The veil has completely dropped on the relationship between former Apollo boss Leon Black and convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, revealing an astonishing dynamic that was less business advisory and more high-stakes extortion. Newly reviewed emails expose Epstein as not just demanding, but downright “cruel,” as he squeezed Black for a staggering $170 MILLION—well over a decade after his sex crimes were public knowledge.
The biggest shocker? Epstein’s “pressure campaign” on the billionaire went straight for the jugular—Black’s family.
NYT published an investigation into billionaire Leon Black today, revealing that he paid millions of dollars to Epstein victims and other women.
NYT also published emails in which Epstein aggressively pushed Black to pay him. In one email, Epstein called Black's kids retarded. pic.twitter.com/UqTMSXTjGE— Ken Silva (@JD_Cashless) October 18, 2025
Leon Black paid between $50 million to $75 million to child trafficker Jeffrey Epstein for "advice & services" after Epstein was convicted in 2008. The two often socialized & dined together; payments were sufficiently unusual they drew scrutiny from Deutsche Bank. #OpDeathEaters pic.twitter.com/N3mvpPlhcD
— Anonymous (@OpDeathEaters) October 17, 2020
The Cruelty in Print
In one sickening November 2016 missive about Black’s personal estate issues, Epstein penned a truly monstrous line, attacking Black’s children:
“You have a bomb of colored string that your retarded children have formed. It has to be very carefully unwound.”
Yet, the payments did not stop. In fact, Black continued to cut checks for a further two years.
Epstein’s Gold-Plated Terms
The financial demands were equally brazen. Epstein, never one for subtlety, outlined his terms like a contract killer:
“I will only work for the usual 40 million per year. It needs to be paid, 25 million upon signing an agreement.”
He even tried to soften the cash grabs with a nauseating postscript: “Of course re any non financial issues, I am always there for you and will continue to be the best friend I can be.” Friendship goals, indeed.
Hush Money and Denials
The report also reignites the firestorm over Black’s alleged involvement with Epstein’s victims. Investigators are reportedly looking at millions of dollars Black paid to at least eight women later listed among Epstein’s associates and victims.
- Black’s lawyer, Susan Estrich, fiercely maintains the $170M was for legitimate, billions-saving tax advice, adding, “Mr. Black has never abused a woman in his life and any such suggestion is false.
- However, the report notes Black was introduced to women by Epstein, including one, Cheri Pierson, who claimed Black raped her in Epstein’s townhouse (a claim Black denies and which was withdrawn).
The Birthday Boy’s Club
And just when you thought the VIP list was done—the report reveals both Black and Donald Trump contributed to a sick vanity book for Epstein’s 50th in 2003.
Black’s entry, a handwritten poem, contained the chilling, self-incriminating verse: “Blonde, Red or Brunette, spread out geographically / With his net of fish, Jeff’s now ‘The Old Man and the Sea’.”
It seems that for the price of $170 million, Black bought himself a friendship with the devil, and now the receipts are on display for the world to see. Wall Street’s other most powerful man might find his legal defense just unraveled like a certain bomb of colored string.
