Allegations Surface Against Leon Black for Alleged Assault at Jeffrey Epstein’s Townhouse

A federal lawsuit was filed on Tuesday, accusing Leon Black, the billionaire co-founder of Apollo Global Management, of raping a 16-year-old girl with autism in 2002 at the Manhattan townhouse of disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.

The lawsuit alleges that the plaintiff, who remains unidentified, was trafficked to Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, and that she was described in the legal complaint as having mosaic Down syndrome and a developmental age of around 12 years old. The plaintiff, now in her late 30s, has brought forth these allegations.

An attorney representing Black has denied the allegations and accused the law firm Wigdor LLP, responsible for the lawsuit, of pursuing a personal vendetta against the private equity investor through multiple cases – one of which was dismissed in May.

The filing of this latest civil lawsuit against Black comes shortly after The New York Times reported that he had agreed in January to pay $62.5 million to the U.S. Virgin Islands in order to settle any potential claims arising from the territory’s investigation into Epstein.

Earlier on Tuesday, the Senate Finance Committee released details of its yearlong investigation into Black’s connections with Epstein, including allegations that Black paid him $158 million for tax and estate planning services.

“Today, thanks to legislative initiatives in NYS that grant sexual violence victims the right to file claims previously barred by the statute of limitations, we were able to initiate legal action against Leon Black for the harm he committed against our client Jane Doe when she was a minor,” said Jeanne Christensen, a partner at Wigdor, in a statement. “This is a significant step forward for our client and for all sexual assault survivors. It is an honor to represent Jane Doe, and we look forward to the discovery and trial process regarding her claims.”

Susan Estrich, an attorney for Black, referred to the lawsuit filed on Tuesday as “frivolous and sanctionable.”

Estrich stated that Black has never met the plaintiff, referred to as Jane Doe in the legal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in lower Manhattan.

“These malicious and defamatory lies, disguised as allegations, have been intentionally fabricated by the Wigdor law firm as part of their personal vendetta against Mr. Black, due to his successful defense against them over the past two years,” Estrich added.

“Wigdor’s previous case against Mr. Black was recently dismissed by the Court, and this one will be as well. These allegations – regarding an incident that allegedly occurred 20 years ago – are completely fabricated, lacking any evidence, and are beyond the statute of limitations.”

“This fraudulent proceeding will be promptly dismissed and will only further support Mr. Black’s pending motion to sanction the Wigdor firm,” the lawyer concluded.

In December, a motion for sanctions was filed by Black in the New York Supreme Court in another case brought by Cheri Pierson, who accused Black of raping her in Epstein’s Manhattan mansion in 2002. Pierson, a single mother facing financial difficulties, had agreed to give Black a massage in a meeting arranged by Epstein.

Black’s request to sanction Wigdor argued that the law firm has repeatedly misused the court system in order to propagate baseless, unsubstantiated, and damaging allegations of sexual assault against him, across two lawsuits.

The motion for sanctions also referenced Guzel Ganieva, who was represented by Wigdor in a 2021 lawsuit accusing Black of sexual assault and defamation. This lawsuit was dismissed in May, and Ganieva reportedly terminated Wigdor’s representation in March.