New Delhi, Feb. 5 -- Bill Gates has said he "regrets every minute" he ever spent with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, speaking publicly after newly released Justice Department files mentioned the Microsoft co-founder.

In an interview with Nine News Australia posted on Wednesday (February 4), Gates described his past interactions with Epstein as a serious mistake and rejected claims Epstein made about him in the documents.

"It just reminds me, every minute I spent with him, I regret, and I apologize that I did that," Gates said.

Calling his decision to meet Epstein "foolish," Gates added that allegations attributed to Epstein were "false."

"Apparently, Jeffrey wrote an email to himself. That email was never sent, the email is f...