The other shoe finally dropped on Thursday, and so did the hammer — right on Prince Andrew‘s head. Well, scratch that — on the head of Andrew Mountbatten Windsor. Because he ain’t even a prince anymore!
Yes, King Charles III officially kicked his brother out of the royal family, taking away the keys to the Royal Lodge and stripping him of his titles. He’s not longer the Duke of York, no longer HRH, and no longer a prince.
All we’d heard was that Prince William was pushing for this move and that Charles didn’t have the heart to do it. This is years in the making, of course. So what changed? What affected the conscience of the king?
It’s a simpler answer than we expected. It was Virginia Robert Giuffre.
Jeffrey Epstein‘s most vocal victim, the first to go public with her claims against the billionaire AND against Andrew, died earlier this year. Supposedly by suicide. But before that she wrote her memoir, Nobody’s Girl. The book was published posthumously this month, and the details she included seem to be what finally tipped the scales. Sources told Us Weekly the monarch made the ultimate decision because of the latest developments, including the new speculation that Andrew tried to smear Virginia’s name. But what really moved the needle this month are the previously unheard allegations in her book.
Virginia wrote about her first time meeting Andrew, how he was so good at guessing her age — just 17 years old — because, as he told her, he had daughters of his own who weren’t much younger. Disgusting.
The infamous photo of Prince Andrew with Virginia Roberts, who says she was trafficked by Jeffrey Epstein to have sex with the Royal when she was just 17. / (c) BBC/WENN
We can’t help but wonder if Charles saw the headlines or was told the particulars by aides who read the tell-all. But apparently it was enough. And the royal family hinted at who changed their minds by finishing their declaration:
“Their Majesties wish to make clear that their thoughts and utmost sympathies have been, and will remain with, the victims and survivors of any and all forms of abuse.”
It breaks our hearts realizing Virginia will never know about the blow she was able to deal to her alleged abuser. We just hope this continues, and ALL the men involved in Epstein’s underage sex trafficking ring start to finally face REAL consequences.
Every new detail that comes out about Jeffrey Epstein and his circle just reminds us what a monster this man was — and why we should never stop fighting to uncover the names of every participant in his underage sex trafficking ring.
One name that’s been out there maybe the longest? Prince Andrew.
The royal family’s black sheep has never been formally charged with a crime, but he has been accused of engaging in the sex trafficking. Victim Virginia Roberts Giuffre claimed Epstein sent her to have sex with Andrew more than once, including when she was just 17 years old. As disgusting as that is — considering Andrew would have been 41 at the time — it’s worse when you factor in his daughters.
The infamous photo of Prince Andrew with Virginia Roberts, who says she was trafficked by Jeffrey Epstein to have sex with the Royal when she was just 17. / (c) BBC/WENN
Andrew’s own children Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie were 12 and 11, respectively, when Andrew allegedly had sex with Virginia for the first time.
You might think Andrew compartmentalized this fact when he was having sex with a teen girl. But it was apparently front of mind. In her posthumous memoir, Virginia describes the first night she met Andrew. She says Epstein’s Ghislaine Maxwell introduced them — and challenged the Prince to guess Virginia’s age.
“The Duke of York, who was then 41, guessed correctly: 17. ‘My daughters are just a little younger than you,” he told me, explaining his accuracy.’”
Ew. Ew ew ewwww! He said this to her?! He could tell how young she was because of how she resembled his own young daughters?!? JFC, man.
Princess Eugenie and Beatrice with Prince Andrew in 2006. (c) Z.Tomaszewski / WENN
And if you think that’s disturbing, it gets worse when Maxwell responds:
“As usual, Maxwell was quick with a joke: ‘I guess we will have to trade her in soon.’”
WTF. What the actual bleeding EFF.
“We will have to trade her in”? As in… trade her in because she’s too old? For what, girls even younger? As in, closer in age to his own daughters? Or was she actually joking about trading her for Beatrice and Eugenie??
Any possible interpretation we can think of is more horrifying than the last. JFC, these people…
We have to say, this is even more horrifying when you take into account Epstein’s claims that Sarah Fergusonbrought the princesses along with her when she visited him after he got out of prison. You know, the first time he evaded sex trafficking charges. That would have been just a few years after the meeting Virginia described. The idea of Beatrice and Eugenie coming face to face with that monster after this convo? Shivers.
Are these the biggest clues yet about who exactly is in the Epstein files?!? Plus an actual name?! HOW IS THIS NOT THE BIGGEST STORY RIGHT NOW???
Donald Trump and his loyal DOJ and FBI leaders shocked some of the MAGA faithful with their about-face on Jeffrey Epstein. They went from teasing a big reveal to actually having teams of agents spend hundreds of hours reading the files… and suddenly deciding it all needed to be swept under the rug.
Well, a small handful of Republicans have stood up to Trump on the Epstein issue, and their leader, Representative Thomas Massie from Kentucky, finally got one of those rug-sweepers in the hot seat this week.
