Epstein email casts new scrutiny on Anwar as Malaysia weighs political fallout

An internal email connected to Jeffrey Epstein described Malaysia’s Anwar Ibrahim as a potential political asset years before he became prime minister, according to documents unsealed last week. The email suggested Anwar could facilitate introductions for a major bank, but provides no indication that Anwar was aware of or agreed to any such role. Anwar has since categorically denied any contact with Epstein.

The email, dated February 2012, was written by an associate of Epstein and proposed a meeting between Anwar and a senior banking executive identified as “Jes,” widely reported as a reference to a JP Morgan executive. The message reads, “Should we arrange a meeting for Jes with Anwar Ibrahim? If he becomes prime minister of Malaysia, he will clean up and it could be a gold mine for JPM.”

In the same email, the writer added, “I know Anwar well, always stayed close to him for many years even though everybody says he is finished and can never come back. Looks different now.”

The correspondence does not include Anwar as a sender or recipient and does not document any reply from him. There is also no evidence in the released files that the proposed meeting occurred or that Anwar had knowledge of the message at the time it was written.

“Just today, I found out that some outsider wanted to meet and even ‘dropped’ my name in an e-mail linked to the Epstein case,” Anwar said in a statement on X. He added, “Thank Allah, as mentioned in that email, it’s been more than a decade, and I have absolutely no connection whatsoever with any of the parties exchanging those emails, especially Epstein.”

Anwar made his public remarks after Armada Bersatu, the youth wing of the Bersatu party, demanded that he clarify allegations that he had interacted, directly or indirectly, with Epstein or with individuals named in documents disclosed by the U.S. Department of Justice.

The mention of Anwar is part of a wider release of Epstein-related documents that have referenced political figures across Asia, often without evidence of direct involvement. In India, government officials dismissed similar references involving Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with the Ministry of External Affairs calling them “trashy ruminations by a convicted criminal” and rejecting any suggestion of improper links.