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resume, falsely claiming to have graduated from Stanford University, Mr. Tennenbaum said in an
interview and in a forthcoming memoir.
Mr. Epstein confessed, telling Mr. Tennenbaum he had embellished his background to get a teaching
job, according to the book. "I wanted to tell you the truth," he told Mr. Tennenbaum, who gave him a
second chance.
Mr. Epstein was an effective salesman, say those who worked with him. He rubbed some executives the
wrong way, however, becoming known for roaming the halls of the firm and treating his position with a
certain nonchalance, two former executives said.
"He smiled and kidded around," one former executive said. "It was all a game with him."
In four years, Mr. Epstein became a limited partner. A year later he was let go, according to people at
Bear Stearns, which was sold to JP Morgan Chase & Co. in spring 2008. He was alleged to have allocated
shares of initial public offerings to people who shouldn't have received them, according to people who
worked with him. One person said Bear Stearns brought up alleged expense-report infractions and
inaccuracies on Mr. Epstein's brokerage registration form.
"The Bear period got him in touch with the big money," recalls a former colleague. "It was his first
taste."
In 1982, he started J. Epstein & Co., which he pitched as a one-stop shop for wealth management—tax
advice, estate planning, accounting—to extremely wealthy individuals in the U.S. and overseas. Those
who worked or socialized with Mr. Epstein in the 1980s described him as a self-taught financial whiz
who cultivated what one person described as an "aura of success."
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Mr. Wexner, an up-and-coming retail magnate from Ohio, became his key client. Mr. Wexner's company
controlled the chains Abercrombie & Fitch , The Limited, Express and Victoria's Secret, and his wealth
would eventually grow to more than $7 billion, by a Forbes estimate. Mr. Epstein managed his money.
For almost a decade, Mr. Epstein co-managed up to 7% of the retail company's stock through trusts he
controlled, federal filings show. Working in an office in Midtown Manhattan with 10 to 15 lawyers,
accountants and administrative staff, Mr. Epstein helped with the apparel mogul's taxes, managed his
stock investments and ran his charities and trusts. He also became president of a company Mr. Wexner
set up to develop the town where he lives near Columbus, Ohio, a business document shows.
In 1991, Mr. Wexner granted Mr. Epstein authority to borrow money, pay expenses, sign contracts and
handle other financial dealings on his behalf, according to power-of-attorney documents filed in Franklin
County, Ohio. "He had absolute control" of Mr. Wexner's wealth, one person said.
Mr. Epstein drafted the prenuptial agreement between Mr. Wexner and his wife, Abigail, according to
people familiar with the matter. The retail company sold Mr. Epstein a Boeing 727, and Mr. Wexner sold
him his large Upper East Side Manhattan townhouse, which law-enforcement agents raided this month.
When Mr. Wexner did deals for assets such as real estate, Mr. Epstein would take a cut, said one of the
people. As Mr. Wexner's personal money manager, Mr. Epstein received a percentage of investment
gains, totaling millions of dollars annually.
In a companywide email this month, Mr. Wexner said he wasn't aware of Mr. Epstein's alleged behavior
with women and said he had severed ties with Mr. Epstein nearly 12 years ago. "I would not have
continued to work with any individual capable of such egregious, sickening behavior as has been
reported about him," he said.
On Wednesday, Mr. Wexner's L Brands Inc. said its board hired a law firm to conduct a review of Mr.
Epstein's role. "We do not believe he was ever employed by nor served as an authorized representative
of the company," an L Brands spokeswoman said.
Mr. Epstein's association with Mr. Wexner gave him legitimacy as a money manager for the wealthy,
and he began handling the portfolio of Elizabeth Ross Johnson, the heiress of the Johnson & Johnson
fortune. Ms. Johnson, known as Libet, was a tabloid fixture in New York with five husbands and years of
family drama.
Once again, the relationship went beyond money management—Mr. Epstein's name appears briefly on
property records for Ms. Johnson's home in Vail and several land parcels in Dutchess County, N.Y., north
of New York City.
Ms. Johnson died in 2017. A spokesman for the Johnson family declined to comment.
Around 1995, Mr. Epstein brought his staff to meet with Apollo Global Management LLC, a private-
equity firm run by Leon Black, to pitch his company as an ideal service for Apollo's wealthy clients,
including tax strategy. "He found every single provision that could justifiably be utilized, and he worked