Kash Patel has been testifying to Congress the past couple days, being grilled on numerous scandals and mistakes, by Democrats and Republicans alike. But on Wednesday, Massie got to ask the biggest question we think America has right now: WTF?!?
Kash In Pocket
OK, Massie didn’t say that. But he did confront the seemingly confused FBI director about his inane claim to the Senate on Tuesday that Epstein didn’t traffic the girls to anyone. If you missed that claim, Patel maintained to Senator John Kennedy:
“There is no credible information, none… that he trafficked to other individuals.”
So Jeffrey Epstein trafficked underage girls to NO ONE? Despite the victims saying very clearly they were trafficked to powerful men? Well, Massie made his big play here. When Epstein’s victims got together and said they’d make their own list, Massie said he and Marjorie Taylor Greene might be able to reveal it even if the girls couldn’t themselves. And on Wednesday he gave us the first name! He defied Patel, saying:
“According to victims who cooperated with the FBI in that investigation, these documents in FBI possession — in your possession — detail at least 20 men, including Mr. Jes Staley, CEO of Barclays Bank, who Jeffrey Epstein trafficked victims to.”
Whoa, what?!?
HE ACTUALLY NAMED SOMEONE! HE DROPPED A NAME FROM THE EPSTEIN LIST! HOW IS THIS NOT THE BIGGEST STORY OF THE DAY?!
The First Name
Who the heck is James Edward “Jes” Staley? A few months after Epstein’s death, the CEO of Barclays was investigated for mischaracterizing his relationship with him. Ultimately he resigned from his position.
(c) Bloomberg/YouTube
He was later named in a lawsuit against JP Morgan. An Epstein victim accused the bank of enabling Epstein financially — and Staley specifically of knowing exactly what he was doing. According to The New York Times, Staley was Epstein’s “chief defender” at JP Morgan, helping him keep his huge accounts despite suspicions he was up to no good. The lawsuit, revealed in January 2023, alleged Staley personally witnessed Epstein’s abuse of an underage girl.
Why would he look the other way, so to speak? Well, it sounds like Massie says one of the victims told the government she’d been trafficked TO HIM!
Currently he’s only facing civil and financial consequences.
Major Effing Clues!
Massie was far from finished. He may have only given one actual name, but he made very clear there’s a list of men accused of wrongdoing, and it’s in the government’s hands. He spoke about the men who were named by Epstein’s victims — and gave some major clues on who they are! He said:
“That list also includes at least 19 other individuals: One Hollywood producer worth a few hundred million dollars. One royal prince. One high profile individual in the music industry. One very prominent banker. One high profile government official. One high profile former politician. One owner of a car company in Italy. One rock star. One magician. At least six billionaires, including a billionaire from Canada. We know these people exist in the FBI files, the files you control. I don’t know exactly who they are, but the FBI does. Have you launched investigations into any of these individuals?”
YOWZA! That is a lot of clues all at once!
Well, look, the Royal prince one is easy. Prince Andrew is one of the only men who have been accused publicly. Virginia Roberts Giuffre claimed she was trafficked to him by Epstein multiple times, including when she was just 17 years old. Here they are together in a photo with Epstein’s convicted accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell.
(c) BBC/WENN
As for the “high profile government official” and “high profile former politician”? Pretty horrific to know our taxes have supported people like this, isn’t it?
And then there’s “magician” — what a wild profession to throw out, right? But probably the most intriguing to us? A rich Hollywood producer?? A “rock star”? A “high profile individual in the music industry”?? Our minds are racing with ideas, though we’ve never, to our recollection, heard of any connection between Epstein and any specific people who fit these bills. Do YOU know who he’s talking about??
Anyway, let’s check back in on what Patel has to say for himself…
Kash Tries To Pass The Buck
When Patel tried to reiterate that he hadn’t seen credible evidence yet, Massie pressed, remind him VICTIM TESTIMONY is evidence! He straight up asked the FBI head:
“Is it your assertion that these victims aren’t credible? That the 302s maybe didn’t produce credible statements that rise to probable cause?”
Patel said it was the decision of US attorneys, noting some were in past administrations. Totally passing the buck. Massie didn’t let him get away with it. He
“Have you viewed the 302 documents where they victims name the people who victimized them?”
Patel admitted he has not “personally” viewed the documents in question. So Massie hit him with:
“So how can you sit here, and in front of the Senate, and say there are no names? I named one today.”
He sure as hell did.
Patel squirmed again, saying the FBI won’t release “victim names” or “in-credible evidence.” So let’s see if we’ve got this right… Despite the fact he was such a vocal crusader for the Epstein list before this job, Patel hasn’t made it a priority to personally look at any of this evidence, any of the victim testimony, in the nearly SEVEN MONTHS he’s been on the job. Instead, he’s totally satisfied being told there’s nothing to see, and he’s accepted that without looking for himself??
