Jeffrey Epstein list: New documents reveal paedophile’s responses to sex trafficking claims
Over the past week thousands of pages of court documents relating to late paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, have been made public after US judge Loretta Preska ordered the release of filings in a lawsuit brought by Virginia Giuffre against Ghislaine Maxwell.
The documents named scores of prominent figures including, Prince Andrew, Bill Clinton, Donald Trump and Victoria’s Secret boss Les Wexner. Being identified through the court documents does not mean that the individual was involved in or aware of any wrongdoing by Epstein.
The final batch of documents, released on Tuesday, included depositions from Ms Giuffre, Maxwell and Epstein.
In Epstein’s deposition, he was questioned about his campaign of abuse of young and underage girls. He pleaded the Fifth over 1,000 times.
In Maxwell’s deposition, she was confronted with disturbing messages left for Epstein – one of which referenced what appeared to be code for procuring an underage Russian girl for Epstein. “She is two times eight years old. Not blond. Lessons are free and you can have your first today if you call,” it read.
Key points
Unsealing of documents related to decades of Epstein’s sexual abuse of girls concludes
What were the allegations against Epstein and Maxwell?
Epstein refused to say if he tried to blackmail Prince Andrew over ‘sexual encounter’, documents reveal
Aaron Rodgers refuses to apologise over feud with Jimmy Kimmel
Trump hits back at Epstein allegations after list unsealed: ‘Stupid island’
Thursday 11 January 2024 11:00 , Andrea Blanco
Donald Trump lashed out at allegations that he was on the plane of the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted sex offender, who died by suicide in a Manhattan jail in 2019.
The former president took to Truth Social on Wednesday to share screenshots of a Daily Mail article criticising actor Mark Ruffalo after he backtracked after sharing fake images of Mr Trump on Mr Epstein’s plane surrounded by young girls that turned out to have been created by artificial intelligence.
Read more:
Trump hits back at Epstein allegations after list unsealed: ‘Stupid island’
How did Jeffrey Epstein make his money?
Thursday 11 January 2024 11:30 , Maroosha Muzaffar
For many, Jeffrey Epstein’s name is now solely associated with the murky world of sex trafficking, with the well-connected multi-millionaire accused of targeting young women and girls from across the world.
It is a reputation he took to his grave when he killed himself in his prison cell while facing charges of running a “vast network” of underage girls, leaving his associate and ex-partner Ghislaine Maxwell to receive a 20-year prison sentence.
But before the numerous accusations came to light, Epstein was publicly known for his rise in the finance world; rising from a school drop-out to one of the richest men in America, with former US presidents and Hollywood stars among his acquaintances.
Epstein even boasted of having two private islands in the Caribbean - Great St James and Little St James - as well as properties in New York and Palm Beach in Florida.
Read the full story here:
Court strikes inaccurate transcription from Epstein’s deposition transcript
Thursday 11 January 2024 12:00 , Andrea Blanco
A transcript released on Tuesday showed that Epstein had allegedly answered “yes” after being asked if he had sent Virginia Giuffre to have sex with Glenn Dubin.
The court filed an order on Tuesday, reading: “This Court expressly ordered that lines 217:17-19 of the deposition transcript should remain under seal because they contained a mistaken transcription, and the answer transcribed was not the answer actually given.”
Epstein victim claimed she was sex trafficked to former Victoria’s Secret CEO Les Wexner
Thursday 11 January 2024 12:30 , Maroosha Muzaffar
Jeffrey Epstein’s victim Virginia Giuffre claimed that she was trafficked to former Victoria Secret’s CEO Les Wexner, newly unsealed documents show.
The allegations emerged in a 2016 deposition by Ms Giuffre, which was part of likely the final batch of documents ordered unsealed by Judge Loretta Preska in the now-settled litigation between Ms Giuffre and Epstein’s fixer Ghislaine Maxwell.
Although Ms Giuffre had previously alleged she had been trafficked to other high-profile figures, it is the first time that allegations have emerged that Mr Wexner had sex with underage girls.
The Independent has reached out to L Brands group for comment.
Ms Giuffre claimed that she was trafficked to have sex with Mr Wexner between three and ten times during the time that she was recruited by Epstein and Maxwell. Ms Giuffre said that she was instructed by Maxwell to wear lingerie for Mr Wexner – which Maxwell went on to categorically deny in her own deposition.
Read the full story here:
Epstein victim claimed she was sex trafficked to ex-Victoria’s Secret CEO Les Wexner
Clinton Center deletes controversial post after Epstein filings
Thursday 11 January 2024 13:00 , Andrea Blanco
The Clinton Presidential Center briefly posted on X wondering to whom former president Bill Clinton sent his first email after his name was revealed in the unsealed Epstein documents.
“On November 7, 1998, Pres. @BillClinton typed out and sent his first-ever email. Can you guess who it was to? #WorldTying Day,” the tweet said from the @ClintonCenter account, according to screenshots circulating on X.
The X post featured a photo of Mr Clinton typing on a clunky 1990s laptop and tagged the Clinton Presidential Library.
The Independent’s Kelly Rissman reports:
Clinton Center deletes controversial post after Epstein filings
Unanswered questions from the Epstein documents
Thursday 11 January 2024 20:18 , Mike Bedigan
The highly anticipated release of a trove of documents relating to disgraced financier and convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein concluded with a fifth and final batch of filings unsealed on Tuesday.
