Billionaire Leon Black has denied a claim from a Russian ex-girlfriend who said Black flew her out to have sex with Jeffrey Epstein, calling the accusation a “fantastical tale” in a court filing. Black claims he has proof that the 2008 flight never happened, along with an audio recording that allegedly shows Guzel Ganieva, his ex, admitting she never met Epstein. “While a lurid potboiler starring Jeffrey Epstein may be good for grabbing tabloid headlines, the overwhelming and irrefutable evidence in this case betrays the utter falsity of these allegations,” his lawyer wrote, per The Wall Street Journal.
Ganieva accused Black in June of arranging the trip to meet his “best friend,” alleging he would frame her for drug abuse if she ever disclosed the trip. Black resigned as head of Apollo Global Management after an investigation revealed he paid Epstein more than $150 million as a personal consultant.
Jeanne M. Christensen, a lawyer for Ganieva, countered that it was Black who had concocted a “false narrative.” “Black’s billions and his powerful connections will not prevent the truth from coming out,” she said in a statement to The Daily Beast. “We are confident that a jury of Ms. Ganieva’s peers will hold Black accountable for Black’s horrific conduct.”
