Jeffrey Epstein

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Epstein in 2019
Some dare call it
Conspiracy
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What THEY don't want
you to know!
Sheeple wakers
I wanted to do a story on sex trafficking, but every time I googled Florida and sex trafficking, a story about Jeffrey Epstein came up.
Julie K. BrownWikipedia[1]

Jeffrey Epstein (1953–2019) was an American financier who was well known; now infamous for two things — his sex trafficking operation (arguably the largest-scale crime revealed under the aegis of MeToo challenged only by Keith RaniereWikipedia/NXIVM, the Peter NygårdWikipedia case, and the Samuel KleinWikipedia case), along with the… controversial circumstances of his death in prison, which has been ruled a suicide. Many have doubted this ruling, especially as these revelations came around the time conspiracy theories claiming to link the international elite to pedophile cults were rapidly growing.

Some background[edit]

Though initially a teacher in New York City, he would leave that for a seemingly much more lucrative career in the finance sector. The word "seemingly" is invoked because, well, it's a bit of a mystery where his billions actually came from or if he was a billionaire at all.[2] As much of his wealth came from a money management firm in the tax haven of the U.S. Virgin Islands, which has never released any public records, how rich he was and how he got the money remain currently unknown, although he was definitely rich enough to afford a private island which he used to traffic girls. Theories as to the origin of his fortune range from money laundering to work in espionage. Dodgy conduct was associated with him from fairly early on — he was fired from both Bear StearnsWikipedia and his teaching position, and indeed he only got this job at Bear Stearns because he had befriended their CEO, Alan Greenberg. He nonetheless managed to achieve acceptance among the American aristocracy and even made contacts abroad! Some prominent acquaintances of his (who have since had to make some really embarrassing denials) included Bill Clinton, Prince Andrew, Ehud Barak, Donald Trump, Steven Pinker, and Bill Gates.

The infamous part[edit]

In the '80s, Epstein began performing financial services for Leslie Wexner, the CEO of Victoria's Secret. Wexner was the primary client of Epstein for quite some time, without which Epstein's business likely wouldn't have taken off. Abusing this connection, in the '90s Epstein began posing as a "model scout" to lure prospective Victoria Secret models to hotel rooms and his home, because there's absolutely nothing skeevy about a middle-aged man pretending to be a "model scout" to get women into his bedroom. Wexner was made aware, but did not suspend his connections with Epstein until around the time of Epstein's first conviction. In what is in hindsight somewhat disconcerting, in the early 2000's Wexner would market his line of lingerie towards 15-year-old girls.[3]

Epstein had officially been accused of sex-related crimes since 2005, and was even convicted in 2008 (though his sentence was a mere 13 months), but this really only caught up with him in 2018 and 2019. After numerous accusers came forward influenced by similar events like the fall of Harvey Weinstein, numerous vile details were brought to the public eye and he was arrested on federal charges of sex trafficking. Whilst awaiting trial, he was found dead in his cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Center. How did he die? How could the guards have let this happen? Who did the deed? What secrets did he take to the grave about his rich and powerful clientele? Such questions gripped the popular consciousness, and in many ways Epstein is more remembered for his mysterious death than for the horrible things he did.

Alex Acosta and the plea deal[edit]

Epstein was indicted on sex trafficking charges in 2007 after a long FBI investigation. Agents found 34 children with credible accusations against him. Alexander Acosta, then federal prosecutor and later Donald Trump's Secretary of Labor, made a sweetheart plea deal with Epstein which included the right to leave prison for 12 hours a day on work release. He naturally used this period to abuse at least one victim.[4]

In addition to being morally sketchy, this deal was also illegal under a federal law which says Acosta was required to tell the alleged victims about such plea deals.[5]

The plea deal came up during Acosta's confirmation hearing, but it wasn't until 2019 (after Epstein's final arrest put the case back in the spotlight) that Acosta resigned.[6]

"Epstein didn't kill himself"[edit]

His death was officially ruled as a suicide, specifically saying he hanged himself with his bed sheet. Naturally scores of people in the perpetually paranoid American body politic believe that Epstein was killed, usually by some powerful person who did not want their connection with his crimes revealed. The Clintons are common "suspects" because of course they are. This is encapsulated in the phrase "Epstein didn't kill himself," which went viral very quickly, and this meme has refused to die. Such widespread acceptance can be traced to three things — legitimate procedural fuck-ups that the prison staff made in regards to him, mass resentment of the well-off elite that he was intricately linked with, and some supposed discrepancies in the autopsy.

It's not impossible that Epstein was murdered, but it's likely he did commit suicide and the guards utterly screwed up. One simple reason is that there's far, far easier ways to kill someone like Epstein. For example, nothing outright says that Epstein is required to be separated from the general population of inmates, many of whom would have very strong reasons to resent Epstein, and just letting things happen.