Yeah, it didn’t sound like Massie bought any of that. You can see his full interrogation (below):
Out Of The Frying Pan…
Look, so far we’ve only been speaking about Kash Patel getting grilled by Republicans. But when it came to Dems, it was pretty bad, too. Though it did lean a little worse for Trump, as you might imagine…
Eric Swalwell asked Patel did he ever “tell Donald Trump his name is in the files?” The FBI director said he’d never spoken to Trump about Epstein files. (Wow, but OK.) So Swalwell asked next:
“Did you ever tell the the Attorney General that Trump’s name is in the Epstein files?”
This should have been a simple NO, right? Instead Patel gave a non-answer, saying:
“The attorney general and I have had numerous discussions about the entirety of the Epstein files and the reviews conducted by our team.”
Yeah, definitely didn’t answer that one. So Swalwell pressed him on it, asking again if he’d ever told the AG that Trump’s name was in the Epstein files. Patel again tried to skate around the answer, saying:
“During many conversations that the Attorney General and I have had on the matter of Epstein, we have reviewed…”
Swalwell wasn’t having it. He said, “The question is simple,” asking again sarcastically slowly. Patel refused to answer and started attacking Swalwell and his home state of California instead. Eventually the Congressman had to give up and said simply:
“We’ll take your evasiveness as consciousness of guilt.”
SWALWELL: Did you ever tell Donald Trump his name is in the files?
PATEL: I have never spoken with Donald Trump about the Epstein files
SWALWELL: Did you ever tell the AG that Trump’s name is in the Epstein files
It went on like that with some others. At no time, speaking to either side of the aisle, did Patel look like he had any interest in getting to the truth about Epstein and his co-conspirators. Shame.
Do you want Congress to demand release of the full Epstein files? Learn how to peacefully contact your reps to demand action at https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials.
This week we got one of the most hopeful bits of news yet about this Jeffrey Epstein scandal… but there’s a pretty big hurdle to clear still.
The Donald Trump administration may be content to bury the Epstein files forever, with the President personally calling the whole thing “a Democrat hoax”… But the victims won’t go away!
Several women who were abused and trafficked by Epstein in the ’90s and 2000s came to Capitol Hill on Wednesday and spoke out. And in one of the bravest, most badass moves we’ve seen, they announced they were putting together their own Epstein list! Accuser Lisa Phillips declared:
“And let me announce now: Several of us Epstein survivors have been discussing creating our own list of names. We know the names. Many of us were abused by them. Now together as survivors we will confidentially compile the names we all know were regularly in the Epstein world. And it will be done by survivors and for survivors. No one else is involved.”
Hell yeah!
Many asked why they aren’t just saying the names right there. We mean, they did mention Trump and Bill Clinton by name as being part of Epstein’s circle… but they didn’t make accusations against anyone other than Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Why??
Kentucky Representative Thomas Massie, the Republican Congressman who is leading the charge with his Democratic counterpart Ro Khanna from California, explained just that to folks on the internet. Taking to his X (Twitter) account, he wrote:
“Survivors at our press conference announced they are privately compiling their own Epstein list. They would be sued into homelessness for naming names…”
Yeah, we’ve already seen some of them threatened with lawsuits before. Even if they filed lawsuits, they’d still face legal action in retaliation. Alan Dershowitzactually did countersueVirginia Roberts Giuffre. All the accused probably have really powerful, expensive legal teams. It’s a huge obstacle.
However, Massie and Marjorie Taylor Greene give no effs when it comes to something this morally clear — and they have a certain protection that could allow them to announce the list publicly! He continued…
“…but @RepMTG and I are willing to name names in the House of Representatives under Constitutional ‘speech or debate’ immunity.”
That’s amazing! We could actually get this thing out this way! It wouldn’t give us the files with all the evidence and accusations that are already on record… But it would be something. And hey, if just SIX Republicans join all the Democrats in the House, they could force the DOJ to reveal all of it!
Someone asked why accusing the men of crimes opened them up to lawsuits at all — wondering why they couldn’t just press charges against the men for what they did. Massie pointed out the sad reality:
“Individuals can’t file criminal charges. That would be up to the government, who already has these names, and has already failed to file charges.”
Damn. Not only have they failed to file charges, Trump’s DOJ and FBI made clear they had no intention of ever doing so. That’s what got this renewed fervor going in the first place!
But hey, at least someone in Congress has a backbone!
[Image via Johnny Louis/MEGA/WENN/Florida Department of Law Enforcement.]
The country has been waiting for years now for the release of the Epstein Files — all the info the government collected on underage sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein both before and after his death. Many of Donald Trump‘s supporters believed he would be their champion and make all of it public… but it’s become clear even to most of MAGA that’s a long wait on a train that ain’t comin’.
No, Trump — a longtime pal of Epstein, and not the only one in the government — has made clear where he stands. He doesn’t want any of it out, he wants everyone to shut up and stop asking about it, he even went so far as to say the entire thing was just a fake Witch Hunt — repeating as recently as Wednesday that it’s “a Democrat hoax.”
