Dalai Lama says he never met Jeffrey Epstein amid claims linking him to sex offender

The Dalai Lama on Sunday issued a firm denial after recent media reports and social media posts attempted to link him to Jeffrey Epstein through references to the so-called “Epstein files”.

In a press statement shared on his official X account, the Tibetan spiritual leader’s office said the claims were false and misleading. “We can unequivocally confirm that His Holiness has never met Jeffrey Epstein,” the statement said, adding that no meeting or interaction had ever been authorised on his behalf.

The clarification comes amid renewed online scrutiny of individuals named in documents linked to Epstein, the disgraced financier who died in jail in 2019.

Why are people linking the Dalai Lama to Epstein?

Reports have claimed that the Dalai Lama’s name appears 169 times in emails tied to the disgraced financier’s case. The extensive tranche of documents was made public by the US Department of Justice and includes millions of pages of correspondence, images and records connected to Epstein’s network of contacts.

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Some of the emails reportedly reference events from October 2012, with suggestions that the Dalai Lama was expected to attend a function linked to Epstein.

Separate reports also noted claims that individuals described as followers of the Dalai Lama might have been present at Epstein’s gatherings. A journalist named Michael Wolff previously mentioned encountering the Dalai Lama at Epstein’s Manhattan home, speculating that visits to Epstein’s residence were often tied to financial interests rather than personal ties.

Past controversies, such as the Dalai Lama’s appearance at a 2009 event for the now-defunct NXIVM group, have also been cited in discussions of his name in the documents.

However, experts and fact-checkers caution that mentioning a name in the files does not imply wrongdoing or confirm meetings with Epstein. No official evidence has emerged showing that the Dalai Lama had a personal relationship with Epstein or participated in any illicit activities.