House Oversight Committee votes to hold Leon Black in contempt of Congress after he ignored subpoenas related to Jeffrey Epstein investigation. Black, co-founder of Apollo Global Management, failed to appear for September 3 deposition and did not comply with separate subpoena seeking nondisclosure agreements. Justice Department will decide if criminal charges are pursued.
Black, who co-founded Apollo Global Management and stepped down in 2021, was asked to appear as part of Oversight Committee's probe into Epstein. He had previously appeared voluntarily in June but declined to answer questions about nondisclosure agreements. Committee issued two subpoenas seeking to compel Black to produce NDAs and appear for deposition. Black refused to appear despite committee's request to delay deposition to Sept 3.
Black's lawyers have denounced committee's actions as politically motivated and have sued the committee. They claim Black had no knowledge of Epstein's conduct and that the committee's pursuit was an abuse of congressional power. Committee has continued to insist on looking for information that does not exist. The matter will now be referred to Justice Department, which will decide whether to pursue criminal charges.