Photo of Tharman, Goh Chok Tong with Jeffrey Epstein taken in 2002 Clinton dinner resurfaces
A photo of President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and former Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong with the late child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and his confidante Ghislaine Maxwell at a 2002 group dinner for former US President Bill Clinton has resurfaced.
According to the National Archives Singapore (NAS), the widely circulated photograph was taken at Jade Restaurant, The Fullerton Singapore on May 23, 2002.
Responding to Stomp's queries, the President's Office confirmed that it was an official dinner hosted by then PM Goh for Mr Clinton and his entourage during his visit to Singapore 24 years ago.
The dinner took place years before Epstein's offences became public.
At the time, Mr Tharman was the Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry. The President's Office said Mr Tharman had no knowledge of Epstein beyond his being a member of Mr Clinton's entourage at the dinner.
Other guests present at the event included former Minister for Trade and Industry George Yeo, former US Ambassador to Singapore Steven Green and former Ambassador to the US professor Tommy Koh.
When approached, ESM's office said that Mr Goh does not know Epstein, who was a part of Mr Clinton's entourage.
Epstein files reveal ties to politicians and business titans
Epstein was arrested on July 8, 2019, on charges of sex trafficking of minors.
He died a month later in a Manhattan jail cell, in what was ruled as a suicide.
Maxwell, a former British socialite, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for her role in a scheme with Epstein to sexually exploit and abuse multiple underage girls.
Earlier this month, the US Justice Department released millions of internal documents related to Epstein's crimes.
The files revealed multiple prominent figures allegedly connected to Epstein, including US president Donald Trump, Mr Clinton, former Prince Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, Mr Trump's commerce secretary Howard Lutnick, Tesla billionaire Elon Musk, and more.
Netizens debate online
The resurfaced photograph has sparked debate online following the recent release of the Epstein files — documents revealing some of the world's wealthiest and most influential individuals' alleged ties to the late billionaire.
On Feb 4, the photograph was shared in a Reddit thread on r/SingaporeRaw and has since attracted more than 60 comments.
"Funny that nobody is asking the important questions," a commenter wrote.
Some questioned whether there would be an "enquiry" into President Tharman, while others pointed out that the photograph was "nothing surprising" as Epstein was very influential.
"Don't think too much lah," one wrote.
Another added: "Epstein actively seeks people of influence all over the world. Even those who are still in school and have great potential. This is a nothing burger."
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