Just days after revealing that he and his wife of 27 years, Melinda Gates, were filing for divorce, reports of an investigation at Microsoft revealed that Bill Gates had an affair with an employee.
As Mamas Uncut previously revealed, Bill and Melinda announced that they would be separating in a joint statement shared publicly. However, as the news of their divorce began to spread, more information surrounding the last couple of years of their marriage began painting a more detailed story.
“After a great deal of thought and a lot of work on our relationship, we have made the decision to end our marriage. Over the last 27 years, we have raised three incredible children and built a foundation that works all over the world to enable all people to lead healthy, productive lives. We continue to share a belief in that mission and will continue our work together at the foundation, but we no longer believe we can grow together as a couple in this next phase of our lives. We ask for space and privacy for our family as we begin to navigate this new life.”
While the former couple has not commented on the many reports that have surfaced since their initial statement, it was reported that Melinda Gates has actually been in touch with divorce lawyers since 2019. According to The New York Times, Melinda was displeased with her husband’s relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffery Epstein, after it was revealed that it was a bit deeper than Gates originally admitted.
Now, the reason why Bill Gates stepped down from Microsoft’s board in 2020 is coming to light.
According to The Wall Street Journal, in 2019, an employee revealed that she and Gates had an affair and as a result, an investigation ensued. The investigation revealed the affair claims to be true with Gates eventually admitting to them.
The engineer told investigators she “had a years-long sexual extramarital affair with Gates dating back to 2000.” Shortly after the affair was revealed, Gates stepped down from his role on the board of the company he co-founded.
However, as The Wall Street Journal reports, Gates is adamant that he did not step down as a result of the affair. The time was simply coincidental.
In a statement issued last year, Gates said his reason for stepping down was so he could “dedicate more time to philanthropic priorities including global health and development, education, and my increasing engagement in tackling climate change.” But according to The WSJ reports, it was the board who ultimately decided Gates should step down.
Although their statement revealed that Bill and Melinda would continue working together when it comes to their foundation. It’s unclear if these recent reports will hinder that from happening successfully. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has been successful in working towards its goal of combating disease and poverty at home and abroad.
In a statement obtained by People, a representative for Gates issued this statement:
“There was an affair almost 20 years ago which ended amicably. Bill’s decision to transition off the board was in no way related to this matter. In fact, he had expressed an interest in spending more time on his philanthropy starting several years earlier.”
However, a spokesperson for Microsoft issued this statement regarding the news of Gates’ affair:
“Microsoft received a concern in the latter half of 2019 that Bill Gates sought to initiate an intimate relationship with a company employee in the year 2000. A committee of the Board reviewed the concern, aided by an outside law firm to conduct a thorough investigation. Throughout the investigation, Microsoft provided extensive support to the employee who raised the concern.”
Bill and Melinda have three adult children together and they do not have a prenuptial agreement. However, it has been decided that they will split up their assets equally has the divorce is finalized.
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