Columbia University removes personnel associated with admitting Epstein's girlfriend
The university has taken action against two individuals affiliated with it.
Columbia University says it has "taken action" against two individuals affiliated with its dental school, after recent disclosures by the Justice Department revealed that Jeffrey Epstein’s girlfriend was admitted to the program in 2012 through what Columbia described as an "irregular process," according to a statement issued Wednesday by the university.
“In short, a student was admitted to the dental school through an irregular process, coinciding with fundraising solicitations by former academic and alumni leadership of the school,” the statement said. “It is important to note that the student in question, who came to the dental school and graduated, has not, to the best of our knowledge, been found responsible for wrongdoing."
After reviewing the newly disclosed records, Columbia said it was removing two individuals still associated with the dental college from their roles. Several individuals no longer associated with the school, including former dean of the dental college, Ira Lamster, were also allegedly involved in the admissions process.
And the university said it would also make a contribution of $105,000 each to two nonprofit organizations supporting survivors of sexual abuse and human trafficking.
Karyna Shuliak, a native of Belarus who was Epstein’s last known girlfriend, was initially rejected for admission to the school in February 2012, according to a rejection letter contained in the DOJ’s Epstein files.
“I regret to inform you that you are not among those applicants selected for admission,” the letter said. “These are times of very strong interest in dentistry; the credentials of our applicants have yielded more stringent admissions requirements than ever in the history of the school. We do sincerely regret having to decline your admission.”
But within three months of receiving the bad news, Shuliak was admitted to the college as an international transfer student. By August 2012, she was enrolled in courses and attending the dental school’s “white-coat ceremony” (the traditional start of the program) with her mother.
Lamster, who was not among those disciplined by the university, said in a statement to ABC News that he was introduced to Epstein in 2012 by a prominent alumnus of the dental school. Epstein was then considering a large gift of $5-10 million.
Around the same time, Lamster said, Epstein asked him about “someone who I believed to be in his employ who was a dental student in Belarus,” Lamster wrote. He said he agreed to refer Shuliak to another faculty member in charge of admissions to that program.
“As at that time we were pursuing a major gift from [Epstein], and it was logical to agree to [his] request. It was made clear to the admissions director, however, that [Shuliak] should be judged on the merits of her application,” Lamster wrote.
The college – after vetting Epstein - ultimately rejected his proposed multimillion-dollar gift, Lamster said.
But as Shuliak was set to begin her studies, Epstein instructed his accountant to send $100,000 from one of his nonprofit entities to Columbia’s School of Public Health, where Lamster had recently started a new position. One of Epstein’s house managers hand delivered the check to Lamster, according to an email Epstein received from his assistant, according to documents disclosed by the DOJ.
“Thank you for the donation,” Lamster wrote in an email to Epstein on Aug. 17, 2012 that is included in the DOJ files. “This support will be a great help in launching my dental public health initiative. My hope is that the ‘Center’ will have a very positive impact by addressing important issues facing the dental profession. I appreciate your friendship and generosity.”
Lamster said in his statement that he did not solicit the donation and had assumed it would not be accepted by the university – but it was.
“Let me emphasize that there was no quid pro quo in regard to admission to CDM [College of Dental Medicine] and the gift, though I recognize now that the optics were not ideal,” Lamster wrote.
Shuliak, 36, came to the U.S. after completing four years of dental school in her native country, withdrawing from the program in 2010 without completing her degree, according to documents included in the DOJ disclosures. She graduated from Columbia’s program in 2015, the records show.
The newly disclosed DOJ documents also show a $50,000 donation from that same Epstein entity to the dental school in 2014.
The documents detailing Epstein’s efforts to secure admission for Shuliak were reported earlier this week by Bloomberg and the New York Times.
Banking records released by the DOJ show that Epstein paid $631,000 in tuition on Shuliak’s behalf.
She is also named as a principal beneficiary of the “1953 Trust,” the document – named for the year of Epstein’s birth - which outlines his plans to distribute his wealth upon his death.
Epstein bequeathed to Shuliak $50 million and all his real estate properties.
Epstein’s estate remains tied up in probate court in the U.S. Virgin Islands, and its assets have dwindled from more than $600 million to $127 million, according to the latest publicly available accounting.
Shulaik could not be reached for comment.
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