However, many questions remain, including the identities of two J Does mentioned in the documents who remain anonymous. Judge Loretta Preska has yet to rule on whether the two names will be released to the public.
Andrew Blanco explores the questions that remain unanswered.
Hundreds of Epstein files were released. These questions remain unanswered
Why were the secret Epstein documents released now?
Thursday 11 January 2024 21:00 , Mike Bedigan
Over the past week, thousands of pages of court documents were publicly released for the first time, revealing the names of individuals who associated with the late sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.
Former presidents Bill Clinton and Donald Trump, Prince Andrew, magician David Copperfield and several Hollywood celebrities all found themselves on the so-called “Epstein list”.
Their names in the filings do not indicate any wrongdoing or any involvement in Epstein’s crimes.
Epstein was arrested on federal charges for the sex trafficking of minors in Florida and New York in July 2019. He was found dead in his prison cell a month later.
So why have the previously sealed documents beeen made public now?
Epstein list: Why are secret documents being released now?
Alleged associates of Jeffrey Epstein: Names and numbers
Thursday 11 January 2024 22:00 , Mike Bedigan
The multiple batches of unsealed Jeffrey Epstein court documents revealed a number of high-profile individuals whose names appeared multiple times in various materials, including footnotes.
Among them are two former US presidents – Donald Trump and Bill Clinton – and Prince Andrew, all three of whom have been pictured with and known to associate with the disgraced financier in the past.
Other names include lawyer Alan Dershowitz, magician David Copperfield, Michael Jackson and Leonardo DiCaprio.
However, being identified through the court documents does not necessarily mean that the individual was involved in or aware of any wrongdoing by Epstein.
The alleged associates of Jeffrey Epstein: Names and numbers
The Epstein list: How public figures and associates reacted to being named
Thursday 11 January 2024 23:00 , Mike Bedigan
Read more about how some of the high-profile names at the centre of the trove of court documents have responded to being named:
The Epstein list: How public figures and associates have reacted to being named
What’s next for Ghislaine Maxwell now secret Epstein files have been released?
Friday 12 January 2024 00:00 , Mike Bedigan
Ghislaine Maxwell had once lived a life as one of Britain’s most well-connected socialites, mingling with US presidents, royalty and celebrities.
The daughter of the media tycoon Robert Maxwell now spends her days holed up in a cell in Florida, after being jailed for 20 years for child abuse and sex-trafficking in the service of her former boyfriend Jeffrey Epstein.
Over the course of the late 1990s and early 2000s, she helped lure and recruit a number of underage girls to work for the US billionaire, only for them to be forced to give sexual massages and allegedly abused by his associates.
The Independent’s Holly Evans reports:
What next for Ghislaine Maxwell now secret Epstein files have been released?
Watch: Comedian Jim Gaffigan makes daring Jeffrey Epstein reference at Golden Globes 2024
Friday 12 January 2024 01:00 , Mike Bedigan
How did lawyer Alan Dershowitz responded to the Epstein files
Friday 12 January 2024 02:00 , Mike Bedigan
Alan Dershowitz was mentioned in many of the released documents. A Jane Doe claimed that Epstein instructed her to have sex with Dershowitz, which the former Harvard Law Professor has vehemently denied.
“Epstein required Jane Doe #3 to have sexual relations with Dershowitz on numerous occasions while she was a minor, not only in Florida but also on private planes, in New York, New Mexico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands,” an excerpt of the filings by the plaintiff’s attorneys read.
Following accusations by Ms Giuffre that she had been trafficked to have sex with Mr Dershowitz, contentious legal battles between the pair rumbled on for the next three years. In November 2022, Ms Giuffre admitted that she may have made a mistake in identifying Mr Dershowitz as one of her abusers. Lawsuits were then dismissed on both sides.
Mr Dershowitz previously denied allegations in 2015 that he had sex with an underage girl. In a response just hours after the first tranche of filings were unsealed last week, Mr Dershowitz again denied those allegations.
“Of course I’m on that list, I was his lawyer. I flew on his plane,” Mr Dershowitz said during a YouTube livestream that he titled “The Epstein list and guilt by association.” “I had an innocent relationship with a man who I didn’t know, nobody suspected, had done anything wrong.”
Mr Dershowitz glossed over his role in helping secure Epstein’s 2008 secret “sweetheart” plea deal on charges of procuring a child for prostitution and soliciting prostitution, which landed Epstein in a private wing of the Palm Beach County Stockade for just 13 months. Three months into his sentence, Epstein was allowed to leave the jail through a “work-release program.”
Key takeaways from the new Epstein documents
Friday 12 January 2024 03:00 , Mike Bedigan
More than two hundred previously sealed court documents related to Jeffrey Epstein, the disgraced financier and registered sex offender, have now been made public. Multiple tranches were released over the past week.
US judge Loretta Preska ordered that the court filings in a lawsuit brought against Ghislaine Maxwell by Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre must finally be unsealed and the names of up to 200 “John and Jane Does” unredacted.
She mentioned that many did not oppose the release of the documents. Judge Preska did instruct that certain names be kept redacted to protect the identities of sexual abuse victims.