But of course, we know that’s not true. Epstein’s right-hand woman and sometime girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell was convicted on sex trafficking charges, essentially proving in court that Epstein was guilty, too. We mean, he died rather inconveniently in prison before he was able to face justice, but his accomplice’s guilty verdict was pretty definitive legal proof. After all, the victims said it was both of them who recruited, sexually abused, and trafficked them to powerful men.
So there’s just that one loose end. Why the hell aren’t any of these powerful men facing justice? The ones who participated in the underage sex trafficking? That’s who everyone has been hoping would be exposed when the Epstein Files finally went public. But that… never happened.
Well, thankfully a few Republicans are standing up to Trump and siding with Democrats to demand everything be released. Congressmen Ro Khanna (D-California) and Thomas Massie (R-Kentucky) are asking their fellow reps to sign a discharge to force Trump’s DOJ to release all the files. They already have 134 of the 218 signatures they need, including Republicans Lauren Boebert, Nancy Mace, and Marjorie Taylor Greene. Wow. We may not agree with them on anything else, but at least we can all agree that UNDERAGE SEX TRAFFICKING IS WRONG! Jeez, why does this have to be difficult at all??
In a press conference on Wednesday morning, Rep. Massie hit back directly at Trump’s “hoax” defense, saying:
“I think it’s shameful that this has been called a hoax. Hopefully, today, we can clear that up. This is not a hoax. This is real. There are real survivors. There are real victims to this criminal enterprise, and the perpetrators are being protected because they’re rich, powerful, and political donors to the establishment here in Washington, DC.”
In their most powerful push for votes yet, Khanna and Massie invited some of those real survivors of Epstein to speak out about what was done to them — and why it’s so important these files be released. Trump’s FBI and DOJ used the victims as an excuse why the files should be kept private, to protect them — but these women are standing up and calling BS. And we are so in awe of their bravery.
Annie Farmer was just 16 years old when Epstein and Maxwell assaulted and took sensitive photos of her and her sister Maria Farmer. They even reported it to authorities at the time, and… nothing. That was in 1996, btw. Now she’s had three decades to witness the inaction when powerful men are involved. She told the crowd gathered on Capitol Hill on Wednesday:
“I am now 46 years old; 30 years later, we still do not know why that report wasn’t properly investigated, or why Epstein and his associates were allowed to harm hundreds, if not thousands, of other girls and young women.”
She added, pointing at the men still being protected:
“Not only did many others participate in the abuse, it is clear that many were aware of his interest in girls and very young women and chose to look the other way because it benefited them to do so. They wanted access to his circle and his money. Their choice to align with his power left those of us who had been harmed by this man and his associates feeling very isolated.”
Sky Roberts, brother of the late Virginia Roberts Giuffre — who died by suicide earlier this year, echoed these sentiments:
“The justice system was not designed to serve the powerful, it was meant to protect the people — and it’s time it started doing just that.”
He has every reason to be furious. The President of the United States admitted to knowing that Epstein “stole” his 16-year-old sister from Mar-a-Lago, and has faced no consequences whatsoever…
But the victims weren’t just there to inspire Congress to try to find them justice — they revealed they’re ready to fight with the one weapon they have: information.
As Haley Robson, who says she was trafficked by Epstein to other men starting when she was 16 years old, said:
“We are the keys. We know the games. We know the players.”
She also blasted the DOJ for using the victims as their shield for not releasing the files, saying:
“Shame on you for using our trauma to weaponize this moment.”
Well, you know who isn’t going to exploit the survivors and their trauma? The survivors themselves. Accuser Lisa Phillips declared to thunderous applause:
“And let me announce now: Several of us Epstein survivors have been discussing creating our own list of names. We know the names. Many of us were abused by them. Now together as survivors we will confidentially compile the names we all know were regularly in the Epstein world. And it will be done by survivors and for survivors. No one else is involved.”
Whoa. Whoa whoa whoa! Hell yeah! This is a total game changer!
We have to assume they’ve stayed quiet for so long because they were afraid of what would happen to them. After all, accusers have faced threats both of the legal AND violent kind. Well… not anymore! Now that it’s become clear the government has to be dragged kicking and screaming to truth and transparency, it’s well past time for these women to take charge.
It sounds like one way or another, an “Epstein list” is going to get released. After all, they know who some of the men who abused them are. Why shouldn’t they be allowed to shout it from the rooftops? Who’s going to stop them from outing sexual predators and rapists of minors??
Oh, right.
A White House official blasted the efforts to release the Epstein files, even though they clearly have the backing of the victims. They said:
“Helping Thomas Massie and Liberal Democrats with their attention-seeking, while the DOJ is fully supporting a more comprehensive file release effort from the Oversight Committee, would be viewed as a very hostile act to the administration.”
