France’s former culture minister, Jack Lang, has resigned as head of the Arab World Institute following revelations of past contacts with Jeffrey Epstein and the launch of a financial investigation, France’s foreign ministry announced on Saturday.
Earlier this Saturday, the French Financial Prosecutor’s Office opened an investigation into Jack Lang and his daughter Caroline on suspicion of “aggravated tax evasion and laundering.”
Calls for Lang’s resignation intensified after files released by the U.S. Department of Justice on January 30 showed that Epstein and Lang corresponded on and off from 2012 to 2019. This investor committed suicide in prison.
French media outlets including Le Monde, Le Figaro and Mediapart reported that a preliminary investigation was launched after US documents revealed long-standing correspondence and financial ties between Lang and Epstein.
Authorities confirmed the investigation but did not provide further details.
Jack Lang was summoned on Sunday to report to the Foreign Office, which oversees the Arab World Institute, a cultural and research institute that promotes understanding of the Arab world.
Lang previously told the X Show that he welcomed the investigation “with calm and even relief.”
“The accusations leveled against me are baseless. I intend to prove this above the voices and anger of the media and digital courts,” he added.
Lang’s name appears more than 600 times in Epstein’s files, according to a Reuters investigation. On Monday, longtime media executive Caroline Lang resigned as president of the French Independent Production Union after her relationship with Epstein came to light.
Jack Lang’s lawyer told BFM TV, “We prove that he is not involved in any medical malpractice or criminal offenses.”
“There is no transfer of funds… but I think it is normal for judicial authorities to want to verify this,” Laurent Merle said.
The file dump has increased scrutiny of Epstein’s global connections to public figures, including Britain’s Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, brother of King Charles, Peter Mandelson, former British ambassador to the United States, and Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway.
