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Milwaukee Symphony board members tied to scandals
Two Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra board members are facing separate controversies unrelated to the organization.
MILWAUKEE - Two members of the board of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra are facing scrutiny: one for past associations, unrelated to the organization, with Jeffrey Epstein. The second is facing allegations of assault, according to records obtained by FOX6.
The symphony’s board includes 35 business and community leaders from across the region. The matters involve two individuals and activities outside their roles with the orchestra.
Recruiting for Epstein
What we know:
Recruiter Peter Mahler is listed as a board member. Emails from 2013 show he was attempting to fill a personal assistant position for Jeffrey Epstein, who at the time had already been convicted of sex offenses.
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Mahler presented to Epstein a series of female candidates. Epstein would interview candidates himself.
The emails show Epstein didn't just want a female assistant, he preferred someone "Asian." But each time Mahler delivered a candidate, Epstein shot them down – describing one as "a 5," another "not better than a 3" and another as a "zero. Not even a one."
To be clear, there is no evidence in any of the emails that Epstein's staffing requests were sexual in nature or that Mahler had any such intent.
Epstein files: Milwaukee recruiter tried to find assistant, emails show
A Milwaukee recruiter and real estate mogul for the rich tried to send a made-to-order personal assistant to Jeffrey Epstein.
Mahler's response
What they're saying:
In a statement, Mahler said he would not have worked with Epstein had he known then what later became public.
"While our firm doesn’t comment about the thousands of staffing searches and interviews we have conducted over the past three decades, I am making an exception under these circumstances.
"The revelations about Jeffrey Epstein are abhorrent.
"We were conducting searches for professional administrative staff and property management positions for Jeffrey Epstein. These ultimately failed because he did not like the qualified candidates we identified for him to interview.
"Knowing what we know now, we would never have worked with him under any circumstances."
Allegations detailed
Dig deeper:
A second board member is currently listed as "on leave." FOX6 has learned he is facing criminal charges filed last year in Green Lake County.
Prosecutors allege Eric Hobbs sexually assaulted teen girls in incidents in 2019, 2021 and 2023 during the Fellowship of American Baptist Musicians’ annual conference for church musicians.
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According to the criminal complaint, the allegations include touching one teen’s thigh and underneath her underwear, and in another instance touching her butt. Prosecutors also accuse Hobbs of touching two other teens on the butt in separate years.
The complaint says Hobbs denied each of the allegations.
Hobbs’ attorney confirmed he intends to fight.
"Mr. Hobbs denies these allegations. The allegations are entirely separate from his volunteer work with the symphony board. We look forward to clearing his name."
The church organization said it had no comment.
FOX6 has not yet received a response from the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra.
The Source: Information in this report is from the Wisconsin Circuit Court and additional records and statements obtained by FOX6.