Epstein files: whistleblower Simon Andriesz dies after revealing links to Howard Lutnick

Key facts

Who is Simon Andriesz?

Andriesz was general director of BCG, according to the BBC. While working at the firm, he discovered alleged fraud, which he reported internally in 2016, refusing to sign documents containing allegedly fraudulent figures. He told the BBC he was then fired from the company in 2017 over disputes after ending up in hospital with heart problems, suggesting he believed the company had used his health problems as an excuse to fire him for reporting wrongdoing. BCG strongly denied these claims, describing Andriesz as a former employee with an “axe to grind” and characterized his dismissal at the BBC as being based on Andriesz’s refusal to follow medical advice and failing to carry out certain duties. After leaving his job on Wall Street, Andriesz reported Cantor Fitzerald’s alleged fraud to British and American authorities, he told the BBC, eventually also speaking to the FBI about Lutnick and his alleged links to Epstein. Andriesz moved from Wall Street to Cornwall, a region in southwest England, and told the BBC that his whistleblowing and the alleged retaliation he allegedly faced had taken a toll on his health. BCG continued to retaliate against him even after he left the company, he claimed, something the company categorically denied. BCG has not yet responded to a request for additional comment in light of Andriesz’s death. Andriesz suffered from dissociative seizures and had gone to a trauma center to deal with the stress of his “intense ordeal” he faced due to his whistleblowing, he told the BBC, and said he opposed BGC’s alleged wrongdoing because “it’s in my DNA to fight for justice”. The whistleblower created an account on job on the platform, writing: “The personal consequences of the reporting, and the retaliation that followed, in my opinion, were devastating for my family and me. » Andriesz said in his post on

Did Epstein and Howard Lutnick do business together?

Andriesz’s allegations regarding Epstein and Lutnick focus on the two men invested in the Adfin company. A 2018 e-mail The exchange in Epstein’s files, which Andriesz claims to have discovered for the first time, shows the two men discussing the company, with Epstein asking Lutnick: “What do you think are the prospects for Adfin?” Lutnick responded by writing: “Finally produce income. This is their year. The next 12 months they need to become economically self-sufficient.” This email came after the pair had already invested in Adfin, along with the BBC noting Epstein invested in the company shortly after Lutnick visited the financier’s private island in 2012, and Lutnick invested shortly after. In a interview With the House Oversight Committee in May, Lutnick denied having any business dealings with Epstein or knowing that Epstein was also invested in Adfin, telling lawmakers that, “to the best of his recollection,” he was not aware of the financier’s involvement until Epstein’s records were made public earlier this year. He also described as “inexplicable and disturbing” the fact that documents regarding his investment in Adfin were included in the Epstein files. Asked about his 2018 email exchange with Epstein, Lutnick claimed that he was trying to market Adfin to advertising clients at the time and that he “would have told everyone” about the company. “So it wouldn’t surprise me if people knew about it,” Lutnick said to explain why he told Epstein about Adfin without knowing that the financier had invested in it. Epstein questioning Adfin’s prospects was not “unusual,” Lutnick claimed, because the company was trying to “get attention.” Lawmakers also asked Lutnick about a 2013 email between Epstein and former Adfin board member David Mitchell about an attempted meeting with Lutnick about Adfin, which Lutnick denied knowledge of.

Howard Lutnick’s relationship with Epstein

Lutnick and Epstein were neighbors on Manhattan’s Upper East Side before the financier’s arrest and death, and Lutnick gained attention for his shifting explanation of their relationship. He has never been accused of wrongdoing or abuse in connection with Epstein and has denied knowledge of the financier’s alleged abuse. Before the publication of the Epstein files, Lutnick said According to the New York Post, he had a “unique and absolutely complete” meeting with Epstein in 2005, when Lutnick and his wife visited Epstein’s house. Lutnick claimed they left after Epstein insinuated that he received sexual massages at his home, and told the Post that he “was never in a room with (Epstein) socially, for business or even for philanthropy” after that, calling Epstein “disgusting.” Epstein’s files contradicted Lutnick’s account, however, showing that the two men had communications that continued into 2018, and Lutnick later admitted to Congress that he had in fact met Epstein three times after they first became neighbors. These interactions included Lutnick’s visit to Epstein’s private island in 2012, with Lutnick saying he and his family had lunch on the island and spent about “an hour” there. He told Congress he did not see anyone on the island other than Epstein’s staff or witness any wrongdoing. In his interview with the House Oversight Committee in May, Lutnick said he “had no personal or professional relationship with (Epstein), despite the proximity of our addresses.”

Forbes Rating

Forbes appreciates Lutnick and his family net worth to $7.2 billion as of Monday afternoon.

What we don’t know

Details are scant about the circumstances of Andriesz’s death, beyond the fact that the whistleblower spoke to the BBC about the mental health issues he had faced. There is no evidence to suggest foul play regarding his death, although news of the whistleblower’s death, shortly after he spoke with the media about Epstein, nevertheless sparked intrigue. “And it’s just a coincidence that one of the whistleblowers in the scandal was just found dead?” Julie K. Brown, the journalist who first revealed the full extent of Epstein’s alleged abuse, job on X Sunday in response to the Trump administration opposing the release of more Epstein files in court. The deaths of people linked to the Epstein affair have long sparked public fascination, with a French model recruiter with ties to Epstein recently being found dead in July, although Epstein’s own death — by suicide in his prison cell in 2019 — sparked the most speculation and accusations of foul play.

Tangent

In addition to the allegations regarding Lutnick and Epstein, Andriesz also discovered information in the Epstein files about Lutnick and Cantor Fitzgerald’s ties to Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew. Mountbatten-Windsor is a longtime Epstein ally who faced accusations of wrongdoing in connection with Epstein, which he denies, and was stripped of his royal title due to his dealings with the late financier. According to emails in the Epstein files, Cantor Fitzgerald had sought to strike a deal with Mountbatten-Windsor, where he would lend the royal £1 million in exchange for bringing wealthy friends into the business. He would also receive a 50% cut of all fees received by Cantor Fitzgerald if these friends became clients. A Mountbatten-Windsor adviser passed the deal on to Epstein and the financier strongly opposed it, pointing out that it prohibited the royal from doing business with other companies and could pose additional legal problems. Cantor Fitzgerald told the BBC the deal never went through and Mountbatten-Windsor has not commented on the allegations.

Further reading

Whistleblower who reported Lutnick’s ties to Epstein dies (The banker)

How the US Commerce Secretary’s Epstein links were discovered by a British whistleblower (BBC News)

Howard Lutnick’s ties to Epstein explained – during his testimony before Congress today (Forbes)