Former Governor of New Mexico (2003-2011) and U.S. Secretary of Energy under President Clinton (1998-2001). Richardson died on August 9, 2023, at age 75.
Virginia Giuffre named Richardson in a 2016 deposition in Giuffre v. Maxwell. She testified that Ghislaine Maxwell directed her to give Richardson a "massage" and that she was "sent to" New Mexico to meet him, though she said she could not recall the exact time or location.
Richardson denied the allegation as "completely false" and stated he had never met Giuffre. Flight logs and records released in the Epstein investigation documented at least nine meetings between Richardson and Epstein after Epstein's 2008 Florida conviction on sex crime charges, including at least one reported visit to Epstein's private island in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Richardson publicly denied visiting the island. A 2011 helicopter leg in the flight logs listed Richardson as a passenger. Epstein's contact book included Richardson's contact information.
Records obtained by the Santa Fe New Mexican showed Richardson met with Epstein multiple times between 2008 and at least 2011, years after the Florida conviction. Richardson stated that in his limited interactions with Epstein he never saw underage girls present. He was never charged with any crime related to the Epstein investigation.