Who was Jeffrey Epstein? The unanswered questions about the paedo banker
JEFFREY Epstein was found dead in his prison cell after committing suicide on August 9, 2019, while awaiting trial for child sex trafficking,
The wealthy financier, 66, was a convicted child sex offender, who socialised with high profile celebrities.
Who was Jeffrey Epstein?
Jeffrey Epstein was an American financier and convicted child sex offender.
The 66-year-old was born in Brooklyn, New York City, and grew up on Coney Island.
The wealthy banker socialised with a lot of rich and powerful people including Prince Andrew, Donald Trump and the Clintons.
In a Channel 4 documentary, The Prince And The Paedophile, private investigator Mike Fisten claimed that Epstein had 13 telephone numbers to contact the Queen's second son on.
A telephone contact book was found in Epstein's Palm Beach home that is said to have included a line for the Duke of York at Buckingham Palace.
Fisten said: "You could take for instance, if looking at the section in London, you could pick out, the Duke of York, which is Prince Andrew. And when you look at that, under Duke of York it shows Buckingham Palace, London.
"He has thirteen phone numbers to contact the Duke. And [these numbers went everywhere], Wood Farm, Sunninghill Wood Farm, Sunninghill numbers, the Palace, his home number, his home email. He even had a phone number to his modem, I guess to call into his modem."
Epstein was believed to have kept a secret diary detailing his friendships with celebs as an “insurance policy”.
How did Jeffrey Epstein die?
Epstein's death came two weeks after he was placed on suicide watch when he was found nearly unconscious in his cell with injuries to his neck.
Law enforcement officials confirmed on August 10 he had taken his own life at Metropolitan Correctional Center in Manhattan, which is where he had been held without bail pending trial on child sex-trafficking charges.
Chief Medical Examiner Dr Barbara Sampson announced on August 16, 2019, that the death was a "suicide".
Although hyoid breaks can occur during a hanging, experts told the paper the fracture is more common in strangulation victims.
Was Jeffrey Epstein married?
Epstein was never married but did have a number of high-profile girlfriends.
The two most high-profile long-term girlfriends were Eva Andersson-Dubin and Ghislaine Maxwell.
Andersson-Dubin and Epstein were romantically linked for an 11-year period in the 1980s.
Maxwell was arrested on July 2, 2020, by the FBI for her alleged "unspeakable" part in delivering young girls into the hands of Epstein.
What was Jeffrey Epstein convicted of?
In March 2005 a woman contacted the Palm Beach Police Department in Florida and alleged her 14-year-old stepdaughter had been taken to Epstein’s mansion by an older girl.
There she was said to have been paid $300 to strip and massage Epstein.
Cops began an undercover investigation and also searched his home. The FBI also became involved in the case.
During the investigation, they interviewed five of the alleged victims and found that some of the girls had been under 18.
Papers filed in 2006 were also said to contain allegations Epstein had installed concealed cameras on his property to record sexual activity with underage girls by prominent people as a possible means of blackmail.
A plea deal was eventually agreed and Epstein pleaded guilty to state prostitution charges, registered as a sex offender and paid restitution to three dozen victims identified by the FBI.
He pleaded guilty in June 2008 to a single charge of soliciting prostitution from girls as young as 14.
Jeffrey Epstein obviously cannot go on trial for the more recent allegations, and nor can he testify against his associates.
But other people involved in the sex scandal could still find themselves in court, depending on what investigators find in Epstein's mansions and who testifies against them.
Did Jeffrey Epstein have children?
Officially he has none.
Epstein never married and didn't have any children with his high profile girlfriends.
However, up to 130 people, including dozens of Brits, say they could be a love child of Epstein.
They will inherit part of the paedo’s £470million estate if proven.
Where is Jeffrey Epstein's 'paedo island'?
Epstein's private Caribbean island has become the centre of a sex trafficking probe against him, amid claims underage girls were used as sex slaves and repeatedly abused inside a temple.
The billionaire bought the island of Little St James more than two decades ago - transforming it into a high-security private oasis, complete with a mansion and a bizarre blue and white gold-domed structure.
The island remained Epstein’s main residence but has been shrouded in mystery.
It's high security, secluded location and locally-known moniker as "Paedophile Island" has given rise to more sinister theories about its use.
Neighbouring islander Kevin Goodrich, who operates boat charters from nearby St Thomas, said: “Everybody called it ‘Paedophile Island' ... It’s our dark corner.”
There have been allegations surrounding claims that Bill Clinton visited the island.
However, Mr Clinton's office has previously said the President knew "nothing about the terrible crimes" committed by Epstein on his island.
Epstein set about building an enormous stone mansion with cream-coloured walls and a bright turquoise roof surrounded by a maids’ quarters.
Years later, and on the other southwest edge of the island, he built a square-shaped blue and white building resembling a religious temple, topped with a gold dome.
Many have speculated that the child sex abuse Epstein has been accused of may have occurred in this secluded space.