Jack Lang poses for photographers at the 77th international film festival, Cannes, France, on May 15, 2024. © Vianney Le Caer/Invision, AP/ File picture
Jack Lang, France’s former culture minister, on Saturday “offered” to resign as head of the prestigious Arab World Institute in Paris after he and his daughter Caroline were mentioned in the latest batch of documents related to the late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The day before, France’s financial crimes prosecutors announced they had opened a probe into the Lang family’s ties with Epstein. Lang is also due to appear before Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot after being summoned.
Paris Former French culture minister Jack Lang offered his resignation Saturday from his role as head of a Paris cultural centre over his links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, in a letter to the foreign minister seen by AFP.
Lang, who has headed the Arab World Institute (IMA) since 2013, is the most high-profile public figure in France caught up in the latest release of private messages from the paedophile New York businessman.
“I offer to submit my resignation” at the next board meeting, the 86-year-old wrote in a letter to Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot on the eve of his summons to the foreign ministry.
His resignation offer came after French prosecutors on Friday said they had opened a preliminary case against him and his daughter Caroline over “laundering of aggravated tax-fraud proceeds” after they were mentioned in files related to Epstein.
Barrot told reporters he had taken note of Lang’s offer and planned to launch the process to name an interim president of the IMA.
Before he offered his resignation, Lang on Saturday said the accusations against him were “baseless” and that he welcomed the probe.
“It will bring much light on to the accusations that are questioning my probity and my honour,” said Lang, whose name appears more than 670 times in the released documents.
The 86-year-old has denied any wrong-doing, saying he was “shocked” that his name appeared in the statutes of the offshore company in 2016 and that he had only appealed to Epstein as a philanthropist.
His daughter, Caroline, has already resigned from her job as head of the Union of Independent Producers (SPI), which represents independent film producers in France.
A mere mention in the files does not imply wrongdoing.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP)
