Gates insists, however, that he committed no crimes and that the women he had adulterous sexual relations with were not associated with Epstein. Nonetheless, Gates' highlighting of Epstein's leveraging of Gates' sexual secrets fans suspicions that he sought to exploit similar secrets of other powerful people. 

"I never witnessed nor had any indication that Epstein was engaged in ongoing criminal conduct. I never went to his island, his ranch, or his Florida home. I have never victimized anyone. While he may have sought to foster a personal relationship, I was never interested in that and never reciprocated," Gates said in his opening remarks, which were published by the House Oversight committee. His testimony on Wednesday was given behind closed doors.

Gates told legislators that Epstein became aware of Gates' serial philandering with three different women via a mutual acquaintance.  "Based on what has been released in the files, Epstein was working to use information about my infidelities—in addition to many lies that he layered on top—to pressure me to re-engage with him," Gates said. "He was unsuccessful in this effort, but it shows some of the ways he tried to leverage his interactions with me to further his agenda."

The three women were two Russians and another woman who's been described as a doctor, according to a leak of Gates testimony leaked to the Wall Street Journal. Committee Democrats held a press conference in which they said Gates acknowledged having been in the company of women that were abused by Epstein or his colleagues. It's expected that the Oversight Committee will release a transcript of Gates' give-and-take with lawmakers, which reportedly became combative at times. 

Documents from the Epstein files revealed that Epstein and Gates met on several occasions after Epstein's 2008 conviction. Gates told the House committee that he met Epstein through "people I trusted in my professional and philanthropic work," and that Epstein promoted his ability to give tax and estate guidance. Gates expressed regret for not vetting Epstein. "I recall being aware that Epstein had faced prior legal issues, but I did not fully understand the extent of the crimes he committed. I accepted the introduction without applying the scrutiny I should have," said Gates in his opening remarks. He said he stopped communicating or meeting with Epstein in December 2014, after concluding that Epstein "would never deliver on his promises" of reeling in donors for the Gates Foundation.