Epstein Ties Befoul a Nobel Laureate

A Nobel-winning scientist is stepping away from a top post at Columbia University—and cited Jeffrey Epstein in connection with his exit. Richard Axel, who shared the 2004 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for landmark work on how humans perceive odors, said in a statement Tuesday he will resign as co-director of Columbia's Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute to focus on research and teaching. Columbia said there is no evidence the 79-year-old violated university policy or criminal law, but that it agreed with his decision to relinquish the leadership role.

NBC News reports Axel appears in or is referenced in more than 900 Justice Department documents tied to Epstein; the New York Times reports they indicate he frequently visited Epstein's Manhattan home and helped connect Epstein with Columbia officials tied to admissions and philanthropy. "My past association with Jeffrey Epstein was a serious error in judgment, which I deeply regret," Axel said, calling Epstein's conduct "appalling" and his own "association with him ... inexcusable." Axel, a Columbia professor for more than five decades, is also giving up his position as an investigator at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.