Jeffrey Epstein

Jeffrey Epstein
Epstein's final mugshot in 2019
Born
Jeffrey Edward Epstein

(1953-01-20)January 20, 1953
New York City, U.S.
DiedAugust 10, 2019(2019-08-10) (aged 66)
Cause of deathSuicide by hanging
Occupations
Criminal chargeProcuring a child for prostitution; sex trafficking
PenaltyThirteen months (2008)
Partner(s)Ghislaine Maxwell

Jeffrey Edward Epstein (/ˈɛpstn/ EP-steen;[1] January 20, 1953 – August 10, 2019) was an American financier and sex offender.[2][3] Born and raised in New York City, Epstein began his professional life as a teacher at the Dalton School despite lacking a college degree. After his dismissal from the school in 1976, he entered the banking and finance sector, working at Bear Stearns in various roles before starting his own firm. Epstein cultivated an elite social circle and procured many women and children whom he and his associates sexually abused.[4][5][6]

In 2005, police in Palm Beach, Florida, began investigating Epstein after a parent reported that he had sexually abused her 14-year-old daughter. Federal officials identified 36 girls, some as young as 14 years old, whom Epstein had allegedly sexually abused.[7] Epstein pleaded guilty and was convicted in 2008 by a Florida state court of procuring a child for prostitution and of soliciting a prostitute.[8] He was convicted of only these two crimes as part of a controversial plea deal, and served almost 13 months in custody but with extensive work release.[9]

Epstein was arrested again on July 6, 2019, on federal charges for the sex trafficking of minors in Florida and New York.[10][11] He died in his jail cell on August 10, 2019.[12] The medical examiner ruled that his death was a suicide by hanging.[13] Epstein's lawyers have disputed the ruling, and there has been significant public skepticism about the true cause of his death, resulting in numerous conspiracy theories.[14][15] Since Epstein's death precluded the possibility of pursuing criminal charges against him, a judge dismissed all criminal charges on August 29, 2019.[16][17] Epstein had a decades-long association with the British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, leading to her 2021 conviction on U.S. federal charges of sex trafficking and conspiracy for helping him procure girls, including a 14-year-old, for child sexual abuse and prostitution.[18][19][20]

  1. ^ Who is Jeffrey Epstein?. The New York Times. July 10, 2019. Archived from the original on August 20, 2019 – via YouTube.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference US-Atty-SDNY-2019 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Lewis, Paul (January 4, 2015). "Jeffrey Epstein: The rise and fall of teacher turned tycoon". The Guardian. Archived from the original on November 26, 2016. Retrieved November 7, 2016.
  4. ^ Goddard, Chris; Bortoli, Lillian De; Saunders, Bernadette J.; Tucci, Joe (2005). "The rapist's camouflage: 'child prostitution'". Child Abuse Review. 14 (4): 275–291. doi:10.1002/car.894. ISSN 0952-9136. Archived from the original on May 29, 2023. Retrieved May 29, 2023.
  5. ^ Colyar, Brock; Hurwitz, Kelsey; Klein, Charlotte; Kweku, Ezekiel; Larocca, Amy; Martins, Yinka; Raymond, Adam K.; Schneier, Matthew; Stieb, Matt (July 22, 2019). "Who Was Jeffrey Epstein Calling? A close study of his circle—social, professional, transactional—reveals a damning portrait of elite New York". New York. Archived from the original on September 14, 2019. Retrieved July 25, 2019.
  6. ^ Nally, Leland (October 1, 2019). "An Actual Conspiracy Kept Jeffrey Epstein's Accomplices out of Prison". Mother Jones. Archived from the original on October 1, 2019. Retrieved October 1, 2019. According to [the facts for the] ruling by U.S. District Judge Kenneth Marra in February 2019: 'In addition to his own sexual abuse of the victims, Epstein directed other persons to abuse the girls sexually. Epstein used paid employees to find and bring minor girls to him. Epstein worked in concert with others to obtain minors not only for his own sexual gratification, but also for the sexual gratification of others.'
  7. ^ Brown, Julie K. (November 28, 2018). "Jeffrey Epstein abused teen girls for years, police say. A timeline of his case". Miami Herald. Archived from the original on August 15, 2019. Retrieved August 12, 2019.
  8. ^ Goldsmith, Samuel (June 30, 2008). "Jeffrey Epstein Pleads Guilty to Prostitution Charges". New York Post. Archived from the original on August 13, 2019. Retrieved August 12, 2019.
  9. ^ Buncombe, Andrew (January 2, 2015). "Jeffrey Epstein: the billionaire paedophile with links to Bill Clinton, Kevin Spacey, Robert Maxwell – and Prince Andrew". The Independent. London, England. Archived from the original on September 25, 2015. Retrieved November 7, 2016.
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference Shallwani was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ Chaitin, Daniel (July 7, 2019). "Jeffrey Epstein arrested for sex trafficking of minors in Florida and New York". Washington Examiner. Archived from the original on July 7, 2019. Retrieved July 7, 2019.
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference WashingtonPost_20190810 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ Sisak, Michael R.; Balsamo, Michael; Neumeister, Larry (August 17, 2019). "Medical examiner rules Epstein death a suicide by hanging". AP NEWS. Archived from the original on September 4, 2019. Retrieved August 17, 2019.
  14. ^ Cite error: The named reference Stockler-2019 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  15. ^ Cite error: The named reference Hosenball-2019 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  16. ^ Neumeister, Larry (August 29, 2019). "Judge ends case against Epstein, with a nod to the accusers". Associated Press. Archived from the original on August 30, 2019. Retrieved August 30, 2019.
  17. ^ Pierson, Brendan (August 30, 2019). "Case against Jeffrey Epstein dismissed following his death". Reuters. Archived from the original on August 30, 2019. Retrieved August 31, 2019.
  18. ^ "Ghislaine Maxwell guilty of helping Jeffrey Epstein abuse girls". BBC News. December 30, 2021. Archived from the original on December 31, 2021. Retrieved December 30, 2021.
  19. ^ Twohey, Megan; Bernstein, Jacob (July 15, 2019). "The 'Lady of the House' Who Was Long Entangled With Jeffrey Epstein". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 16, 2019. Retrieved July 15, 2019.
  20. ^ Dienst, Jonathan; Valiquette, Joe; Winter, Tom; Fitzpatrick, Sarah (July 2, 2020). "Jeffrey Epstein Confidante Ghislaine Maxwell Arrested, Sources Say". NBC New York. Archived from the original on July 2, 2020. Retrieved July 2, 2020.