Whoopi Goldberg explains why her name is in the Epstein files

‘The View’ co-host said about the disgraced financier Tuesday, ‘I wasn’t his girlfriend, I wasn’t his friend’

Whoopi Goldberg has shut down speculation that she was associated with the late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein after her name was mentioned in newly released files.

“In the name of transparency, my name is in the files, yes!” Goldberg, 70, said on Tuesday’s episode of The View.

The panelist went on to read the May 2013 email to Epstein, in which someone said that Goldberg needed a “plane to get to Monaco” for a charity event thrown by Julian Lennon, and asked if Epstein wanted to offer up his private jet for the job.

Goldberg read out loud: “‘They don’t want to charter, so they are looking for private owners. Here’s the info,’ and they give all the information and they are saying do you want to offer your G2?”

Epstein then responded: “no thnaks” [sic].

Whoopi Goldberg addressed her relationship with Jeffrey Epstein during Tuesday's episode of 'The View' (Getty Images)

Whoopi Goldberg's name was mentioned in the Epstein files because she was looking for private transportation to Monaco in 2013 (Department of Justice)

Goldberg’s co-host Joy Behar chimed in on the exchange Tuesday, “So, in other words, anybody can be on this list?”

The Sister Act star responded, maintaining her innocence in relation to the crimes Epstein was accused of: “This is my point because when I tell you, people are trying to turn me into … I wasn’t his girlfriend, I wasn’t his friend. I was not only too old [for him], but it was at a time where this is just not — you used to have to have facts before you said stuff.”

In response to Behar mentioning that Donald Trump is named in the Epstein files, Goldberg responded: “I can’t speak to him, but I’m speaking about me because I’m getting dragged.

“People actually believe that I was with him. Honey, come on. Every man I’ve been with, you’ve known about him because either the Enquirer wrote about it. People wrote about this stuff. So, no,” Goldberg said, adding, “I didn’t get on the plane because you know what I would have to do to get on the plane?”

Jeffrey Epstein died in 2019 ahead of his federal trial for charges of sex trafficking and conspiracy to traffic minors (US Department of Justice)

Goldberg was referencing her famed fear of flying, which lasted for over three decades after she witnessed a mid-air collision in 1978. She overcame her phobia around 1990 by taking a course and learning to use medication to manage her anxiety.

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Hundreds of high-profile figures — including Elvis Presley and Marilyn Monroe – have been named in the Epstein files, although the overwhelming majority of the Department of Justice’s files on Epstein reportedly remain unpublished.

The co-hosts of The View have been outspoken advocates for the files being released in full in hopes of providing justice for Epstein’s victims.

Epstein, a convicted pedophile who pleaded guilty to procuring a child for prostitution in 2005, was arrested in July 2019 on federal charges of sex trafficking and conspiracy to traffic minors, to which he pleaded not guilty. Before the federal case went to trial, Epstein died in a New York jail cell.