Social media exploded this week with posts and searches about the list of Jeffrey Epstein. The commotion focused on knowing the names of rich and famous people linked to the deceased financier and sexual offender who, supposedly, could have been clients or accomplices in his abuses against minors. But it was not a list as such, nor even a record of visitors to the businessman’s island. Less than a compilation of powerful people who can be denounced for their relationship with this case.
LOOK: Bill Clinton and the Epstein list: what court documents reveal about the former US president
Eyes are on hundreds of pages about Epstein’s sexual abuse of teenagers that have been made public since Wednesday. The latest batch, revealed Friday, includes more than 130 court files and provides more details of how the financier operated his abuse ring and got away with it. Epstein was found dead in 2019 in a Manhattan jail cell while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. His death was considered a suicide.
The trove of declassified documents is part of a defamation lawsuit that Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein’s main victims, filed in 2015 against the millionaire’s ex-lover and partner, the British heiress Ghislaine Maxwell. Accused by several women of helping Epstein recruit underage victims, Maxwell is currently sentenced to 20 years in prison.
IN FIGURES
- 200 names They are expected to mention the documents in total, including material that has not yet been opened.
- 3,000 pages of the case have been declassified between Wednesday and Friday.
In addition to the accounts of some of the victims, many of whom were high school students recruited to give massages in exchange for money, the documents are peppered with the names of celebrities and politicians who knew or worked with Epstein before he was accused of being a sexual predator.
However, they are mentioned quite heterogeneously and in diverse contexts.
Memes and ‘fake news’
The bouquet of figures that appears in the documents includes politicians, celebrities, musicians, models, actors and even scientists. Some are mentioned by victims; others by witnesses or authorities. There are even those who appear fleetingly in an email or on lists of potential interviewees. Therefore, being mentioned in the documents does not imply any type of guilt.
Among those mentioned by the victims and other witnesses are former US presidents Donald Trump and Bill Clinton, the singer Michael Jackson, the magician David Copperfield and Prince Andrew of Great Britain, who in 2022 managed to settle a sexual abuse lawsuit filed against him for Giuffre. In documents published Wednesday, Johanna Sjoberg, another of the victims, claims that the prince touched her breasts at the financier’s mansion in New York when she was 21 years old.
Regarding Clinton, Sjoberg testified that Epstein once said that “Clinton likes them young, meaning girls.”
Some well-known names
Mentioned by Epstein’s victims
1
Ghislaine Maxwell
She is accused by the victims of promoting the abuse. She has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for helping the financier to sexually abuse minors.
2
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Alan Dershowitz (Attorney)
According to the documents, Epstein forced a minor to have sex with the former Harvard Law professor multiple times, and that Dershowitz witnessed the abuse of numerous other minors.
3
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Bill Clinton (Former US President)
Johanna Sjoberg testified that Epstein told her that Clinton “liked young people, meaning girls.”
4
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Donald Trump (Former US President)
Sjoberg said he met the former president, whom he denies having massaged.
5
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Prince Andrew of England
Sjoberg claims that Prince Andrew touched her breasts at the financier’s mansion in Manhattan when she was 21 years old.
6
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Glenn Dubin (Businessman)
Virginia Giuffre claims that she was forced to have sexual relations with the businessman.
7
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Michael Jackson (Singer)
Sjoberg testified that he once met the singer at Epstein’s home in Palm Beach, Florida, but that nothing inappropriate happened with the late pop icon.
8
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David Copperfield (Illusionist)
Sjoberg says he attended a dinner at one of Epstein’s homes that the magician also attended.
Mentioned in questions from prosecutors
- Leonardo DiCaprio (Actor)
- Cameron DIaz (Actress)
- Cate Blanchett (Actress)
- Bruce Willis (Actor)
- Kevin Spacey (Actor)
- Naomi Campbell (Model)
- Marvin Minsky (Scientist)
- George Lucas (Filmmaker)
- Al Gore (Politician)
OTHER MENTIONS
Stephen Hawking (Physicist)
He is mentioned in an email that Epstein sent to Maxwell and in a court order requesting photographs and videos of various people. The documents do not make any reference to the possible sexual tastes of the British scientist.
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Although these are true passages from the documents, others that are not true also went viral. Among the hundreds of memes and false posts that emerged on this topic, several made reference to the possible sexual tastes of the British physicist Stephen Hawking, citing a statement that was not real.
Other celebrities who social media users falsely claimed are named in the documents include host Oprah Winfrey, actor Tom Hanks and X owner Elon Musk.
Little news
Beyond the commotion, the truth is that the documents have not meant any major news for the case. Many of the names mentioned were already known, since they were identified during the 2021 trial against Maxwell or because they had already been the subject of complaints.
Furthermore, while details have been included that give context to Epstein’s abuses, the files mostly repeat what has long been known about the financier’s powerful entourage, which for three decades harmed dozens of teenage girls and young women. .
“The majority of the documents that were made public do not include specific episodes of irregularities on the part of men other than Epstein,” notes the newspaper “The New York Times,” which recalls that the bulk of the famous people linked to the deceased financier have said that they were not aware of his abusive behavior towards teenage girls or young women.