A “very hostile act” to the Trump administration?! Why would the push for a release of information be hostile to Trump? Hmm, let’s think about that one…
Some of the victims hinted at the men involved. Chauntae Davies pointed out how Epstein and Maxwell were consistently “boastful about their famous or powerful friends.” And Epstein loved bragging most about how close he was with Trump:
“And his biggest brag forever was that he was very good friends with Donald Trump. He had an 8 by 10 framed picture of him on his desk with the two of them, like they were very close.”
Several men have been associated with Epstein over the years. Bill Clinton rode on his plane and apparently had him over to the White House. Attorney Alan Dershowitz had some kind of relationship, though he’s quite litigious about what kind. Prince Andrew has been straight up accused of having sex with 17-year-old Virginia Roberts.
The infamous photo of Prince Andrew with Virginia Roberts, who says she was trafficked by Jeffrey Epstein to have sex with the Royal when she was just 17. / (c) BBC/WENN
But we don’t know of any other name as closely associated with Jeffrey Epstein as our 47th President.
Trump was good friends with Epstein for years, they were party pals, having been described by mutual friends and acquaintances as “best friends” and “wingmen.” There’s a ton of photo and video evidence of them partying together. There are stories about them hanging out with young women. Hell, Trump even said in a profile in 2003:
“I’ve known Jeff for 15 years. Terrific guy, He’s a lot of fun to be with. It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side.”
If that weren’t suspicious enough, Trump actually has been accused of wrongdoing with Epstein. A woman going by the pseudonym Katie Johnson told a horrifying story years ago, accusing Trump of tying her to a bed at Epstein’s apartment and raping her. She said she was only 13 years old when this happened. The same age as his daughter Ivanka Trump that year.
Johnson withdrew her lawsuit against Trump, citing fears for her safety, and has since disappeared. You can read her entire story HERE, if you have the stomach for it.
The point is, there may be a huge reason Trump is so keen to sweep all this under the rug — and always has been. But he can no longer silence the survivors.
We don’t know what will come first, the victims’ unofficial Epstein list or the actual release of actionable material by the US government… but if we had to bet, the smart money is on the women to come through.
And damn, we cannot wait.
See the full press conference for yourself (below):
Prince Andrew was publicly humiliated this week as his alleged puppet fetish has been revealed to the world in unsealed documents relating to the late billionaire pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
NEW: Epstein Files reveal that the victims were asked to use a puppet from a BBC production that looked like Prince Andrew where he would mimic the movements of the puppet such as putting his hand on the victim’s breast. pic.twitter.com/YGV0f0cZA8
Andrew’s name came up repeatedly in unsealed documents that listed over 150 names of Epstein associates. In one of the documents, Epstein accuser Johanna Sjoberg talked about allegedly meeting Epstein years ago with her fellow “victim” Virginia Roberts Giuffre.
“At one point, Ghislaine told me to come upstairs, and we went into a closet and pulled out the puppet, the caricature of Prince Andrew, and brought it down,” she claimed, according to The Messenger. “And there was a little tag on the puppet that said ‘Prince Andrew’ on it, and that’s when I knew who he was.”
“It looked like him,” Sjoberg continued. “And she brought it down and presented it to him; and that was a great joke, because apparently it was a production from a show on BBC. And they decided to take a picture with it, in which Virginia and Andrew sat on a couch. They put the puppet on Virginia’s lap, and I sat on Andrew’s lap, and they put the puppet’s hand on Virginia’s breast, and Andrew put his hand on my breast, and they took a photo.”
The Prince Andrew files are out in the Epstein file dump!
“Jane Doe #3 was forced to have sexual relations with this Prince when she was a minor in three separate geographical locations.”
She testifies: “We went into a closet and pulled out the puppet, the caricature of… pic.twitter.com/4kRpmXDuJl
Daily Mail reported that Sjoberg previously testified that she was a 20 year-old student at Palm Beach Atlantic University when Maxwell recruited her and hired her to be Epstein’s personal assistant in 2001. Sjoberg claimed that she was immediately forced to perform sex acts, and that she knew Giuffre was underage from the time that she met her.
In other unsealed documents, Giuffre’s legal team said, “Johanna confirms that she knew Virginia was underage when she met her on the trip to NY with Jeffrey in 2001 because Virginia couldn’t get into the casino and then later Johanna asked her and Virginia said she was 17.”
“Johanna testified that Virginia looked young,” they continued. “Johanna added: ‘At the time I had the impression that she did not have a family or she had walked away from her family. And it seemed to me, you know, they had just sort of adopted her, not as a child, but they would take care of her.’”
“Johanna confirmed that she witnessed Virginia when she was seventeen in Jeffrey Epstein’s New York mansion with Prince Andrew and Ghislaine Maxwell,” the documents stated. “Johanna also testified that Prince Andrew sat with Virginia and Johanna and took a picture with a puppet in his image that had its hand and Prince Andrew’s hand on their respective breasts.”
At the time of this writing, Andrew has never been charged in connection with Epstein’s crimes, though he did resign from his public roles in May of 2020. Epstein allegedly committed suicide in 2019 while awaiting trial for various sex crime charges, and Maxwell is currently serving a 20 year prison sentence for her role in his crimes.
