JPMorgan Chase called the U.S. Virgin Islands 'complicit in the crimes of Jeffrey Epstein,' saying the sex predator gave high-ranking officials money, advice and favors in exchange for looking the other way when he trafficked young women to be abused there
Epstein, a former friend of Donald Trump and Bill Clinton, maintained a home on a private island in the territory where he sexually abused many young women over the years. He used money from his JPMorgan accounts to pay women and fly them there.
In its filing Tuesday, JPMorgan noted that when Epstein was released from a Florida jail after pleading guilty to procuring a minor for sex, he tried to arrange for his parole to be transferred from that state to the Virgin Islands, where he registered as a sex offender. He also maintained his primary residence in the territory, which"put him under USVI law enforcement's direct jurisdiction and supervision," the filing said. The bank alleges there was a"decades-long quid pro quo between Epstein and the USVI government" that took three forms. "First, high-ranking USVI officials spent years courting and gladly accepting Epstein's influence in the form of gifts, favors, and political donations," the filing said. "Second, in exchange, USVI granted Epstein preferential treatment in the form of more than $ [amount redacted] million in tax incentives, among other benefits. Third, and most troublingly, USVI protected Epstein, fostering the perfect conditions for Epstein's criminal conduct to continue undetected." Specifically, the filing says Epstein supported the candidacy of Stacey Plaskett, the Virgin Islands delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives, after she worked for the USVI Economic Development Authority, which awarded Epstein"massive tax benefits." Plaskett had also worked at a law firm that represented him in business affairs, the filing says. Epstein and his employees donated more than $30,000 to Plaskett's congressional races, according to the bank. The filing said that Epstein's"primary conduit for spreading money and influence through" Virgin Islands government was then-first lady Cecile de Jongh, the wife of former Gov. de Jongh, who served from 2007 through 2015. And"despite her public role and official duties, First Lady de Jongh managed Epstein's USVI-based companies ... receiving from Epstein a salary, bonuses and other benefits," the filing said.Jeffrey Epstein's former home on the island of Little St. James in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Much of the details of the claims related to Cecile de Jongh are redacted in the filing, but in one section the bank says that in addition to working for his companies she"extensively lobbied on his behalf with government officials, including the governor." In another heavily redacted section, the filing says the Virgin Islands"aided Epstein's criminal activity." The specific allegations as to how the government did that is blacked out. Almost completely redacted is a section of the filing entitled,"Epstein exerted influence over USVI sex offender legislation and received lax monitoring." In one unredacted section, the bank's lawyers wrote,"While the USVI did conduct site visits of Epstein's residences, those inspections were cursory at best." "Despite the direct infusions of lucrative tax incentives, [redacted] and lax enforcement, Epstein still could not freely transport and exploit young women without assistance from USVI government officials," the filing said. "In exchange for Epstein's cash and gifts, USVI made life easy for him," the filing said."The government mitigated any burdens from his sex offender status. And it made sure that no one asked too many questions about his transport and keeping of young girls on his island.", who a month earlier had obtained a $105 million settlement from Epstein's estate. Days after she filed that suit, Bryan fired George, who had been attorney general for four years.because she failed to alert him that she planned to sue JPMorgan, which is the largest bank in the United States. Despite George's firing, the Virgin Islands has continued to aggressively pursue its litigation against the bank. On Tuesday, there was another in a series of private telephone conferences with Rakoff over the case. A public docket entry summarized the outcome of that conference, which included lawyers for the Virgin Islands, JPMorgan, former JPMorgan executive Jes Staley and an Epstein accuser who has a separate, similar lawsuit pending against the bank. JPMorgan is trying to shift any legal liability it may have in the suit to Staley, who was a point of contact for Epstein at the bank.The entry also says that"all parties other than JP Morgan are ordered to contact former officers and directors of JP Morgan only through counsel." CNBC requested comment from lawyers for the Virgin Islands and from JPMorgan about the conference Tuesday.Charges against Jeffrey Epstein were announced on July 8, 2019 in New York City. Epstein will be charged with one count of sex trafficking of minors and one count of conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking of minors. Epstein, 66, died by suicide in a Manhattan jail in August 2019, a month after he was arrested and charged in Manhattan federal court with child sex trafficking. Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 to a Florida state charge of soliciting sex from an underage girl and was sentenced to 13 months in jail. His prior criminal case and stint in jail, which were known to JPMorgan at the time, came in the middle of his tenure as a customer of the bank, where he maintained accounts from 1998 until the bank severed its relationship with him in 2013.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
JPMorgan's Dimon says bank's plans regarding his tenure are unchangedJPMorgan Chase & Co CEO Jamie Dimon said he still approaches his job leading the largest U.S. bank with the same intensity, when asked by analysts about his retirement plans on Monday.
Read more »
JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon on how to get his job: 'Give a s--t'JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon was asked what attributes the bank's board should look for when selecting his eventual successor, and he did not hold back.
Read more »
JPMorgan lifts net interest income view by $3 billion on First RepublicJPMorgan expects to earn $3 billion more in net interest income this year after its takeover of failed First Republic Bank
Read more »
JPMorgan accuses US Virgin Islands of harboring Jeffrey Epstein for 2 decadesThe filing said Epstein also supported congresswoman Stacey Plaskett, now the territory’s delegate to the Congress and who once worked for agency that awarded his tax benefits.
Read more »
JPMorgan defends itself by blaming U.S. Virgin Islands for Jeffrey Epstein's sex crimesLawyers for the bank said in the Manhattan federal court filing that the government of the Virgin Islands was complicit, letting high ranking officials be...
Read more »
JPMorgan Chase blames Virgin Islands for Epstein sex crimesLawyers for the bank said in the Manhattan federal court filing that the government of the Virgin Islands was complicit, letting high ranking officials be bought off by Epstein and actively working…
Read more »