Leslie Herbert Wexner is an American billionaire businessman who founded The Limited retail empire and served as Jeffrey Epstein's most significant early patron and client. Wexner gave Epstein power of attorney over his finances in the late 1980s and transferred major assets to him, including the Manhattan townhouse at 9 East 71st Street. The relationship continued until approximately 2005, when Wexner reportedly severed ties amid Epstein's Palm Beach investigation.

Born in 1937 in Dayton, Ohio, to Russian-Jewish immigrant parents, Wexner initially intended to study architecture but majored in Business Administration at Ohio State University. In 1963, Wexner borrowed $5,000 from his aunt to start The Limited in Columbus, Ohio. He found early mentorship with A. Alfred Taubman, the Detroit real-estate developer and retail innovator. Wexner built a strong company culture emphasizing loyalty, hierarchy, and an internal "family" ethos where employees were called "associates." Critics likened the culture to a corporate cult where conformity was prized over creativity. He created a retail and marketing conglomerate that came to encompass Victoria's Secret, Bath & Body Works, Henri Bendel, Lane Bryant, Abercrombie & Fitch, Lerner New York, The Limited Too, and Express.

Epstein began managing Wexner's personal fortune in the late 1980s, gaining power of attorney and control over numerous holdings. The exact origin of their relationship remains unclear, though Epstein was introduced through influential circles. In 1989, Wexner transferred the $56 million Manhattan mansion at 9 East 71st Street to Epstein for $0. Wexner later claimed the house was sold to Epstein for $20 million, though deed records show otherwise. Wexner's private jet was sold to Epstein below market value. Epstein managed numerous shell companies for Wexner, including Park Properties, Rocky Fork Development Corp, City Centre Investment Corp, Cherry Bottom Properties, Wexner Investment Company, West First Plaza Inc., and C-Wren Investment Corp—all dissolved between 1992 and 1998. Wexner later claimed Epstein "misappropriated vast sums" of his money, though no FBI theft report has been publicly documented. Estimates of Epstein's earnings from Wexner range from $200 million according to the Wall Street Journal to $400 million in investigative estimates.

In 1985, Columbus attorney Arthur Shapiro was murdered one day before he was scheduled to testify before a federal grand jury about tax evasion charges. Shapiro's law firm represented The Limited and various Wexner-controlled entities. A 1991 Columbus Police Department Organized Crime Bureau memo documented Wexner's alleged business connections to mob-linked figures including Edward DeBartolo and Frank Walsh. The memo identified Shapiro's murder within the context of these relationships, though no charges were ever filed against Wexner.

Wexner was Epstein's most critical early enabler. Without Wexner's financial backing, asset transfers, and social legitimization, Epstein would not have been able to establish himself as a financier or build his trafficking operation. The power of attorney and asset transfers remain among the most suspicious aspects of Epstein's rise. Wexner married Abigail S. Koppel in 1993, and they have four children.

Sources

Vanity Fair; Forbes; New York Times; Unlimited Hangout; Ohio Secretary of State dissolution filings; The Columbus Dispatch; Epstein OSINT Database cross-references.