United States prosecutors and federal legislation enforcement spent over a yr analyzing ties between Jeffrey Epstein and Customs and Border Safety officers stationed within the US Virgin Islands (USVI), in accordance with paperwork lately launched by the Division of Justice.
As The Guardian and New York Times have reported, emails, textual content messages, and investigative information present that Epstein cultivated friendships with a number of officers, entertaining them on his island and providing to take them for whale-watching journeys in his helicopter. He even introduced one cannolis for Christmas Eve. In flip, Epstein would convey sure officers his complaints about his therapy by the hands of different CBP and federal brokers. A lot of the interactions described within the information occurred years after Epstein pleaded responsible to expenses of intercourse crimes in Florida in 2008.
The CBP officers had been by no means charged for any crimes associated to Epstein, and not less than one later retired from the company with a pension, suggesting that the federal government finally didn’t discover any wrongdoing. The paperwork do, although, describe patterns of conduct—two of the officers referred to Epstein as a “buddy”—that one authorities ethics skilled described as inappropriate and doable violations of federal steering. Additionally they comprise grand jury subpoenas that particularly title the officers and compel the recipients, which had been largely monetary providers companies, to help federal prosecutors who had been wanting into allegations of a conspiracy to defraud the US authorities.
CBP and the Southern District of New York US Lawyer’s Workplace, which led the investigation into Epstein, didn’t reply to requests for remark.
For years, Epstein allegedly introduced numerous girls and women as younger as 12 to his personal island, Little Saint James, in accordance with a 2020 complaint filed by the previous USVI lawyer common. Epstein would typically fly out and in of USVI on his personal jet.
With a view to depart from USVI to different elements of the US, Epstein’s airplane needed to be cleared by CBP, in accordance with a November 2020 FBI interview report with Epstein’s private pilot, Larry Visoski.
Visoski instructed the FBI that some passengers had been faculty college students with letters from their faculties explaining why they had been touring. Different occasions, in accordance with the report on Visoski’s interview, Epstein traveled with a girl who had a international passport. If CBP officers began questioning these passengers, Visoski mentioned, Epstein would intervene and begin arguing with the officers.
Visoski, although, instructed the FBI that Epstein made an effort to be pleasant with CBP officers, at occasions instructing Visoski to gather brokers’ contact info. (In an electronic mail to at least one CBP officer, Epstein wrote, “as you recognize Im very respectful of individuals simply doing their job.”) Over time, emails and textual content messages present, varied CBP officers would attempt to attain out to Epstein, both instantly or by means of Visoski or different associates. Generally, Epstein would have the officers out to Little Saint James.
In Might 2014, for instance, Visoski emailed Epstein, “Whereas going by means of customs in STT, our good particular person gave me his cell contact.” The pilot added that the “good particular person” can be accessible to go to Little Saint James that week. Visoski additionally connected the particular person’s contact info. The following day, Epstein’s island property supervisor emailed Epstein to let him know the particular person, a CBP officer, can be picked up on Wednesday for lunch. (It’s unclear whether or not this lunch ever occurred.)
Emails in 2015 and 2016 present that Epstein would have one other officer, Glen Samuel, come to Little Saint James to carry out on metal pan drums—a facet gig Samuel informally marketed at one level on his Fb web page. In a January 2015 electronic mail thread, Epstein requested an affiliate to make clear Samuel’s charge. The affiliate replied, “Mr. Samuel says he doesn’t intend to cost you. He considers you a buddy and was doing this for you. Should you want to give him one thing, he’s appreciative, however there is no such thing as a charge.” Samuel didn’t reply to a request for remark.
