WSJ: Bill Gates was blackmailed after an affair with a Russian mistress-gambler
Bill Gates cheated on his wife with a Russian gambler and bridge master and later became the victim of blackmail. About it became known from a Wall Street Journal (WSJ) investigation into the machinations of financier Jeffrey Epstein, who ended his life in prison in 2019 after being accused of sex trafficking underage girls.
Sources familiar with the story claim that in 2010, Epstein found out about Gates’ affair with Mila Antonova, a girl from Russia. By that time, the mistress of the Microsoft founder had earned a reputation in the United States as a virtuoso bridge player. Antonova founded a bridge club and was looking for investors for her startup BridgePlanet, an online training resource for beginner card players.
Gates met Antonova, who was later threatened by Epstein, in 2010, when she was in her early 20s. He began to play bridge with a girl in her club. In one of the YouTube videos, Antonova recalled how she played with a millionaire in one of the tournaments: “I didn’t beat him at cards, but I tried to kick him.” It was then, presumably, that they began an affair, despite the fact that Gates was married.
Subsequently, Antonova met Epstein through Boris Nikolic, one of Gates’ aides. It was Epstein who was supposed to help her find the necessary amount to launch the courses. However, according to the WSJ, the plan to seek investment did not work. As a result, Antonova moved into the apartment offered to her by Epstein and decided to take up programming. It was Epstein who paid for her education.
I didn’t interact with Epstein or anyone else while I lived there. Epstein agreed to pay for my tuition, and he transferred the required amount to their account. He didn’t ask for anything in return, and I don’t know why he did it. When I asked him about it, he said he was rich and liked helping people whenever he had the chance.
When Antonova was trying to launch her startup, Epstein was working on setting up a charitable foundation. He negotiated with JP Morgan. For his philanthropic venture to succeed, Epstein needed to recruit the ultra-wealthy. Each prospective member had to make an entry fee of $100 million, as well as spend millions on additional expenses. The charity was conceived as a way to improve the reputation of Epstein, who in 2008 pleaded guilty to harassing an underage girl and persuading her into prostitution.
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Documents reviewed by reporters showed that the Epstein Foundation project depended on receiving support from Gates. In emails sent to JP Morgan executives, Epstein attempted to pose as a close adviser to Gates, though he did not include the Microsoft founder in the copy of the emails.
“Essentially, the fund will ensure that Bill is exposed to more promising people, access to new investments, better management opportunities, without harming his marriage or hurting the feelings of current employees of his company,” Epstein wrote in an August 2011 email.
A spokesman for Gates, in response to an inquiry from WSJ reporters, “said that Epstein never worked for Gates and misrepresented the nature of their relationship with JP Morgan and others.”
In 2017, Epstein wrote Gates about Antonova after their fling was over, insiders told the magazine. In an email, Epstein asked Gates to reimburse him for Antonova’s tuition at a programming school. The meaning of the letter was that Epstein knew about the affair and could divulge the information.
Two years later, in 2019, federal prosecutors charged Epstein with sex trafficking of minors and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking. Epstein denied the allegations and was denied bail. A few months later, while in prison, he took his own life.
It was previously reported that media mogul Rupert Murdoch broke off the engagement with the bride, who was supposed to be his fifth wife. Murdoch did not comment on the reasons for the breakup.
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