How Jeffrey Epstein Exploited the U.N.-Linked International Peace Institute and the Gates Foundation to Mask His Abuse Network

On September 12, 2015, a high-profile pandemic preparedness conference convened at the United Nations European headquarters in Geneva. Among the attendees were leading health experts, diplomats, and a senior Gates Foundation executive. But lurking in plain sight was Svetlana Pozhidaeva, a former Russian model and Epstein assistant with no relevant expertise, brought in under false pretenses.

Pozhidaeva’s presence at the International Peace Institute (IPI) event was part of a larger pattern of deception. Epstein, already a convicted sex offender by 2008, had cultivated a relationship with IPI, a U.N.-affiliated think tank focused on conflict prevention. He personally advised IPI staff on securing a $5 million donation from the Gates Foundation, which accounted for over 20% of IPI’s funding from 2013 to 2015. Epstein also helped channel nearly $1 million from private equity mogul Leon Black to the institute.

These donations gave Epstein a powerful platform. He leveraged his influence with IPI’s leadership to offer jobs and U.S. visa recommendation letters to women in his orbit, including at least four assistants. Many of these women, often from Russia or Eastern Europe, were recruited with promises of career opportunities that never materialized. Instead, they became trapped in Epstein’s web of control, dependent on him for housing, visas, and money, and subjected to repeated sexual abuse.

Emails released by the Department of Justice and personal testimonies reveal how Epstein used the prestige of the Gates Foundation and the International Peace Institute to legitimize himself and silence doubts from his victims. Pozhidaeva recalls feeling like a “fifth wheel” at the conference, wondering why she was even there, while another assistant described the chilling power Epstein wielded by association with global elites.

Epstein’s exploitation of philanthropic and international institutions highlights the systemic failures that allowed his trafficking network to operate with impunity. His ability to cloak abuse in the language of diplomacy and philanthropy underscores the urgent need for transparency and accountability at the highest levels.

This story is a stark reminder that powerful institutions can be weaponized to shield predators, and that vigilance is essential to protect vulnerable individuals from exploitation under the guise of legitimacy.