A girl who mentioned she was victimised by deceased intercourse trafficker Jeffrey Epstein mentioned Prince Andrew put his hand on her breast at Epstein’s Manhattan townhouse in 2001, in response to court docket paperwork unsealed.
The incident, which has been beforehand reported and Andrew has denied, was among the many particulars revealed on Wednesday in a trove of beforehand redacted paperwork.
The similar sufferer additionally made claims about former US president Bill Clinton, revealing that he “liked them young”.
Epstein socialised with Wall Street titans, royalty and celebrities earlier than pleading responsible to soliciting prostitution from a minor in 2008.
He took his personal life in 2019 aged 66 whereas awaiting trial on federal sex-trafficking fees.
Dozens of girls have accused Epstein of forcing them to offer sexual providers to him and his friends at his non-public Caribbean island and houses he owned in New York, Florida and New Mexico.
The names of greater than 150 individuals talked about in a lawsuit by Virginia Giuffre, one among Epstein’s most outstanding accusers, have been stored underneath seal for years till a federal decide dominated final month that there was no authorized justification to maintain them non-public.
In a 2016 deposition, Epstein accuser Johanna Sjoberg mentioned Prince Andrew put his hand on her breast to pose for a photograph with Epstein, Giuffre and Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s former girlfriend.
Sjoberg mentioned the photograph additionally included a puppet that mentioned “Prince Andrew” on it. Andrew has been stripped of most of his royal titles attributable to his affiliation with Epstein.
He settled a civil lawsuit with Giuffre final yr for an undisclosed sum and has denied wrongdoing.
He was not instantly reachable for remark.
Ghislaine Maxwell breaks silence
Maxwell, the daughter of British media mogul Robert Maxwell, is serving a 20-year jail sentence for recruiting underage women for Epstein. She is interesting her conviction.
Her legal professionals issued a press release in a single day concerning the launch of the record.
“Ghislaine Maxwell took no position on the Court’s recent decision to unseal documents in Giuffre v. Maxwell as these disclosures have no bearing on her or her pending appeal,” they mentioned.
“Ghislaine’s focus is on the upcoming appellate argument asking for her entire case to dismissed.
“She is assured that she is going to receive justice within the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. She has constantly and vehemently maintained her innocence.”
Giuffre accused Maxwell of recruiting her when she was underage for Maxwell to abuse.
The deposition transcripts also repeatedly name Bill Clinton.
Sjoberg recalled in her 2016 deposition that Epstein spoke to her about the 42nd president.
“He mentioned one time that Clinton likes them younger, referring to ladies,” she said.
When asked if Clinton was a friend of Epstein’s, she said she understood Epstein had “dealings” with Clinton.
A Clinton spokesman today reiterated that 2019 denial and told CNN that it has now “been almost 20 years since president Clinton final had contact with Epstein”. Clinton has not been accused of any crimes or wrongdoing related to Epstein.
Almost 200 names unredacted
The lawsuit documents are expected to include nearly 200 names, including some of Epstein’s accusers, prominent businesspeople, politicians and potentially more.
This is the first set of documents to be unredacted and unsealed as part of a December 18 court order; more are expected as part of the order.
Up until now, those people were identified only as Jane Doe or John Doe. Some of Epstein’s former friends and associates have already been publicly named in media reports, and several became public during the 2021 trial of Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s partner who was convicted of sex-trafficking and who is serving a 20-year sentence in federal prison.
The unsealed documents come more than four years after Epstein, a convicted sex offender who nevertheless kept elite company, took his own life in jail while awaiting federal sex-trafficking charges.
But last month, Judge Loretta Preska of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York ordered the documents to be released with nearly 200 names unredacted. Some names, including those of accusers who were under 18, will remain anonymous.
While there may not be a bombshell in the documents, any new details about Epstein’s activities could provide fodder for further lawsuits. With Epstein dead and Maxwell in prison, prosecutors could still pursue co-conspirators.
Appearing in court documents is by no means a sign of wrongdoing. But given the severity of the charges against Epstein and Maxwell, their former associates have been eager to distance themselves and denounce the alleged crimes.
Donald Trump is known to have had connections with Epstein, a multimillionaire investor and consultant, though has never been accused of wrongdoing related to those ties.
Leon Black, co-founder of private equity company Apollo Global Management, has denied allegations in court documents of raping underage girls at Epstein’s New York home. A 2021 independent investigation into Black commissioned by Apollo found no evidence that Black was involved in Epstein’s criminal activities, but it did find that Black’s payments to Epstein for consulting and other services totaled A$234 million (US$158 million) between 2012 and 2017. One of the three lawsuits against Black was thrown out.
In March 2021, Black said he would step down from the firm he managed amid scrutiny over his ties to Epstein.
In a 2020 letter to Apollo shareholders, Black said he regretted his association with Epstein and that their relationship involved only professional services, including “property planning, tax and philanthropic endeavors.”
Jes Staley, a former JPMorgan Chase executive who became the head of Barclays bank, was largely responsible for the US bank’s 15-year financial relationship with Epstein. In March, JPMorgan sued Staley over the relationship.
Staley allegedly exchanged sexually suggestive emails with Epstein, some of which included photos of young women, according to a federal lawsuit brought by the US Virgin Islands, which was eventually settled. In October, Staley was banned from holding senior roles in the UK financial services industry for misleading regulators about his relationship with Epstein.
Staley has denied wrongdoing.
“If I had identified who [Epstein] actually was, there’s completely little doubt that I would not be within the place I’m in as we speak,” Staley mentioned in a press release shared with CNN on the time.
Source: www.9news.com.au