Never forget when an ABC reporter said in a hot mic that she had mountains of evidence against Bill Clinton, Prince Andrew and Alan Dershowitz being implicated with Jeffrey Epstein years ago.
What do you think about the latest revelations about Andrew? Let us know in the comments section.
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An Ivy leaguer, proud conservative millennial, history lover, writer, and lifelong New Englander, James specializes in the intersection of culture and politics.
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The names of more than 170 Jeffrey Epstein associates were just unsealed.
Powerful associates like Bill Clinton, Prince Andrew, Glenn Dubin, and Jean Luc Brunel are in the documents.
The list of names also include many of Epstein’s victims.
A federal judge in New York has unsealed the identities of about 170 associates of Jeffrey Epstein as part of a long-running lawsuit between one of his accusers and his sex-trafficking partner Ghislaine Maxwell.
Former President Bill Clinton is perhaps the biggest name disclosed in the documents. He was previously identified as “Doe 36” and was named in dozens of redacted court filings. He didn’t object to unsealing the documents naming him, and the documents aren’t expected to level any new accusations of wrongdoing against him. In one newly unsealed document, an excerpt of a deposition given by Maxwell, Maxwell says that she didn’t know how many times Clinton flew on Epstein’s private jet but that she’s “sure” he had a meal while flying on it.
The documents also bring fresh scrutiny to Prince Andrew, a longtime friend of Epstein who said he cut ties with him in 2010. Another Doe whose name is expected to be unredacted is Johanna Sjoberg, one of Epstein’s victims who previously said the prince fondled her at his Manhattan mansion.
Many on social media and cable news have speculated that the list contains a comprehensive secret cache of the dead pedophile’s friends — and perhaps descriptions of their lurid acts — but the reality is more complicated.
The names include some powerful people tied to Epstein. But the list also includes the identities of some of his victims, household staff, and other people whose names incidentally came up in the course of a long-running court case between Virginia Roberts Giuffre and Maxwell. In court documents, these people were previously identified as a John or Jane Doe.
One of the Does, for example, previously identified as “J. Doe 005” in court documents, is Carolyn Andriano. Andriano testified against Maxwell at her criminal trial, describing in excruciating detail how she trafficked her to Epstein for sex beginning when she was 14 years old. She said in court that Epstein engaged in sexual activity with her more than 100 times and that he said she was “too old” for him after she turned 18.
Andriano testified using only her first name but gave her full name in an interview with the Daily Mail after the trial. The judge who ordered her name unsealed cited that interview as a reason to now make her name public in the earlier court documents. Andriano, a 36-year-old mother of five, died of an apparent overdose in May, The Daily Beast previously reported.
Out of the more than 170 anonymous Does whose names were scheduled to be unsealed Wednesday, two received extensions allowing them to continue fighting in court to remain anonymous.
One of them, Doe 107, is also one of Epstein’s victims, whose lawyer has argued in court filings that she should be able to keep her privacy. The identity of the other, Doe 110, is not yet clear.
We’ve seen a lot of these records before
Epstein died in a Manhattan federal jail while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges in 2019. Maxwell, one of his ex-girlfriends, was found guilty at trial in late 2021 of trafficking girls to Epstein for sex and sexually abusing some of them herself. She’s serving a 20-year prison sentence in Tallahassee, Florida.
Before the criminal charges, Giuffre brought civil lawsuits against both of them, accusing them of trafficking her. Epstein settled her lawsuit against him in 2009 for $500,000.
The lawsuit against Maxwell, brought later, was settled in 2017, but not after a pitched court battle that included numerous depositions and a discovery process that dredged up emails, flight manifests, news articles, and other records related to Epstein, Maxwell, and Giuffre.
Since the settlement, the civil case has experienced a long afterlife as various parties have sought to unseal the records.
Virginia Roberts holds a photo of herself at age 16, when she says Palm Beach multimillionaire Jeffrey Epstein began abusing her sexually.Emily Michot/Miami Herald/Tribune News Service via Getty Images
Alan Dershowitz has sought to get numerous filings unsealed, arguing they would disprove Giuffre’s misconduct accusations against him as well (the two settled a large number of lawsuits and counter-lawsuits against each other and their lawyers in 2022, with Giuffre stating she “may have made a mistake” saying Epstein trafficked her to Dershowitz).
The Miami Herald litigated to unseal documents, some of which were used for its explosive series about how Epstein negotiated a light plea deal on misconduct accusations around 2007 with prosecutors in Florida. The right-wing influencer and conspiracy theorist Michael Cernovich also hired a lawyer to try to unseal documents that he had posted on social media.
US District Judge Robert Sweet, who originally oversaw Giuffre’s lawsuit against Maxwell, died in 2019, leaving the task of unsealing documents to US District Judge Loretta Preska, who took over the docket.
The process has been a yearslong slog. Preska has weighed different priorities, including the public’s presumption of access to court documents versus the privacy interests of people whose names have come up in litigation.
