Inside Jeffrey Epstein's friendship with Cold Spring Harbor scientist and DNA pioneer James Watson

In early 2017, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, the Laurel Hollow research institution, was planning an exclusive event.

The function, "A Night with Nobels: Art, Science & History," promised refreshments, expensive artwork and remarks by multiple Nobel Prize winners — all hosted at the auction house Christie’s Rockefeller Center location.

"Would you be able to find out if Mr. Epstein can attend this very small dinner with Nobel Laureates at Christie’s on Tuesday, May 9?" a Cold Spring Harbor staffer wrote in an email to the assistant of Jeffrey Epstein, the financier and convicted sex offender.

The invitation was sent on behalf of one of those Nobel Laureates: James Watson, a pioneering biologist who led the Cold Spring Harbor lab for decades before being ousted over controversial remarks about race and intelligence. Watson died in November.

Now, a tranche of documents recently released by Congress and the U.S. Justice Department reveal new details about the ties between Epstein and Watson.

The records highlight not just Epstein's well-documented desire to befriend prominent figures in the scientific community, but also his yearslong relationship with Watson — including plans for a lunch at Cold Spring Harbor that were apparently derailed by Epstein's 2019 arrest on federal sex trafficking charges.

'Good hearted people'

By the late 2010s — years after Epstein had pleaded guilty to soliciting prostitution from a minor and served roughly a year in prison — the financier had integrated Watson and his wife into his busy social life, the newly released records show.

On Jan. 20, 2017, the Watsons joined Epstein and other guests at his home for his 64th birthday party.

The next day, Lesley Groff, an assistant for Epstein, emailed Maureen Berejka, an assistant for Watson, and asked her to "Please pass along Jeffrey's big THANK YOU for the gifts from the Watson's..!!!"

The Watsons celebrate Epstein's birthday

Later that month, Watson sent Epstein tickets for a piano concert. "Can you please let me know if they arrived safely?" Berejka asked in an email.

According to emails, Watson accepted multiple invitations to have lunch, dinner and sometimes breakfast at Epstein’s homes in Manhattan and Palm Beach, Florida.

The events were not always formal affairs: Ahead of a May 2018 dinner at Epstein’s Manhattan home, Berejka emailed Groff asking about "recommended attire."

"Casual!" Groff replied. "Jeffrey is always super comfy/casual!"

Groff could not be reached for comment. Berejka said in a brief interview that she had never met Epstein, but declined to comment further.

There is no indication that Watson engaged in any misconduct as part of his relationship with Epstein.

Watson’s "communications with Jeffrey Epstein reflect his personal interactions, not actions taken as a representative of the Laboratory," a Cold Springs Harbor spokesperson, Lisa Cruz, said in an emailed statement to Newsday.

"These communications occurred years after CSHL had terminated his status as Chancellor and relieved him of all leadership duties," Cruz said. "He retained honorary titles of Chancellor Emeritus and Professor Emeritus at the time."

For Epstein, the relationship led to at least two invites to official Cold Spring Harbor functions. Roughly a year after the 2017 "Night with Nobels" event, Watson invited Epstein to his 90th birthday party, a gala and fundraiser at Cold Spring Harbor. Epstein’s assistant relayed the invitation to her boss.

"Dr. Watson would be very pleased if you could attend (he says he needs good hearted people and you are one of them)," Groff wrote to Epstein in a March 2018 email.

Epstein does not appear to have attended either the 2017 or 2018 event, according to emails. Cruz, the Cold Spring Harbor spokesperson, said the lab had no record of Epstein ever attending an event or making a donation to the institution.

Family members of James Watson's declined to comment and asked not to be named.

