one month after being indicted on federal sex trafficking charges. His criminal history included serving jail time in Florida during 2008 and 2009 after pleading guilty to soliciting prostitution from someone under the age of 18.
Investigators had gathered evidence that Epstein had sexually abused underage girls at his Palm Beach home, but the US attorney's office agreed not to prosecute him in exchange for his guilty plea to lesser state charges at that time.
In 2021, a federal jury in New York convicted Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell of sex trafficking for helping recruit some of his underage victims. She is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence at a facility in Texas, though she continues to deny any wrongdoing.
While prosecutors never charged anyone else in connection with Epstein's abuse of girls, one of his victims, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, accused him in lawsuits of arranging for her to have sexual encounters at ages 17 and 18 with numerous prominent figures, all of whom denied her allegations. Among those accused was ex-Prince Andrew, who lost his royal title over his close relationship with Epstein. Giuffre died by suicide in 2025.
As the tennis tournament continued in Melbourne, Gates's public appearance served as a stark contrast to the dark allegations contained within the Epstein documents, highlighting the ongoing tension between his public persona and the serious claims now circulating in the public domain.
