Theo Wells-Spackman is a Report for America corps member who reports for VTDigger.
Updated: 4:55 p.m.
Dean Kamen resigned from the Beta Technologies board of directors Wednesday, following revelations surrounding his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.
“It has become clear that while I have done nothing wrong, my association with the recent release of documents has the potential to create additional distractions for this now publicly traded company,” Kamen said, in part, in a statement Thursday. “For that reason, I have decided to step down from the board.”
The South Burlington-based electric airplane company confirmed Kamen had “voluntarily” left his role in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Thursday morning.
Files recently released by the U.S. Department of Justice appeared to show Kamen in frequent communication with Epstein well after his first conviction on sex crime charges in 2008. Emails describe Kamen visiting several of Epstein’s properties, both in New Mexico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Beta Technologies said earlier this month that the company had hired a law firm to investigate Kamen’s appearance in the files.
“BETA treats these matters with utmost seriousness,” said the company’s Feb. 6 statement.
Kamen’s statement said his relationship with Epstein was business-related.
“My interaction with Jeffrey Epstein was to follow up on his offer to help bring the water purification and distributed power devices my company had developed to the African nations that desperately needed clean water and electricity,” he said. “I deeply regret having any association with him, even though I had only the best of intentions.”
Kamen holds over 800,000 total shares in Beta through both direct ownership and a revocable trust, according to company filings last year — worth about $15 million at Thursday’s stock price. He also served on the board’s compensation committee.
“Mr. Kamen has been a valued member of the Board and contributed significantly to the Company over many years through his guidance, leadership, and investment, as well as through his broader impact on advancing innovation, science, and engineering,” read Beta’s Thursday filing.
Kamen, a New Hampshire-based investor and entrepreneur, is best known for inventing the Segway.
This story has been updated to include a statement from Dean Kamen.
Correction: a previous version of this story misspelled Jeffrey Epstein’s name.