Read more:
Key takeaways from the new Epstein documents
Photos of Ghislaine Maxwell, young girls on Epstein ‘Island of Sin’ released in filings
Friday 12 January 2024 04:00 , Mike Bedigan
Jeffrey Epstein’s island: What really happened there?
Friday 12 January 2024 05:00 , Mike Bedigan
A criminal complaint from the attorney general of the US Virgin Islands described it as “the perfect hideaway and haven for trafficking young women and underage girls for sexual servitude, child abuse and sexual assault”.
On this island, the complaint said: “Epstein and his associates could avoid detection of their illegal activity from Virgin Islands and federal law enforcement, and prevent these young women and underage girls from leaving freely and escaping the abuse.”
The Independent’s Io Dodds reports:
Jeffrey Epstein island: What really happened there?
WATCH: Epstein spurned Trump because he thought he was ‘crook’, brother claims
Friday 12 January 2024 06:00 , Mike Bedigan
Who’s on the Epstein list?
Friday 12 January 2024 07:00 , Mike Bedigan
Prince Andrew and Bill Clinton are among the more than 100 people named in the newly-published legal documents linked to the paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Being named in these documents does not indicate any wrongdoing related to Epstein or anyone else.
The list includes many of Epstein’s accusers and alleged victims, as well as people with only tangential connections to Epstein who were pulled into the lawsuit against Maxwell.
Prince Andrew appears prominently, with the documents mentioning a previously reported accusation that he groped Johanna Sjoberg (which he denies). Former US presidents Bill Clinton and Donald Trump are also named, with neither accused of wrongdoing.
Judges, court staff and legal represenatives are not included.
Here’s the list of names in full:
The Epstein List: Full list of names revealed in unsealed court records so far
What were the allegations against Epstein and Maxwell?
Friday 12 January 2024 08:01 , Mike Bedigan
Jeffrey Epstein, a millionaire money manager, surrounded himself with celebrities, leading academics and big names from the fashion and political worlds before he was arrested in Palm Beach, Florida, in 2006 and accused of paying underage girls for sex.
He served 13 months in a jail work release program. Outrage over his plea bargain, sparked by reporting in the Miami Herald, led federal prosecutors in New York to bring new sex trafficking charges against Epstein in 2019, and he killed himself in a federal jail cell while awaiting trial.
Prosecutors also brought charges against Maxwell, who is now serving a 20-year prison term for helping Epstein sexually abuse underage girls.
Dozens of women say Epstein sexually abused them at his homes in New York, Florida, the Virgin Islands and New Mexico.
The documents released this month relate to a 2015 defamation lawsuit that Virginia Giuffre filed against Maxwell and was settled in 2017. Most of the court files have been public for years, but public interest in the documents soared after a judge ordered that some sealed sections be fully released.
Much of the lawsuit revolved around the truthfulness of Ms Giuffre’s claims that Epstein had flown her around the world for sexual encounters with billionaires, politicians, royals and heads of state.
She initially kept the names of those men secret, but in a 2014 legal filing, she said her abusers included Prince Andrew, other royal figures whose names she didn’t know, New Mexico governor Bill Richardson, the head of a hotel chain, noted academics, former US senator George Mitchell, French modeling scout Jean Luc Brunel, billionaire Glenn Dubin and law professor Alan Dershowitz, who had represented Epstein.
All of the men named by Ms Giuffre denied her allegations.
Ms Giuffre withdrew her claims about Mr Dershowitz in 2022, saying she “may have made a mistake” in identifying him as an abuser. She said she “was very young at the time” and “it was a very stressful and traumatic environment.” Mr Dershowitz campaigned to get documents related to Ms Giuffre’s lawsuit unsealed, arguing that they would make his innocence more clear.
Ms Giuffre settled a lawsuit against Prince Andrew in 2022.
Brunel, who was close to Epstein, killed himself in a Paris jail in 2022 while awaiting trial on charges that he raped underage girls.
Aaron Rodgers refuses to apologise over feud with Jimmy Kimmel
Friday 12 January 2024 09:00 , Mike Bedigan
New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers denied he implied comic Jimmy Kimmel was a paedophile and condemned those who do, but stopped short of apologising for his role in escalating their burgeoning feud.
Rodgers appeared on ESPN’s “The Pat McAfee Show” on Tuesday for his weekly appearance and addressed comments he made the week before that appeared to suggest Kimmel’s name might appear on a list of associates of Jeffrey Epstein, a millionaire accused of sex trafficking involving underage victims before he died by suicide.
“Any type of name calling is ridiculous and I’m not calling him (a paedophile), and neither should you,” Rodgers said on the show on Tuesday.
The feud between ABC’s late-night star and Rodgers, who regularly appears on the daily ESPN show, has proven embarrassing for The Walt Disney Co, the parent company to both television networks.
Rodgers criticised Mike Foss, an ESPN executive who oversees McAfee’s show, for saying that Rodgers had made “a dumb and factually inaccurate joke” about Kimmel.
“Mike, you’re not helping,” Rodgers said. “You’re not helping because I just read earlier exactly what I said. This is the game plan of the media and this is what they do: They try to cancel, you know, and it’s not just me.”
Rodgers last week said a lot of people, “including Jimmy Kimmel,” are really hoping that a list of Epstein’s associates doesn’t come out publicly. Kimmel, who has denied any association with Epstein, threatened Rodgers with a lawsuit for the comment and said the NFL star was putting his family in danger.
