Epstein Transferred Thousands of Dollars to Noam Chomsky, Leon Botstein: Report

Wealthy sex offender Jeffrey Epstein moved hundreds of thousands of dollars for two academics in the years before his 2019 arrest, according to a Wall Street Journal report. Linguist Noam Chomsky told the Journal that he sought financial “advice” from Epstein, who in 2018 transferred $270,000 to him. Chomsky claimed the transaction—which was related to the disbursement of funds from his first marriage—“did not involve one penny from Epstein.” He added: “The simplest way seemed to be to transfer funds from one account in my name to another, by way of his office.” Last month, Chomsky claimed his ties to Epstein were “none of your business” and that “I knew him and we met occasionally.” Meanwhile, Bard College president Leon Botstein said he received $150,000 from Epstein in 2016 and donated the funds to Bard. According to Botstein, Epstein had arranged the funds after placing him on the advisory board of Epstein’s secret charity Gratitude America. He told the Journal: “I have no idea why he concocted this scheme. He didn’t want to write a check to Bard. He took pity on me, and he said, ‘I’m gonna give you money and you do whatever you want with it.’”