Bill Gates Says He Regrets Ties to Jeffrey Epstein: 'It Was a Huge Mistake to Spend Time with Him'

Paul Best/Getty Bill Gates

Bill Gates isn't proud of spending time with Jeffrey Epstein.

Back in 2019, Gates denied having "any business relationship or friendship" with Epstein, a billionaire financier who died by suicide inside a jail cell that August while awaiting trial on federal conspiracy and sex trafficking charges.

When news broke earlier this year of his divorce from now-ex-wife Melinda French Gates, sources close to the couple told PEOPLE that his connection with Epstein was a "sore spot" for the couple.

Appearing on CNN's Anderson Cooper 360 on Wednesday, Gates addressed his past ties to Epstein, saying, "It was a huge mistake to spend time with him, to give him the credibility of being there. There were lots of others in that situation, but I made a mistake."

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"I had several dinners with him hoping that what he said about getting billions of philanthropy for global health through contacts that he had might emerge. When it looked like that wasn't a real thing, that relationship ended," said Gates, 65.

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The New York Times reported in 2019 that Gates first met Epstein after the latter had already served jail time for soliciting prostitution for a minor and was registered as a sex offender.

Though Gates told the Wall Street Journal at the time that he did not have "any business relationship or friendship" with Epstein, the Times reported that beginning in 2011, the two men met multiple times and discussed Epstein's proposal to help raise funds for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation that never came to fruition.

A source previously told PEOPLE that anything involving Epstein was "major trauma" for French Gates, 56.

"She was totally opposed to what she considered shady dealings and some other issues he wanted to pursue in the business area," the source said at the time. "She was not afraid to speak up about it either."

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Gates' Epstein connection made headlines again in May when a New York Times report claimed he "remarked in Mr. Epstein's presence that he was unhappy in his marriage" at least one time. The newspaper also reported that Melinda was "unhappy" when the two men's relationship became public knowledge in 2019, and subsequently consulted with divorce lawyers.

When the Times reported in 2019 on the relationship between Epstein and Gates, the Microsoft co-founder's spokesperson Bridgitt Arnold said Gates "regretted the relationship with Epstein" and was unaware that a private jet he'd flown on had belonged to Epstein.

Arnold also denied to the outlet that Gates ever socialized or attended parties with Epstein, saying they only ever met to "discuss philanthropy."

A statement shared with PEOPLE in May from a Gates spokesperson doubled down on that claim, saying that the newspaper's "characterization of his meetings with Epstein and others about philanthropy is inaccurate, including who participated."

Gates and French Gates' divorce was finalized earlier this week.