Rodgers suggested that people were reading too much into what he said, and that he was not stupid enough to accuse Kimmel of being a paedophile.
WATCH: Jimmy Kimmel delivers seven-minute roast of Aaron Rodgers over Epstein list row
Friday 12 January 2024 10:00 , Mike Bedigan
Virginia Giuffre recounted meeting Al Gore in deposition
Friday 12 January 2024 10:30 , Rachel Sharp
In her deposition, unsealed this week, Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre recounted meeting Vice President Al Gore and his wife Tipper.
She said she thought he was “a wonderful guy” and that she would vote for him.
“I thought he was a wonderful guy who loved his wife and they spent the entire time like there was nothing else around them, it was just those two. It was a dinner table, a long dinner table with people around, but they were just lovely, just watching them as a couple,” Ms Giuffre said.
“I remember thinking, you know, he’s somebody that I would definitely vote for. He’s just somebody that loves his wife that much.”
The Gores are not accused of any wrongdoing in association with Epstein.
Kimmel says he’d accept an apology from Aaron Rodgers but doesn’t expect one
Friday 12 January 2024 11:00 , Mike Bedigan
Jimmy Kimmel said he’d accept an apology from New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers for inappropriate comments associating the comic with Jeffrey Epstein, but doesn’t expect one.
“A decent person would apologise,” Kimmel said on Monday during his first appearance on his late-night ABC show since Rodgers’ comments. “But he probably won’t.”
Kimmel laid into Rodgers in his ABC monologue late on Monday, calling him “hamster-brained” and said that he got two ‘A’s’ on his report card — “they’re both in the name Aaron.”
“It might be time to revisit that concussion profile, Aaron,” Kimmel said.
Aaron Rodgers will not return to Pat McAfee Show after Jimmy Kimmel row
Friday 12 January 2024 12:00 , Mike Bedigan
Following the public backlash from NFL star Aaron Rodgers’ comments, ESPN announced he would not be returning to his weekly slot on The Pat McAfee Show.
It came after the quarterback became embroiled in a row after implying on air that talk show host Jimmy Kimmel could be named on convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s client list.
Read the full story here:
Aaron Rodgers will not return to Pat McAfee Show after Jimmy Kimmel row
Epstein ‘couldn’t identify a window’ in deposition with over 1,000 Fifth pleas
Friday 12 January 2024 13:00 , Mike Bedigan
The final batch of court documents, unsealed on Tuesday, contained deposition from late paedophile Jeffrey Epstein himself.
The disgraced financier was asked hundreds of questions about his relationships with individuals including Ghislaine Maxwell, Prince Andrew and Bill Clinton.
Epstein invoked his Fifth Amendment right around 1,200 times during the interview, often going to special lengths to frustrate his questioners.
Read the full story here:
Epstein ‘couldn’t identify a window’ in deposition with over 1,000 Fifth pleas
Clinton Center deletes controversial post after Epstein filings
Friday 12 January 2024 14:00 , Mike Bedigan
The Clinton Presidential Center briefly posted on X wondering to whom former president Bill Clinton sent his first email after his name was revealed in the unsealed Epstein documents.
“On November 7, 1998, Pres. @BillClinton typed out and sent his first-ever email. Can you guess who it was to? #WorldTying Day,” the tweet said from the @ClintonCenter account, according to screenshots circulating on X.
Read more:
Clinton Center deletes controversial post after Epstein filings
Donald Trump’s alleged ‘sexual proclivities’ graphically detailed in new Epstein documents
Friday 12 January 2024 15:00 , Mike Bedigan
In documents released earlier this week, graphic details about Donald Trump’s alleged “sexual proclivities” emerged.
The documents contained “incendiary claims” about the former president, including accusations that he had sexual relations with “many girls”, made by one of Epstein’s alleged victims, Sarah Ransome.
Read the full story here:
Trump’s alleged ‘sexual proclivities’ graphically detailed in new Epstein documents
Trump Jr hit with community notice after leaving his father’s name off Epstein list
Friday 12 January 2024 16:00 , Andrea Blanco
Donald Trump Jr was subject to a community notice on social media after failing to include his father’s name in a reshared article about associates of late paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Mr Trump Jr shared an article from The New York Post on X on Monday, which reported on claims that compromising sex tapes were made by the disgraced financier.
The article’s headline noted that former presidents Trump and Bill Clinton, and Prince Andrew were named in the latest batch of unsealed court documents.
Sharing a link to the article, Mr Trump Jr wrote: “This seems like a big deal and if true why has nothing been done about it?
“Breaking News: Court documents allege Jeffrey Epstein recorded sex tapes of Prince Andrew, Bill Clinton, and Sir Richard Branson.”
Other users were quick to point out his omission of his father’s name, and a community notice was later added to the post, which stated: “Donald Trump is also one of the persons mentioned in the new court documents.”
Trump hits back at Epstein allegations after list unsealed: ‘Stupid island’
Friday 12 January 2024 17:00 , Rachel Sharp
Donald Trump lashed out online at allegations that he was on the plane of the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.
