Israeli Child Sex Abuser Jeffery Epstein Suffers Legal Setback

The case against Jeffrey Epstein, the billionaire sex offender and close friend of the Duke of York, could be reopened following a legal victory by two of his alleged victims.

An appeal court in the US ruled that the women, who claim they were 13 and 14 when they were abused by the convicted paedophile, could see details of a plea bargain agreed between Mr Epstein and federal prosecutors before he was jailed in 2008.

 

Despite making 16 out-of-court settlements with women who said he abused them, the billionaire was convicted of a single charge of soliciting prostitution with a minor and imprisoned for 13 months.

It later emerged that Mr Epstein had kept a “black book” detailing the names and contact details of under-age girls whom he had allegedly abused in “Michigan, California, West Palm Beach, New York, New Mexico, and Paris”, according to court papers.

Some of the girls were introduced to him by Ghislaine Maxwell, his friend and the daughter of the late media tycoon Robert Maxwell, who allegedly told them they should give him a massage. Most were paid about $200 (£119).

There is no suggestion she was aware of his sexual interest in underage girls.

Lawyers for the alleged victims say that Mr Epstein, who also counted President Bill Clinton and fellow billionaire Donald Trump as his friends, was given a “sweetheart deal” due to his wealth and connections.

They hope that by seeing details of the plea bargain they will be able to bring fresh charges against the 61-year-old, who was released in 2009 and has homes in NYC, Paris, New Mexico and the Caribbean.

The women were not told about the deal before it was agreed which, the south Florida appeals court ruled, breached a 2004 law requiring prosecutors to keep victims informed of plea bargains. They are planning to use the “treasure trove” of released documents to break it.

Paul Cassell, a University of Utah law professor who is representing the two women, said: “Our complaint alleges that, prodded by Mr Epstein, the federal prosecutors deliberately concealed the sweetheart plea deal they made with him to avoid public criticism.”

Both the Duke of York and President Clinton have been suggested as likely witnesses in any further proceedings. While there is no suggestion that either did anything wrong, or knew about his sexual activity with underage girls, they were friendly with Mr Epstein at the time he is alleged to have abused girls at his homes.

Flight records show that Mr Clinton visited him on his Caribbean island of Little St James, where he is alleged to have kept underage girls as sex slaves. The Duke was at one stage photographed with Virginia Roberts, who has since said that she was one of Mr Epstein’s slaves, with Miss Maxwell in the background.

Mr Epstein, who made his money as a financial advisor to the very wealthy, became friendly with the Duke of York in 2000 and helped his ex-wife, the Duchess of York, with her debts.

While many of the billionaire’s high-profile associates cut ties with him following his conviction, the Duke was criticised for maintaining their friendship after Mr Epstein’s conviction, staying at his New York mansion soon after his release from jail.

Mr Epstein’s lawyer and the US attorney’s office in Miami, where the case was heard, did not comment on the ruling.

But R. Alexander Acosta, the US attorney at the time, said in 2011 that many of the facts in the case emerged only after the original investigation and prosecution.

He went on: “Many victims have spoken out, filing detailed statements in civil cases seeking damages. Physical evidence has been discovered.

“Had these additional statements and evidence been known [at the time], the outcome may have been different.”

In a court document filed last month, Epstein’s attorney Roy Black rejected the suggestion that he had received favourable treatment. He said: “This was no sweetheart deal by any stretch of the imagination.”