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Ex-Victoria’s Secret mogul Les Wexner’s lawyer was caught on a hot mic jokingly threatening to “kill” him if he continued giving long answers to questions during his deposition on Jeffrey Epstein by the House Oversight Committee.
The moment was caught after the committee released its full, nearly five-hour deposition of 88-year-old Wexner as part of its ongoing probe into Jeffrey Epstein’s network.
Several hours into the deposition, while Wexner was giving a particularly long-winded answer, Wexner’s attorney leaned over to him and whispered in his ear, “I’m going to f—ing kill you if you answer another question with more than five words, okay?”
Both Wexner and his attorney laughed after this statement, indicating Wexner understood it as a joke. The lawyer proceeded to instruct Wexner to “answer the question,” laughing more.
Shortly before this exchange, the attorney had urged Wexner to “answer the question,” saying, “I’m sure we all appreciate the stories, we’re just trying to answer questions that they actually want answered,” referring to the House committee.
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Leslie Wexner, founder of Victoria’s Secret and other fashion brands, is named numerous times in the DOJ’s files on Jeffrey Epstein. (Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images for Fragrance Foundation; Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Victoria’s Secret; Neil Rasmus/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images)
The Oversight Committee heard from Wexner, a billionaire fashion mogul best known for his work in revolutionizing the Victoria’s Secret store chain, about his involvement with Epstein, whom Wexner characterized as strictly a business associate rather than a close friend.
Despite being named a co-conspirator in a recently uncovered FBI document from 2019, Wexner said that he has never been directly contacted by either the FBI or the Department of Justice. He maintained his total innocence during the deposition, saying, “I was naïve, foolish, and gullible to put any trust in Jeffrey Epstein. He was a con man. And while I was conned, I have done nothing wrong and have nothing to hide. I completely and irrevocably cut ties with Epstein nearly twenty years ago when I learned that he was an abuser, a crook, and a liar.”
The committee stated it was releasing the full deposition with “no spin,” saying, “The American people deserve to see the testimony for themselves—transparency matters.”
Wexner is the founder of L Brands, formerly called The Limited, through which he acquired well-known companies Victoria’s Secret, Bath & Body Works, Express, and Abercrombie & Fitch, among others. He is no longer associated with Victoria’s Secret. He was one of Epstein’s first major clients as a financial advisor, with Epstein being granted power of attorney over Wexner’s vast wealth. Wexner also sold his Manhattan townhouse to Epstein, which was later discovered to be one of the locations where federal authorities accused Epstein of abusing young women and girls under 18.
Despite this, Wexner stated that he always kept his relationship with Epstein as strictly professional, saying, “I don’t think I ever went to lunch, or dinner, a movie or had a cup of coffee with Jeffrey,” adding, “My focus was on my business and on community.”
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L Brands founder and former CEO Les Wexner speaks during the company’s investor day at the retailer’s headquarters in New Albany, Ohio, on Nov. 2, 2017. (Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
Wexner said he severed ties with Epstein in 2007 after learning of an investigation and discovering that Epstein had misappropriated funds from him and his family. He said a substantial amount of the money was returned.
Wexner also testified that he was not aware of Epstein ever staying at a guesthouse on his New Albany, Ohio, estate, where Maria Farmer is said to have been abused by Epstein and associate Ghislaine Maxwell. He maintained that he only had knowledge of Epstein staying at a nearby neighbor’s residence. Pressed on whether he denies Farmer’s testimony that she was abused on his property, he stated, “I never met her, didn’t know she was here, didn’t know she was abused.”
He categorically denied any knowledge of either Epstein or Maxwell arranging women for prominent individuals. He also categorically denied ever having a sexual encounter with anyone introduced by Maxwell and Epstein or having any sexual relationship with Epstein himself.
He further denied any sexual contact or knowledge of another prominent Epstein victim, Virginia Giuffre.
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Jeffrey Epstein beside Ghislaine Maxwell. (Patrick McMullan via Getty Images)
Wexner was also asked about his knowledge of Epstein and President Donald Trump’s relationship. He said that he does not think they were friends, but said Epstein “held him out as a friend.”
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Committee members also questioned Wexner on a note he wrote in a birthday book to Epstein in which he drew breasts with the caption, “Dear Jeffrey, I wanted to get you what you want, so here it is … Your friend, Leslie.”
Wexner confirmed that he wrote the note but dismissed it, saying, “He was a bachelor, so I drew a pair of boobs as kind of a joke, offhandedly, I would say.”
Wexner is the fourth person appearing before the House Oversight Committee in its Epstein probe.
Fox News Digital’s Liz Elkind contributed to this report.
