Bill Gates is reportedly hiding after WSJ’s report that his ties to child molester Jeffrey Epstein may have triggered Melinda to seek divorce

The news of Microsoft co-founder Bill and Melinda Gates’ divorce rocked the tech world last week after both announced on May 3 that they are ending their marriage after 27 years. In an announcement on Twitter, the two said they will keep working together on philanthropic efforts, which have addressed education, gender equality, and health care.

When the divorce announcement was made public last week, people all over the world were wondering why they have decided to go their separate ways. But now, thanks to the Wall Street Journal report, we seem to have some insights into why their marriage hit the rock.

It turned out that Melinda Gates had consulted with divorce lawyers roughly two years before the divorce announcement was made public. Melinda contacted divorce lawyers in 2019 about separating from her billionaire husband, saying their marriage was “irretrievably broken,” according to people familiar with the matter and documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal (WSJ).

Now, according to another report from Business Insider (via Yahoo News), Bill Gates is reportedly hiding out in his mansion at a billionaires’ golf club in California that costs $250,000 to join. Citing Page Six, Business Insider reported that “The 65-year-old billionaire has been lying low in his multimillion-dollar house at The Vintage Club in Indian Wells for a few months.” The source added that Gates had been at his $12.5 million mansion at The Vintage Club for three months.

Even though the couple hasn’t publicly stated the reason for their divorce, Melinda Gates was concerened about her husband’s dealings with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, according to WSJ, citing the people and a former employee of their charity, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

A former employee also told the WSJ that Gates continued his relationship with sex offender Epstein despite Melinda telling her husband she was uncomfortable with the disgraced child molester. Epstein was worth $500 million at the time of his death in 2019. WSJ wrote:

“One source of concern for Ms. Gates was her husband’s dealings with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, according to the people and a former employee of their charity, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Ms. Gates’s concerns about the relationship dated as far back as 2013, the former employee said.”

A similar report also further found that Melinda Gates met with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein alongside her husband, Bill, in New York City about eight years ago. And soon after the meeting, Melinda was furious at the relationship between the two men, according to people familiar with the situation.

The previously unreported meeting took place at Epstein’s Upper East Side mansion in September 2013, on the same day the couple accepted the Lasker-Bloomberg Public Service Award at The Pierre hotel and were photographed alongside then-Mayor Mike Bloomberg.

From the Wall Street Journal:

“Ms. Gates consulted with divorce lawyers roughly two years before she filed for divorce from Mr. Gates, saying their marriage was “irretrievably broken,” according to people familiar with the matter and documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.”

[…]

“The couple hasn’t said what prompted the split. One source of concern for Ms. Gates was her husband’s dealings with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, according to the people and a former employee of their charity, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Ms. Gates’s concerns about the relationship dated as far back as 2013, the former employee said.”