The former president took to Truth Social on Wednesday to share screenshots of a Daily Mail article criticising actor Mark Ruffalo after he backtracked after sharing fake images of Mr Trump on Mr Epstein’s plane surrounded by young girls that turned out to have been created by artificial intelligence.
Gustaf Kilander has the full story:
Trump hits back at Epstein allegations after list unsealed: ‘Stupid island’
WATCH: Epstein victim doubles down on Prince Andrew, Bill Clinton and Richard Branson ‘sex tape’ claim
Friday 12 January 2024 18:00 , Rachel Sharp
Epstein spurned Trump because he thought he was a ‘crook’, brother claims
Friday 12 January 2024 19:00 , Rachel Sharp
Jeffrey Epstein severed ties to Donald Trump when he realised the former president “was a crook”, his brother has claimed.
Mark Epstein, brother of the late paedophile, said he did not have “any specific information” about the reason that the two fell out, but that he had heard video evidence of Epstein’s claims.
Mr Trump’s name has appeared several times in the recently unsealed court documents which detail information about the disgraced financier’s associates.
While being mentioned does not mean that an individual was involved in or aware of any wrongdoing by Epstein, some of the documents have contained allegations against Mr Trump.
A Trump spokeperson told The Independent that any accusations were “baseless” and had been “fully retracted because they are simply false and have no merit.”
Read the full story:
Epstein spurned Trump because he thought he was a ‘crook’, brother claims
Who was Jean-Luc Brunel? Jeffrey Epstein’s disgraced fashion mogul friend named in new filings
Friday 12 January 2024 20:00 , Rachel Sharp
Fresh accusations against Jean-Luc Brunel, the late Parisian model agent alleged to have arranged depraved gifts for Jeffrey Epstein, have resurfaced in newly unsealed documents relating to the disgraced financier.
Brunel, who was said to have trafficked dozens of women and girls to Epstein, died by suicide at the La Santé prison in the French capital last year. He was found dead in a prison cell while awaiting trial on charges of raping a minor.
The 76-year-old – once nicknamed the king of the catwalk – was there after being arrested in December 2020 following claims by Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre that he used her as a sex slave while she was still a minor. The suicide came days after Ms Giuffre agreed a multi-million out-of-court settlement over her allegations of sexual abuse by Prince Andrew – claims he has always strongly denied.
It brought an end to the life of a man some have suggested was even more debased than his American billionaire friend. Brunel is said to have systematically raped girls and women over three decades. His vast riches made him so apparently untouchable that frustrated French detectives trying to nail him had labelled him “the ghost”.
Paris-born Brunel was a model talent scout who rose to be boss of the Karin Models agency in the 1970s. He is credited with helping turn the business into a fashion powerhouse, while discovering several supermodels including Christy Turlington and Milla Jovovich.
So renowned did his reputation become for making stars that young women, the model Desiree Gruber reportedly said in 1988, “starved themselves [to] parade for Jean-Luc Brunel”.
Jerry Hall, Sharon Stone and Monica Bellucci were among the famous faces who had worked with him. He met Ghislaine Maxwell in the 1980s. Maxwell, in turn, introduced him to her then-partner, Epstein.
The pair, court documents suggest, bonded over a shared love of the high life and an interest in underage girls.
They appear to have come to an agreement that, while Brunel travelled the fashion globe, he would scour each city for girls he could groom for Epstein.
Not even the fact that Brunel was kicked out of the agency in 1999 – following a BBC report into abuse in the industry – could deter the pair. They simply set up a new business, MC2 Model Management, and continued in the same vein.
Soon after Epstein’s death in July 2019, however, a French judicial inquiry into Brunel’s conduct was opened. Evidence gathered led to a warrant for his arrest – which was executed as he attempted to flee to Dakar, the capital of Senegal.
Brunel was found dead by officers at La Santé prison, in Paris, at 1am on 19 February 2022, while awaiting trial for charges of rape and trafficking of minors.
Epstein’s brother claims dead sex trafficker was ‘just having a good time’
Friday 12 January 2024 21:00 , Rachel Sharp
The brother of Jeffrey Epstein defended the late sex trafficker following the release of bombshell documents, saying he was “just having a good time.”
While speaking on NewsNation’s On Balance, Mark Epstein was asked about the explosive allegations against his brother and insisted “Jeffrey liked to have a good time.”
Host Leland Vittert interrupted, “There’s a, there’s a big difference though between having...”
Before Vittert could finish his sentence, Mr Epstein said he refused to speculate “because I wasn’t there.”
Read the full story:
Epstein’s brother claims dead sex trafficker was ‘just having a good time’
Trump hits back at Epstein allegations after list unsealed: ‘Stupid island’
Friday 12 January 2024 22:00 , Rachel Sharp
Donald Trump lashed out online at allegations that he was on the plane of the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.
The former president took to Truth Social on Wednesday to share screenshots of a Daily Mail article criticising actor Mark Ruffalo after he backtracked after sharing fake images of Mr Trump on Mr Epstein’s plane surrounded by young girls that turned out to have been created by artificial intelligence.
Gustaf Kilander has the full story:
Trump hits back at Epstein allegations after list unsealed: ‘Stupid island’
WATCH: Epstein spurned Trump because he thought he was ‘crook’, brother claims
Friday 12 January 2024 23:00 , Rachel Sharp
Epstein victim claimed she was sex trafficked to former Victoria’s Secret CEO Les Wexner
Saturday 13 January 2024 00:00 , Rachel Sharp
Jeffrey Epstein’s victim Virginia Giuffre claimed that she was trafficked to former Victoria Secret’s CEO Les Wexner, newly unsealed documents show.