Malfunctioning cameras[edit]

Not one but two cameras malfunctioned in front of Epstein's cell when he died.[7] It's possible for a camera to have a fault due to poor maintenance, but two cameras having a fault at the same time is pretty much announcing that the cameras were tampered with. However, this is not proof of an assassination (though video evidence would be helpful disproving it), as there is actually a more plausible reason why someone would tamper with the security footage...

Sleeping guards[edit]

During the night of Epstein's death, two guards assigned to him were allegedly both asleep.[8] This is a colossal screw-up, of course, but never ascribe to malice what can be explained by incompetence. Anyone who's worked in the prison system could tell you, there's a good chance that the guard in the tower is busy playing a handheld game or reading some internet site dedicated to debunking spiritualist woo, unlike our readers who never stop work to goof off. That both did so simultaneously for such a long time is much more suspicious, of course, but not impossible. At the same time, combined with the "malfunctioning" video cameras, they were charged with falsifying records.[9] The simplest explanation is that a pair of utterly incompetent guards struggled to cover their tracks after letting a notorious inmate commit suicide.

Had there been an actual assassination, well, this is where a real conspiracy would begin to unravel.[note 1] Prison guards are less "Jason Bourne" and more "Paul Blart, Mall Cop". Charging someone with serious crimes is not a good way to ensure they stay quiet, and bribery is a tool best used to keep people out of the spotlight. Given the high profile nature of the case, if one of the guards suddenly buys a Lamborghini or a beachfront mansion in Boca, that's going to attract questions, and it's hard to believe someone could be bribed with money that they couldn't ever spend.

Hyoid bone[edit]

Epstein's death involved a broken hyoid bone. It's actually unclear how often a broken hyoid bone occurs in a suicide by hanging,[10] but it is more likely to happen in strangulations than in suicides, due to the angle of the choking pressure. The older the suicide victim is, however, the more likely the hyoid bone would break. Epstein was hardly a young man, so a broken hyoid bone is not all that unusual, and so by itself doesn't really provide much evidence for a death being a murder or a suicide.

Prior suicide attempt[edit]

There was a prior suicide attempt by Epstein, allegedly. Epstein himself claimed that another inmate tried to murder him, though the guards believed that he either attempted suicide or was trying to frame another inmate for assault in order to be transferred to another, better facility, which actually raises the possibility of another explanation for everything that happened.[11] The person Epstein accused of attempted murder was Nicholas Tartaglione (who in turn claims he saved Epstein's life), an ex-cop who allegedly murdered 4 people, including one by strangulation.[12] The video for this attempt was initially missing, but was eventually located.[13] There is also the possibility he simply did not want to be put on suicide watch which in jail is a humiliating experience.

Motive[edit]

Now moving into the conspiracy theorist's realm, the entire reason to kill Epstein is because some of his friends were also in on the molestation, and dead men tell no tales. However, this falls apart for a simple reason; at least 80 victims came forward against Epstein before he died,[14] and if another powerful person was in on the raping, many of the victims who came forward against Epstein would still come forward against Epstein's partners whether or not Epstein was alive. So far, there hasn't been a rash of Epstein accusers slipping down the stairs onto some bullets. Given that Epstein's friend Bill Gates also ended up involved in numerous sex scandals that he couldn't keep those under wraps forever (or even remain CEO of his own company!),[15] if Gates was in cahoots with Epstein there's no reason to believe that any of the victims who came out against one wouldn't come out against the other. So far, the only one of Epstein's famous associates to have related rape allegations is Prince Andrew, and if the British Royal Family wasn't able to make an accusation quietly disappear, it's unlikely anyone else would've been able to keep all of their victims quiet. Furthermore, if one or more of Epstein's clients arranged an assassination to silence him, it is inexplicable that they would not do the same to Epstein's partner Ghislaine Maxwell, who also had full knowledge of their crimes. As of 2024, Maxwell is still alive and serving a 20-year sentence in federal prison.

Suicide of Jean-Luc Brunel[edit]

Jean-Luc BrunelWikipedia was a fashion mogul and associate of Epstein who was accused of aiding in his sex trafficking business. When he was arrested for the sexual abuse of minors, Brunel was also found dead in his cell after seemingly hanging himself.[16] Conspiracy theorists like Ted Cruz suggested that Brunel, like Epstein, had been murdered, possibly by the Clintons.[17] No evidence of murder has ever been presented, though, and Brunel was reportedly suicidal.[18]

Relation to QAnon[edit]

For more, see QAnon

QAnon is a far-right conspiracy theory revolving around the idea that there is a massive cult made up the world's elites where everyone practices cannibalism, pedophilia and Satanism. But somehow the best person to put a stop to it all is Trump. Reading between the lines, they outright admit Trump needs to be compared to a group of Satan-worshipping baby-raping cannibals in order to come across as the good guy; a group of Christian pedophile-cannibals or Satanic cannibals would not be sufficiently evil to make Trump look good in comparison. Soon after this conspiracy spread, well, Epstein made the news with his death. As an obscenely wealthy man working in the mysterious/despised world of Finance, who had connections to the top people in the world, Epstein was the perfect guy to make the center of the conspiracy, and him being Jewish was just the cherry on top.

