The head of the coordinating committee for the 2028Olympic Games in LosAngeles is facing calls to step down after emails released by the Justice Department last week show he exchanged racy messages with Ghislaine Maxwell more than 20 years ago.
The messages between Casey Wasserman – who, along with chairing LA28, is also a prominent entertainment and sports agent – and Maxwell were included in themillions of documents released by DOJlast week related to its investigation into Jeffrey Epstein.
They show that the pair exchanged several intimate messages in 2003, prompting calls from city officials that Wasserman step down.
Duringone exchange in March, Wasserman asks Maxwell: "So what do I have to do to see you in a tight leather outfit?"
In another email, datedApril 1, 2003,Wasserman, who was married at the time, says to Maxwell: "Where are you, I miss you," before asking to book a massage.
Wasserman has not been accused of criminal wrongdoing in relation to Epstein. Messages for Wasserman left through his talent management company and a crisis public relations firm that represents him were not immediately returned on Thursday.
In a statement to other news outlets, Wasserman apologized for his communications with Maxwell while adding he "never had" a personal or business relationship with Epstein.
Maxwell, Epstein's former girlfriend, was convicted of sex trafficking and other crimes in 2021 and is serving a 20-year sentence. Epstein died by suicide in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex-trafficking charges.
While some aspects of Wasserman's association with Epstein were already known, the emails show a deeper and far more intimate relationship with Maxwell than had previously been revealed.
Wasserman's communications with Maxwell took place years before she was convicted of a crime.
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The messages between the pair threaten to create a major distraction as Los Angeles gears up to host the 2028 games, whichare forecasted to generatebetween roughly $13.6 billion and $17.6 billion in additional gross domestic product for the region and create tens of thousands of new jobs.
Several local officials in Los Angeles have called for Wasserman to step away, describing the stakes of the Olympics as too great to be put at risk.
"Los Angeles cannot trust our financial future to someone connected with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell," City Controller Kenneth Mejia said in a post on X, calling for Wasserman to "take accountability and resign."
Los Angeles City Councilwoman Monica Rodriguez, who also called for Wasserman to step aside, saidin an interview with Spectrum Newsthat she was "incredibly disappointed" to learn of Wasserman and Maxwell's close relationship, adding it "really undermines the legacy of what these Games are supposed to represent."
Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn, also calling for Wasserman to resign, said her opposition to his leadership in LA28 was "not about shaming him for his past indiscretions."
"This is about the message we are sending to Epstein survivors and to the world about our values — especially as we work to combat any sex trafficking associated with the Games," Hahn told CNN. "I worry Casey Wasserman's continued leadership almost guarantees that our Los Angeles Olympic Games will be tied in subsequent press coverage to his association with a notorious sex trafficker."
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said in a statement that it is "critical to be 100% focused on making our city shine and ensuring the 2028 Games are the best in Los Angeles' history," but did not go as far as asking for Wasserman's resignation. Instead, the mayor added that any decision pertaining to the leadership of LA28 must rest with its board.
Several members of the LA28 board, which includes nearly three dozen prominent names in business, entertainment, sports and politics, also did not respond to requests from CNN asking if they maintain confidence in Wasserman's ability to lead.
Both the International and US Olympic committees did not respond to requests for comment, but when asked during recent press conferences about Wasserman, leaders of both committees referred to his earlier statement and said they would have nothing to add.
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