The allegations emerged in a 2016 deposition by Ms Giuffre, which was part of likely the final batch of documents ordered unsealed by Judge Loretta Preska in the now-settled litigation between Ms Giuffre and Epstein’s fixer Ghislaine Maxwell.
Although Ms Giuffre had previously alleged she had been trafficked to other high-profile figures, it is the first time that allegations have emerged that Mr Wexner had sex with underage girls.
The Independent has reached out to L Brands group for comment.
Ms Giuffre claimed that she was trafficked to have sex with Mr Wexner between three and ten times during the time that she was recruited by Epstein and Maxwell. Ms Giuffre said that she was instructed by Maxwell to wear lingerie for Mr Wexner – which Maxwell went on to categorically deny in her own deposition.
Read the full story here:
Epstein victim claimed she was sex trafficked to ex-Victoria’s Secret CEO Les Wexner
More than 4,000 pages of Epstein files have been released. These questions remain unanswered
Saturday 13 January 2024 01:00 , Rachel Sharp
Very few new details and names have emerged in the more than 4,000 pages of Jeffrey Epstein files that have been unsealed. Judge Loretta Preska has yet to rule on whether the names of two J Does mentioned in the documents will be released to the public. Andrea Blanco reports:
Hundreds of Epstein files were released. These questions remain unanswered
The alleged associates of Jeffrey Epstein: Names and numbers
Saturday 13 January 2024 02:00 , Rachel Sharp
New batches of unsealed Jeffrey Epstein court documents continue to reveal a number of high-profile individuals whose names appeared multiple times in various materials, including footnotes.
Among them are two former US presidents – Donald Trump and Bill Clinton – and Prince Andrew, all three of whom have been pictured with and known to associate with the disgraced financier in the past.
Other names include lawyer Alan Dershowitz, magician David Copperfield, Michael Jackson and Leonardo DiCaprio.
However, being identified through the court documents does not mean that the individual was involved in or aware of any wrongdoing by Epstein.
The alleged associates of Jeffrey Epstein: Names and numbers
WATCH: Comedian Jim Gaffigan makes daring Jeffrey Epstein reference at Golden Globes 2024
Saturday 13 January 2024 03:00 , Rachel Sharp
Did Epstein keep tapes of high-profile figures having sex?
Saturday 13 January 2024 05:00 , Rachel Sharp
In emails sent by Epstein victim Sarah Ransome – sections of which were included as exhibits in one of the filings unsealed on 8 January – she said that an unnamed friend “had sexual intercourse with former US President Bill Clinton, Prince Andrew and Virgin group magnate Richard Branson” and that these encounters had been filmed by Epstein and that she herself had later seen the sex tapes.
All three strongly deny the allegations against them.
A Virgin Group spokesperson referred The Independent to the New Yorker’s article, adding: “We can confirm that Sarah Ransome’s claims are baseless and unfounded.”
“We categorically reject all allegations made by Sarah Ransome. In 2016, Ms Ransome retracted her claims and then in 2019 after settling her claims with Epstein and Maxwell, she also admitted to The New Yorker that the ‘tapes’ had been ‘invented’. The allegations are baseless and unfounded,” the statement read.
“The actions of Jeffrey Epstein were abhorrent and we support the right to justice for the many victims impacted by his abuse.”
The unsealed extracts were included along with a letter sent by attorneys representing Alan Dershowitz in 2017, seeking to undermine Ms Ransome’s credibility.
In a New Yorker article released two years later in 2019, Ms Ransome admitted that “she had invented the tapes to draw attention to Epstein’s behaviour, and to make him believe that she had ‘evidence that would come out if he harmed me’”.
Ms Ransome, who delivered a victim impact statement at Ghislaine Maxwell’s sentencing for sex-trafficking charges, has since doubled down on her allegations during a media appearance on 9 January.
Ms Ransome said it is “no secret” that the alleged tapes were made, but she did not elaborate this time on who was in the tapes.
“There are videos that exist. The people that know they exist I’m sure are very frightened of them being released,” she told Good Morning Britain.
Virginia Giuffre claims Epstein had room known as ‘the dungeon’ in NYC townhouse
Saturday 13 January 2024 07:00 , Rachel Sharp
Virginia Giuffre claimed that dead sex offender Jeffrey Epstein had a room known as “the dungeon” inside his New York City townhouse in a 2016 deposition.
Among the newly-unsealed court documents released on Tuesday was testimony the Epstein victim gave as part of a lawsuit brought against Ghislaine Maxwell.
“So there was pictures on his desk in the office and around that room, and then there’s this room that I refer to as the dungeon and that had a huge photograph of me and another girl, I mean huge as in bigger than that wall cabinet,” she testified.
“There’s a painting of both of us doing salacious acts together.”
When asked what she meant by “salacious acts”, she replied: “Sexual acts, you know what I’m saying?”
Ms Giuffre said that there “nude photographs” of victims around the paedophile’s property.
Was anyone else involved in Epstein and Maxwell’s crimes?