People associated with Epstein[edit]

By no means an exhaustive list, but he did have a lot of friends who would become hated by the far-right for different reasons, many of whom actually do deserve a bit of scorn;

  • Bill Clinton, U.S. President and utterly hated by the far-right for proving that a Democrat could be an evil president too,[19] disliked by many others for more legitimate reasons such as allegedly abusing his power to make rape accusations disappear.[20]
  • Les Wexner, CEO of Victoria's Secret, recently pissed off the far-right by promoting LGBT issues.[21] He probably should be hated regardless for the very existence of the brand "Pink", a line of lingerie whose target is girls as young as 13.[22] Plus as mentioned earlier, the whole "talent scout" thing.
  • Bill Gates, billionaire software magnate, now hated for his pro-vaccine stance.[23] Also had a lot of sex scandals that only became public during his divorce, probably deserves a bit of scorn for that.
  • Prince Andrew, a member of the Royal family even the British were unaware existed before Epstein's death, but if you need some random world leader to be included in your conspiracy, there you go[24]
  • Alan Dershowitz, already hated for either being pro-Israel or for defending O. J. Simpson[25]
  • Trump himself!
    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. No doubt about it — Jeffrey enjoys his social life —Donald Trump[26]
    Arguably the two had a falling out over time, but still...
  • Fellow billionaire and GOP megadonor Peter Thiel may have met with Epstein as many as at least 3 to 5 times, although the exact number of meetings which came to fruition is unclear.[27][28]

Eugenics and transhumanism[edit]

There have been claims that Epstein was planning to create a master-race based on his own DNA, a scheme which matches the definition of eugenics. The New York Times cited associates of Epstein, saying: "Epstein told scientists and businessmen about his ambitions to use his New Mexico ranch as a base where women would be inseminated with his sperm and would give birth to his babies … Mr Epstein’s goal was to have 20 women at a time impregnated at his 33,000-sq-ft Zorro Ranch in a tiny town outside Santa Fe". Creepy. This reflected Epstein's more general interest in transhumanism, including giving $20,000 to the Worldwide Transhumanist Association (now Humanity Plus) in 2011. His former lawyer Alan Dershowitz claimed to have been concerned by Epstein's fascination with eugenics, given Dershowitz's and Epstein's Jewish heritage and the Nazis' interest in eugenics.[29][30]

Notes[edit]

  1. Watergate was just one of many examples of real world conspiracies undone by a bumbling idiot making a mess of things.

References[edit]

  1. Meet Julie K Brown, the woman who brought down Jeffrey Epstein by Andrew Anthony (25 Jul 2021 03.00 EDT) The Observer/The Guardian.
  2. How Jeffrey Epstein Made His Money: Four Wild Theories by Matt Stieb (July 9, 2019) New York Magazine.
  3. Victoria's Secret: Epstein, The Atlantic
  4. https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2019/07/lawyer-epsteins-abuse-continued-while-on-work-release.html
  5. https://www.miamiherald.com/news/state/florida/article226577419.html
  6. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/12/us/politics/acosta-resigns-trump.html
  7. from Reuters
  8. NY Times, guards asleep
  9. Epstein guards charged with falsifying records
  10. Slate's take on the hyoid bone
  11. Epstein found injured
  12. NY post, exp cop accused of hurting Jeffrey Epstein
  13. CNBC
  14. how many victims were there
  15. All the times Bill Gates reportedly engaged in questionable conduct before he and Melinda Gates announced their divorce, insider
  16. Jean-Luc Brunel, held on suspicion of supplying girls to Epstein, found hanged, The Guardian
  17. Ted Cruz under fire for attempt to link Hillary Clinton to Epstein associate found dead in cell, The Independent
  18. Jeffrey Epstein's former friend Jean-Luc Brunel made numerous suicide attempts before his death, The Telegraph
  19. Photos allegedly show Clinton received massage from Epstein accuser, Forbes
  20. Juanita Broadrick tells her story. WaPo, 1999
  21. Les Wexner's connection to Epstein, NYT
  22. Archived from 2002
  23. Epstein and Gates, NYT
  24. from Beeb
  25. Alan Dershowitz not happy about documentary, CNBC
  26. Trump and Epstein
  27. Chas Danner, Benjamin Hart, and Matt Stieb (December 19, 2023). "Who Are the Newly Revealed Jeffrey Epstein Associates?". Intelligencer (New York).
  28. Matthew Goldstein and Ryan Mac (May 18, 2023). Peter Thiel Is Latest Billionaire Said to Have Met With Jeffrey Epstein. The New York Times.
  29. Jeffrey Epstein Hoped to Seed Human Race With His DNA, New York Times, July 31, 2019
  30. Epstein reportedly hoped to develop super-race of humans with his DNA, The Guardian, Aug 1, 2019