Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick donated $5 million to a super PAC supporting House Republicans in the period before his scheduled deposition on Capitol Hill about his connections to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, according to Federal Election Commission filings reviewed by the Wail.
The contribution landed in the coffers of the House GOP-aligned committee as Democrats pressed for Lutnick to answer questions under oath about his relationship with Epstein, who died in federal custody in August 2019 while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges.
FEC records make the donation a matter of public record, but the proximity to Lutnick's expected testimony drew immediate attention from critics who called the timing worth scrutiny.
Lutnick served as chief executive of Cantor Fitzgerald before his Senate confirmation as Commerce Secretary earlier this year. His name has surfaced in discussions about Epstein's wider social and financial network, though no criminal allegations against Lutnick have been made public.
The Commerce Department did not immediately return a request for comment. A spokesperson for the super PAC declined to characterize the donation's timing.
Sources familiar with the congressional inquiry told the Wail that committee staff are working to schedule a formal deposition date. No confirmed hearing date had been announced at time of publication.