Casey Wasserman, chief of the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics, has apologized for communicating with convicted sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell more than 20 years ago, following the publication of personal emails between them.
These flirtatious exchanges, dating from 2003 when Mr Wasserman was married, were among new files related to the late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, released by the US justice department on Friday.
In a statement issued early on Sunday, Mr Wasserman said: “I never had a personal or business relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.”
He added: “As is well documented, I went on a humanitarian trip as part of a delegation with the Clinton Foundation in 2002 on the Epstein plane. I am terribly sorry for having any association with either of them.”
Maxwell, a British socialite and Epstein’s former girlfriend, is serving a 20-year prison sentence after being found guilty in 2021 of sex trafficking a minor.
Mr Wasserman further stated: “I deeply regret my correspondence with Ghislaine Maxwell”, adding it occurred before her and Epstein’s crimes “came to light”.
Maxwell was arrested in 2020, accused of recruiting and grooming girls for sexual encounters with Epstein between 1994 and 2004. Epstein died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial.
Mr Wasserman is a prominent sports and entertainment executive, currently serving as chairman of the LA28 Olympic organising committee, a project he has led since its bidding phase.
The 2028 Summer Olympics were awarded to Los Angeles in 2017.
Mr Wasserman is set to play a key role in organizing the event, which will see the US host the Games for the first time since the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.
The US also staged the Olympics 12 years earlier, with those Games also taking place in Los Angeles.
The 2028 Games will be the third time that Los Angeles has hosted the Olympics after also welcoming the world’s best athletes back in 1932.