Saturday 13 January 2024 08:00 , Andrea Blanco
Ahead of the unsealing, social media had been fascinated with the possibility that some of the rich and powerful men in Epstein’s social circle were also involved in the abuse. Being identified through the recently unsealed court documents does not mean that the individual was involved in or aware of any wrongdoing by Epstein.
New allegations emerged against and former Victoria Secret’s CEO Les Wexner, who Virginia Giuffre alleged she was trafficked to during a 2016 depositions. Mr Wexner has previously denied any involvement in Epstein’s sex trafficking ring.
“Mr Wexner was unaware of, and was never a participant in, any of the abhorrent behavior engaged in by Epstein against Epstein’s victims ... Mr Wexner ha[s] never met Ms Guiffre, and ... any claims to the contrary were not true,” a spokesperson told Business Insider.
Most of the figures alleged of taking part in crimes had already been named in previously released court dockets.
Ms Giuffre said she was trafficked to a prince and a former prime minister but declined to name them out of fears of retaliation, she said. Other names that have been linked to the same allegations are the late New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson, former senator George Mitchel, AI pioneer Marvin Minsky, Tom Pritzker, Glenn Dubin, and Prince Andrew.
Mr Dershowitz previously denied allegations in 2015 that he had sex with an underage girl. Mr Dershowitz has again strongly denied those allegations in recent days.
A spokesperson for Senator Mitchell referred The Independent to a previous statement in which he categorically denied any wrongdoing, and pointed out that no new allegations have emerged regarding Senator Mitchell in the filings recently unsealed.
A representative for Mr Pritzker also said that he first rejected Ms Giuffre’s allegations in 2019 and “continues to vehemently deny” them.
A spokesperson for Mr Dubin told The Independent in a statement: “The Dubins strongly deny these allegations, as we first said in 2019 when these unsubstantiated statements first surfaced as part of this same civil court proceeding.”
The Duke of York has also strongly denied Ms Giuffre’s allegations in the past.
The names of two people who Ms Giuffre alleged she was trafficked to, one of them a politician, remain redacted.
Donald Trump’s alleged ‘sexual proclivities’ graphically detailed in new Epstein documents
Saturday 13 January 2024 09:00 , Rachel Sharp
Graphic details about Donald Trump’s alleged “sexual proclivities” have emerged in the latest round of court documents containing details of late paedophile Jeffrey Epstein’s associates.
The new documents contain “incendiary claims” about the former president, including accusations that he had sexual relations with “many girls”, made by one of Epstein’s alleged victims, Sarah Ransome.
Mr Trump’s name has appeared a handful of times previously in the documents and, while not accusing him of wrongdoing, appears to illustrate the good relationship he had with the disgraced financier.
In the newly unsealed documents, Ms Ransome testified that her unnamed friend “was one of the many girls that had sexual relations with Donald Trump” – including at Epstein’s New York townhouse.
Read the full story:
Trump’s alleged ‘sexual proclivities’ graphically detailed in new Epstein documents
Who are Does 107 and 110?
Saturday 13 January 2024 10:00 , Rachel Sharp
A request by The Miami Herald for a master list of all the J Does in the case to be released, seconded by Alan Dershowitz, was denied last week by Judge Preska. The names of 10 Jane Does mentioned in the filings will remain under seal because their right to privacy as victims outweighed the public’s right to know.
A J Doe, 107, has until 22 January to submit proof to the court that the release of their name will put them at risk of physical harm.
Meanwhile, a request by a second J Doe, 110, to keep their name under seal is currently being reviewed by the court.
Ghislaine Maxwell features in documents over 1,000 times
Saturday 13 January 2024 11:00 , Rachel Sharp
Unsurprisingly, Epstein’s partner in crime Ghislaine Maxwell is one of the names that features the most, appearing over 1000 times in the first five batches of documents.
The British socialite’s name appears in full hundreds of times, due to the files being part of a 2015 US defamation case by Virginia Giuffre against her, though the name “Maxwell” appears still more, sometimes in reference to legal matters and footnotes.
References to Maxwell were made throughout the documents, with various other witnesses being asked about her involvement with Epstein in their separate testimonies.
Much of the information in the third and fourth tranches of evidence, released on Friday, was taken from Maxwell’s own despositions. They included questions over her interactions with Prince Andrew and Ms Giuffre as well as with former president Bill Clinton and others.
She is currently serving 20 years in prison, having been convicted sex-trafficking underage girls in June 2022.
Did Epstein have a client list?
Saturday 13 January 2024 12:00 , Rachel Sharp
If Epstein kept a physical list of the men who paid him to have sex with young women, it has never come up in legal filings.
Items seized by the Palm Beach Police Department during their initial investigation in 2005-06 included phone messages left for Epstein, and grocery lists, as recently unsealed documents show, but there is no mention of a compiled list of alleged clients.
In 2015, Gawker published Epstein’s “Little Black Book,” which appeared to be a directory with hundreds of celebrity names. According to a 2009 article in The New York Times, Epstein’s house manager Alfredo Rodriguez tried to sell the book before it was published.
However, there was no indication that the names listed in the book were clients of Epstein, and some of those listed have contested they never even met Epstein.