In December, for example, she ruled that Andriano, Wild, and the Farmer sisters waived any rights to privacy after giving media interviews.
During the efforts to unseal this batch of records, Preska gave the Does a January 1 deadline to raise any new objections to unsealing their identities. Now that that deadline has passed, lawyers for Giuffre and Maxwell have been ordered to confer and then publish unsealed versions of the documents on the court docket.
The Epstein Doe names include some powerful people
Many documents in the Giuffre v. Maxwell lawsuit have been unredacted in different places at different times.
The result is that some documents — which can be as benign as an already-public Daily Mail article about Epstein’s former friend Prince Andrew or as explosive as one of Maxwell’s deposition transcripts — form a sort of puzzle where journalists can put together more complete versions by looking at unredacted portions in different places on the court docket.
That means that journalists have been able to figure out the identities of many Does even before they were officially unsealed.
As Business Insider previously reported, “Doe 183” — whose lawyer fought vociferously in secret court filings to keep his identity under wraps — was connected to Les Wexner, the billionaire former L Brands CEO who gave Epstein billions of dollars in the 1990s and 2000s.
(Wexner has said he wasn’t aware of Epstein’s misdeeds and cut off ties with him when he was convicted of soliciting girls for prostitution in 2007.)
American financier Jeffrey Epstein and British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell attend a birthday party for Michael Caine at The Canteen restaurant in Chelsea, London, 17th June 1997.Dave Benett/Getty Images
Many of the Doe parties turned out to be victims. In a previous round of unsealing, Preska disclosed that two of them were Emmy Taylor and Sarah Ransome. It didn’t make sense for their identities to remain private, Preska said, because Taylor has filed lawsuits related to her status as an Epstein victim, and Ransome has written a book about her experience being trafficked by Epstein.
The current unsealing round comes after Preska announced on December 18 that she would unseal the largest batch yet, listing about 50 pages of Does going up to “Doe 187.” Since the identities of some of those Does have been previously made public — including “Doe 183” — that left about 170 Does remaining to name.
Preska said she’d give 14 days from her December 18 ruling to allow any Does to come forward and contest the unsealings. Two have since come forward. A lawyer for Doe 107 said she lives in “a culturally conservative country and lives in fear of her name being released.” Preska has given her until January 22 to provide additional documentation to bolster that argument for privacy.
Another anonymous person, identified as Doe 110, also asked for an extension to file court documents requesting privacy. Preska said Wednesday that she would rule on that “in due course.” It isn’t clear whether Doe 110 is also a victim or someone else affiliated with Epstein.
Among the other unsealed names is Dershowitz (originally “Doe 24”), who has said for years that documents related to him should be made public.
As the Daily Mail previously reported, “Doe 162” was identifiable as Johanna Sjoberg, who gave interviews that corroborated some of Giuffre’s claims about Prince Andrew and said the British royal fondled both of them at Epstein’s Manhattan mansion in 2001. Prince Andrew has denied the allegations and settled a civil sexual misconduct lawsuit Giuffre brought against him in 2022.
Some of the Does appear to be linked to Epstein’s powerful associates but do not necessarily mean they were implicated in wrongdoing.
“Doe 8,” for example is Doug Band, a former aide for Bill Clinton. Preska pointed out that he gave a long interview with Vanity Fair about his interactions with Epstein. In the interview, Band said that he sought to push Epstein out of Clinton’s orbit but that Clinton continued to spend time with him anyway.
Earlier this week, we reported that the names of 177 high-profile associates of the late billionaire pedophile Jeffrey Epstein are set to be made public in the early days of 2024. Now, the Epstein accuser Virginia Roberts Giuffre is responding by mocking the “nervous” associates who are about to have their identities revealed.
‘Who’s On The Naughty List?’
“Finally we are hearing members of the US government senators about the need for transparency and a call to arms for accountability!!” she wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. “There’s going to be a lot of nervous ppl over Christmas and New Years, 170 to be exact, who’s on the naughty list?”
“This [wouldn’t] be possible without the Honourable Judge Preska,” Giuffre added, referring to Judge Loretta Preska, who ruled that the names must be made public.
Finally we are hearing members of the US government senators about the need for transparency and a call to arms for accountability!! There’s going to be a lot of nervous ppl over Christmas and New Years, 170 to be exact, who’s on the naughty list? This would t be possible without… https://t.co/xVfFfQ0UMH
Giuffre wrote this in response to Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) giving her thoughts on a Fox News report about the Epstein associates being named.
“I’m pleased that this court agrees with my calls for transparency and accountability on Epstein and his associates,” Blackburn wrote. “The American people deserve to know who participated in Epstein’s crimes.”
Blackburn has long been fighting to have the Epstein associates be publicly identified.
“It appears that bad actors within our government are going to great lengths to protect the pedophiles who took Jeffrey Epstein’s private jet,” she wrote on X earlier this month. “I will not stop working to reveal their identities. The American people deserve to know every name on that list.”