Brilliance and controversy

For years, Watson, a biologist and geneticist, was one of the most celebrated scientists in the world. In 1953, when he was just 25, Watson and his colleague Francis Crick published an article describing for the first time the double helix structure of DNA. Fifteen years later, along with colleagues, Watson was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

Watson spent decades at the helm of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory — first as director, starting in 1968, then as president from 1994 to 2003 and chancellor from 2003 to 2007, according to the lab. While running the institution, and living on campus, he transformed the laboratory into a global research hub.

But for years, the scientist was dogged by controversy for making racist and sexist remarks — remarks that would ultimately dismantle his career.

In an infamous 2007 interview with the Times of London, Watson said he was "inherently gloomy about the prospect of Africa," according to the newspaper. "All our social policies are based on the fact that their intelligence is the same as ours — whereas all the testing says not really."

Watson, then the chancellor of Cold Spring Harbor, apologized and resigned amid the uproar over the interview. Still, he remained on campus as the lab’s chancellor emeritus, a position he held until 2019. He died last November at the age of 97.

‘Uncomfortable facts’

Epstein, meanwhile, had a well-documented interest in genetics and an affinity for scientists whose views deviated from the mainstream.

"It's my natural bent to move toward the maverick and rebels who don't fit in," the wealthy financier told the journal Science in 2017.

Epstein had also appeared to flirt with, or downright embrace, racist views, according to recently released records.

Epstein said that he did not like Black people and did not want to recruit Black girls for sexual encounters, according to multiple partially redacted records of interviews with alleged victims.

And Epstein appeared to sympathize with Watson’s predicament following his ouster from Cold Spring Harbor. In a 2016 email exchange with the academic and activist Noam Chomsky, Epstein brought up a "test score gap" between different races.

"James Watson, had some of his private views made public and hence his dismissal from society," Epstein wrote to Chomsky in a typical typo-ridden email. "he told me that after one sentence he became an un-person. Making thigns better might require accepting some uncomfortable facts. . -- you told me that."

Chomsky’s wife, Valeria, has acknowledged "serious errors in judgment" in the couple’s relationship with Epstein, according to published reports.

‘He is thinking about him’

The winter of 2018-19 was pivotal in the lives of both Epstein and Watson.

In November 2018, the Miami Herald published a three-part investigative series about Epstein, renewing public interest into the case. Later that year, the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s Office opened a new investigation into him.

The month prior, Watson had been in a serious car accident in Syosset. (In response to an email informing him of the news, Epstein wrote, "oy".)

And in January 2019, PBS aired the documentary "American Masters: Decoding Watson," sparking new controversy. In the film, Watson reiterated his views on race and intelligence.

"There’s a difference on the average between blacks and whites on IQ tests," he said. "I would say the difference is — it’s genetic."

That runs counter to the scientific consensus that intelligence is largely the result of environmental rather than genetic factors. Following the program’s airing, Cold Spring Harbor Labs swiftly announced that it had severed ties with its former chancellor.

Epstein, however, did not. Days after the documentary aired, Epstein’s assistant reached out to Watson’s.

"Jeffrey is asking how Dr. Watson is getting along—he is thinking about him! Can you share a little something?" she wrote.

Watson’s assistant replied that the scientist was still recovering from the car accident. "He has a variety of conditions and accompanying paraphernalia to deal with (such as tubes that limit his ability to talk, eat, etc.)," she wrote, adding, "Please thank Mr. Epstein for his thoughtful concern."

The two appeared to maintain a relationship even through the final months of Epstein's life.

In a July 5, 2019, text message exchange between Epstein and Steve Bannon, the right-wing political strategist and former adviser to President Donald Trump, the two discussed plans to visit Watson at Cold Spring Harbor.

"Im driving out to cold spring Monday morning to have lunch with Watson," Epstein texted Bannon that day. "If you are still around , of course come with me."

Bannon wrote back: "The Watson !" 

"Yes," Epstein replied.

Federal officials arrested Epstein the next day on charges of sex trafficking minors, two days before the scheduled lunch. A month later he died by suicide, authorities said, in a Manhattan jail cell.