Clinton Center deletes controversial post after Epstein filings
Saturday 13 January 2024 13:00 , Rachel Sharp
The Clinton Presidential Center briefly posted on X wondering to whom former president Bill Clinton sent his first email after his name was revealed in the unsealed Epstein documents.
“On November 7, 1998, Pres. @BillClinton typed out and sent his first-ever email. Can you guess who it was to? #WorldTying Day,” the tweet said from the @ClintonCenter account, according to screenshots circulating on X.
The X post featured a photo of Mr Clinton typing on a clunky 1990s laptop and tagged the Clinton Presidential Library.
Read the story here:
Clinton Center deletes controversial post after Epstein filings
Jeffrey Epstein’s ‘paedophile island’ is getting a major rebrand - as a luxury resort
Saturday 13 January 2024 14:00 , Rachel Sharp
For years, it was known to victims as the “paedophile island”.
It was a place where Jeffrey Epstein and his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell lured girls and vulnerable young women, dazzled by the glamour of a spectacular, paradise Caribbean island.
Once there – and with no way of getting off the islands – these victims were sexually abused by Epstein and allegedly trafficked to his powerful, wealthy circle of clients.
Dozens of celebrities and famous figures also visited the 70-plus-acre island of Little St. James and 160-plus-acre island of Great St. James – visits that, based on what later came to light, many would rather erase from public memory.
There’s no denying that these islands have dark pasts.
But, they are now having a total makeover – courtesy of a new owner and his grand plans to transform the infamous hideaway into a luxury, five-star resort...
Jeffrey Epstein’s ‘paedophile island’ is getting a major rebrand - as a luxury resort
Jean Luc Brunel left note about Russian girl ‘two times eight years old’ for Epstein
Saturday 13 January 2024 15:00 , Rachel Sharp
Maxwell was confronted with detailed phone tones left for Epstein at his Florida home. The notes were seized by the Palm Beach Police Department during the initial investigation into Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking ring.
One of the notes referenced what appeared to be code for procuring a minor Russian girl for Epstein.
“I will direct your attention to [redacted] so you will skip a page and go back, it’s the final page in the message pads and you will see on the top left for Jeffrey, on 6/1/2005 from Jean Luc Brunel with a phone number,” Maxwell was asked.
“It says, quote, He has a teacher for you to teach you how to speak Russian. She is two times eight years old. Not blond. Lessons are free and you can have your first today if you call.”
Brunel, a Parisian model scout, died by suicide in a French jail last year while awaiting trial on sexual assault charges.
Who’s on the Epstein list?
Saturday 13 January 2024 16:00 , Rachel Sharp
Prince Andrew and Bill Clinton are among the more than 100 people named in the newly-published legal documents linked to the paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Being named in these documents does not indicate any wrongdoing related to Epstein or anyone else.
The list includes many of Epstein’s accusers and alleged victims, as well as people with only tangential connections to Epstein who were pulled into the lawsuit against Maxwell.
Prince Andrew appears prominently, with the documents mentioning a previously reported accusation that he groped Johanna Sjoberg (which he denies). Former US presidents Bill Clinton and Donald Trump are also named, with neither accused of wrongdoing.
Judges, court staff and legal represenatives are not included.
Here’s the list of names in full:
The Epstein List: Full list of names revealed in unsealed court records so far
Why have the secret Epstein documents been released now?
Saturday 13 January 2024 17:00 , Rachel Sharp
These thousands of pages of documents aren’t new.
They are part of a defamation lawsuit brought against Ghislaine Maxwell back in 2015 by Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre.
Ms Giuffre filed the suit after Maxwell accused her of lying about the years-long abuse she had suffered at the hands of Epstein and some in his inner circle.
The case went through the courts for two years – and dozens of individuals sat for depositions and gave testimony on both sides – before the suit was settled in 2017.
At the time, a judge placed the filings under a protective seal – with the identities of those named in the filings kept under lock and key.
But, The Miami Herald – whose investigative reporting first exposed Epstein’s crimes – sued for the release of all of the sealed documents.
Around 2,000 pages of documents were first unsealed in 2019, with further documents released over the following years.
But, this current trove of documents remained sealed – and the names of hundreds of people associated with the dead paedophile were kept secret, known only as Jane and John Does.
Maxwell’s legal team sought to block it for years – before finally giving up the fight in 2022.
Virginia Giuffre with Prince Andrew and Ghislaine Maxwell at Epstein’s townhouse
Then, in a landmark ruling in December, US District Judge Loretta Preska ruled that the trove of documents could be released and the names unsealed in full, saying that there was no legal justification to keep the names of Epstein’s associates redacted as “John and Jane Does”.
She also argued that much of the information is already available publicly, having been revealed through other lawsuits, criminal cases or media reports.
The judge’s ruling thereby paved the way for the release of the documents – and the names and ties of those linked to the notorious disgraced financier unmasked.
Individuals named in the documents were given 14 days to appeal, before the documents were to be unsealed in full from 1 January.
Two individuals asked for their names to remain under seal.
The first, known only as Doe 107, claimed that she lives in a conservative country and could be at risk of physical harm if her name is revealed. The judge granted her an extension until 22 January to provide evidence for this.
The request from the second individual, Doe 110, is still under review.
The federal judge has also ordered the names of several Epstein victims to remain anonymous.
But, beyond this, all documents were ordered to be released. All redacted names unredacted. And all revelations made public.