It appears that bad actors within our government are going to great lengths to protect the pedophiles who took Jeffrey Epstein’s private jet.
I will not stop working to reveal their identities.
This came after Daily Mail reported that Preska ruled that hundreds of court documents will be unsealed, exposing the names of 177 Epstein associates. While the release date is listed as January 1, the unsealing will likely actually happen the next day, since the first is a national holiday.
Judge Preska wrote “unsealed in full” next to the names of 177 Does who are known to be Epstein’s friends, recruiters, victims and others. She gave the Does fourteen days to object to their documents being unsealed to the public.
The documents pertain to a defamation case that was filed by Giuffre in New York against Epstein’s madam Ghislaine Maxwell. Giuffre had sued Maxwell for defamation back in 2016, and though the case was settled, the Miami Herald later sued to get the documents made public.
NEW: News Nation reporter Dray Clark reports that a former “president” will be named in the list of 170 Epstein associates that is set to be released in the new year.
“Many of those names that will come out are known & notable, including a former president.”
Epstein allegedly committed suicide in prison in August of 2019 while awaiting trial for various sex crimes. Many have questioned whether he really killed himself, however, as his death was awfully convenient for the countless powerful figures who were rumored to have ties to him. One of these famous figures is the former President Bill Clinton, who allegedly traveled on Epstein’s private jet multiple times and is rumored to have visited his private island.
Maxwell is currently serving a twenty year prison sentence in Florida after she was convicted in 2021 of child trafficking and other crimes connected to Epstein.
Giuffre has long been one of Epstein’s most vocal accusers. In the end, it’s impossible not to agree with her that it will be fascinating to see who is on the “naughty list” when it comes to Epstein.
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An Ivy leaguer, proud conservative millennial, history lover, writer, and lifelong New Englander, James specializes in the intersection of culture and politics.
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A total of 177 high-profile associates of the late billionaire pedophile Jeffrey Epstein are set to be named publicly in the early days of 2024 thanks to a heroic female judge.
🔥🚨BREAKING NEWS: Over 170 clients on Jeffrey Epstein’s high-profile list will be NAMED in court documents set to be unsealed in January of 2024. pic.twitter.com/s6kq0TkDZQ
Daily Mail reported that Judge Loretta Preska ruled that hundreds of court documents will be unsealed, exposing the names of 177 Epstein associates. While the release date is listed as January 1, the unsealing will likely actually happen the next day, since the first is a national holiday.
Judge Preska wrote “unsealed in full” next to the names of 177 Does who are known to be Epstein’s friends, recruiters, victims and others. She gave the Does fourteen days to object to their documents being unsealed to the public.
The documents pertain to the defamation case filed by Prince Andrew’s accuser Virginia Roberts Giuffre in New York against Epstein’s madam Ghislaine Maxwell. Giuffre had sued Maxwell for defamation back in 2016, and though the case was settled, the Miami Herald later sued to get the documents made public.
One reason that Preska gave for releasing the names is that some of the Does have given interviews to the media, meaning she feels that their identities should not remain private. A few of the Does are housekeepers who worked on Epstein’s private island in the Caribbean, where he is believed to have committed some of his most heinous sex crimes.
Judge Preska ruled that ten other Does will not have their identities made public because they were minor victims whose names had never been released before.
She decided that in their cases, their privacy outweighs the public’s right to know, finding that releasing their court documents would “disclose sensitive information regarding an alleged minor victim of sexual abuse who has not spoken publicly and who has maintained his or her privacy,” according to The New York Post.
This is conservative Federal District Judge Loretta Preska.
She just ruled to unseal the secret court docs that name 177 people who were involved with Jeffrey Epstein.
Epstein allegedly committed suicide in prison in August of 2019 while awaiting trial for various sex crimes. Many have questioned whether he really killed himself, however, as his death was awfully convenient for the countless powerful figures who were rumored to have ties to him. One of these famous figures is the former President Bill Clinton, who allegedly traveled on Epstein’s private jet multiple times and is rumored to have visited his private island.
Maxwell is currently serving a twenty year prison sentence in Florida after she was convicted in 2021 of child trafficking and other crimes connected to Epstein.
“Today’s sentence holds Ghislaine Maxwell accountable for perpetrating heinous crimes against children. This sentence sends a strong message that no one is above the law and it is never too late for justice,” U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said in a statement after her sentencing last year. “We again express our gratitude to Epstein and Maxwell’s victims for their courage in coming forward, in testifying at trial, and in sharing their stories as part of today’s sentencing.”
Reminder: Ghislaine Maxwell is currently in prison serving a 20 year sentence for trafficking children to.. *checks notes*… nobody, apparently?
We can only hope that some of the most powerful figures who took part in Epstein’s unspeakable crimes are among the Does that will be named in 2024. Who do you think could be on the list? Let us know in the comments section.
Now is the time to support and share the sources you trust. The Political Insider ranks #3 on Feedspot’s “100 Best Political Blogs and Websites.”
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