DP World CEO Sulayem (left) with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein (right). (Image Credit: House Oversight Committee Democrats)
The US Department of Justice has reportedly released fresh details from the Epstein files, identifying Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, chairman and CEO of UAE-based ports operator DP World, as the individual referred to as “Sultan” in Jeffrey Epstein’s previously anonymised contact logs.
Sulayem, one of the most powerful executives in Dubai, exchanged messages with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein for more than a decade, even after he was sentenced in 2008 for procuring a minor for prostitution.
DP World replaces chairman named in Jeffrey Epstein documents
Following Sulayem’s links with Epstein going public, DP World reported replaced Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem. According to the Associated Press, the announcement by the government’s Dubai Media Office did not specifically name Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem. However, it said that Essa Kazim was named DP World’s chairman and Yuvraj Narayan was named group CEO. Those were positions held by Sulayem. DP World has long been a pillar of the economy of the Middle Eastern city.
Republican Congressman Thomas Massie, along with other US officials who viewed the unredacted version of the Epstein files, say Sulayem was the recipient of an email dated April 24, 2009, where Epstein wrote: “where are you? are you ok I loved the torture video.”
To this, Sulayem replied: “I am in china I will be in the US 2nd week of May.”
While Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche did not directly link Sulayem to the email, he did mention that the businessman’s name appeared elsewhere unredacted in the released files.
Massie then said that Blanche had “tacitly admitted that Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem was the sender of the torture video.”
The DP World CEO hasn’t been accused of any criminal wrongdoing, and it is still unclear what the referenced “torture video” was or if it was actually sent by Sulayem to Epstein.
According to emails released by the US DoJ in January 2026, bin Sulayem exchanged intimate messages with Epstein. In an email sent in September of 2015, Sulayem wrote, “She got engaged but now she back with me”, telling the sex offender about a foreign exchange student studying in Dubai. “The best sex I ever had amazing body.”
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The two also exchanged business and political contacts and helped broker deals for one another. Bin Sulayem also sent emails to Epstein, talking about his visits to the sex offender’s private island in the Caribbean.
In November 2007, a cache of emails obtained by Bloomberg shows Epstein reaching out to Sulayem to talk about his attempts to meet a supermodel. In response to an email by Epstein, Sulayem said, “After several attemps for several months we managed to meet in NY. there is a missunderstanding she she wanted some BUSINESS! while i only wanted some PUSSYNESS!”
Fast forward a few weeks to Christmas, Sulayem sent an email to Epstein with the subject line “merrychristmas.jpg”. While the email had no text content, it had an image showing 10 topless women on a beach wearing Santa-style bikini bottoms and hats.
Who is Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem?
Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, 70, is the CEO and chairman of DP World, a global logistics company that operates shipping terminals and free trade zones in different parts of the world, including key ports in the UK, India and Africa.
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Born into a prominent Emirati family, Sulayem has often been associated with Dubai’s leadership, with his father serving as the advisor to the ruling Al Maktoum family.
During the early 2000s, Sulayem was one of the key architects of the kingdom’s economic expansion. Not only did he play an important role in making the Jebel Ali Port into a deep-water shipping hub, but he also headed Nakheel Properties, the company known for developing the famous Palm Jumeirah artificial island and “The World”.
For years, Sulayem has been a fixture at the World Economic Forum in Davos, where he has represented Dubai’s economic interests and spoken with political and business leaders from around the world.
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DP World CEO Sulayem (left) with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein (right). (Image Credit: House Oversight Committee Democrats) 
