What is the actual email between Bill Gates & Epstein?
Executive summary
The “actual email” at the center of the new Justice Department release is not a signed message from Bill Gates to Jeffrey Epstein but a set of draft, unsigned emails that appear to have been written by Epstein (or saved in his account) on July 18, 2013, alleging Gates contracted a sexually transmitted infection after sex with “Russian girls” and requested antibiotics to give surreptitiously to his then-wife, Melinda [1] [2] [3]. The documents were among millions in the DOJ tranche and are uncorroborated drafts that Gates’ representatives call “absolutely absurd and completely false” [4] [5].
1. What the documents actually say, in plain terms
The released files include two Epstein-composed emails dated July 18, 2013, that claim — in typo-ridden, draft form — that Gates had extramarital sex with “Russian girls,” contracted an STI, and sought antibiotics to conceal that condition from Melinda; one draft is framed as a resignation letter tied to a Gates Foundation advisor and another begins “dear Bill” and complains Gates ended a friendship [1] [2] [6]. Multiple outlets reporting on the DOJ release emphasize that these are emails saved in Epstein’s account and not messages bearing a Gates email address or signature [1] [4].
2. Who appears to have written or drafted the messages
Reporting indicates Epstein either authored the drafts himself or saved draft texts that he attributed to others — one draft purports to be a resignation letter from Boris Nikolic, a former Gates Foundation science adviser, and another appears written as though from Nikolic but exists only in files tied to Epstein’s account [5] [6]. Newsrooms note the drafts could have been Epstein’s way of memorializing disputes or inventing grievances; investigators’ files do not establish that the messages were sent to Gates or authenticated by independent evidence [4] [7].
3. What independent reporting and prosecutors say about corroboration
Major outlets caution that the emails contain unverified allegations and that the DOJ release did not include corroborating evidence for the lurid claims about an STI or a surreptitious supply of antibiotics [4] [2]. The New York Times explicitly states the emails did not include supporting proof, and other outlets echo that these materials are part of a massive data dump of notes, drafts and unvetted documents rather than court-tested evidence [4] [8].
4. Gates’ response and the competing narratives
Bill Gates’ spokesperson has forcefully denied the allegations, calling them “absolutely absurd and completely false,” and framed the documents as evidence of Epstein’s effort to entrap or defame people he wanted a relationship with [1] [7]. That rebuttal is the public counterweight to the DOJ material; in turn, some reporting notes Melinda French Gates cited Gates’ relationships and extramarital behavior as a factor in their divorce, though she has not publicly detailed the specific claims in the newly released drafts [9] [10].
5. Why this email attracts attention — and why caution matters
The documents gained outsized attention because they connect a globally prominent philanthropist to a reviled sex offender, and they sit inside a three-million-page release that mixes verified evidence with gossip, draft notes and unverified tips [4] [2]. Journalistic and legal practice requires treating these drafts as allegations in need of corroboration; several outlets and legal analysts warn against treating Epstein’s drafts as proof of events or of Gates’ intent [4] [11].
6. What remains unknown and the limits of the record
It remains unclear whether Epstein ever sent these drafts, whether they reflect real events, or whether they were fabrications intended to damage Gates; the DOJ files themselves do not resolve those questions and reporting reiterates the lack of corroboration [4] [6]. Where reporting does not provide verification, it would be dishonest to assert facts beyond what the documents show: unsigned drafts in Epstein’s files alleging an STI and cover-up attempts, and a categorical denial from Gates’ camp [2] [5].