Esptein email reveals 10 'co-conspirators' including major billionaires
The convicted sex offender knew people in some very high places
The Epstein files are finally out there in the world, and as the media trawls through thousands of unseen memos, emails, and images, it seems like we're only just scraping the tip of a very large iceberg.
Questions have swirled about the toings and froings of Jeffrey Epstein long before he was found dead in his cell in 2019, but following the shamed financier's death and the tragic passing of accuser Virginia Giuffre, major names that can be tangibly connected to his crimes are few and far between.
While the Department of Justice has faced heat over massively redacted portions of the Epstein files and supposedly missing pictures of President Donald Trump, there has been a continued trickle of releases. Everything from Epstein's celebrity contacts to his Amazon order basket has been put under scrutiny, which follows on from recent developments like the POTUS supposedly spending 'hours' with one trafficking victim.
It turns out it's been easier than the DOJ might've thought to unredact redacted portions of the files, although one explosive email refers to 10 'co-conspirators' that federal agents were looking into.
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As reported by the New York Post, the highly-redacted email comes from July 7, 2019, coming just one day after he was arrested on federal charges for the sex trafficking of minors in Florida and New York. The email refers to contact or attempted contact with 10 people, with mentions of New York and Boston.
Most are redacted, although there are specific mentions of Ghislaine Maxwell, Jean-Luc Brunel, and Leslie Wexner. Maxwell is the only confirmed co-conspirator and is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence on sex trafficking charges.
This wouldn't be the first time Brunel has been mentioned, with the French model agency boss and alleged co-conspirator dying of apparent suicide while he was awaiting trial. Wexner is an American billionaire businessman, known as a co-founder of Bath & Body Works, Inc, and linked to Epstein by having him as his financial manager from 1987 to 2007. Epstein is even said to have run his business from a house that Wexner owned and sometimes lived in.
Wexner notably cut ties with Epstein when the latter was indicted in Florida on sex trafficking charges in 2007.
Speaking to the New York Times, Wexner's lawyer reiterated that he isn't the target of a federal investigation or considered a co-conspirator. They maintain that the 88-year-old gave federal prosecutors 'background information' on Epstein and that he wasn't contacted again.
Wexner famously acquired Victoria's Secret from Roy Raymond in 1982, and in response to an inquiry from The Post, the lingerie giant said he "has no current business connections' to the famed brand.
While the email has redacted the address of the sender, there's a notable mention of "FBI New York” in the signature.
Politicians like Democratic Senate Leader Chuck Schumer have accused the DOJ of holding back information with its sluggish rollout of the files, and now, he's calling on the agency to reveal more about these apparent co-conspirators: “Buried in the Epstein files is an email disclosing the Department of Justice was looking into at least 10 possible Jeffrey Epstein co-conspirators.
“The Department of Justice needs to shed more light on who was on the list, how they were involved, and why they chose not to prosecute.
“Protecting possible co-conspirators is not the transparency the American people and Congress are demanding."
This was echoed by Kentucky's Rep. Thomas Massie, who told the outlet: "Right now the DOJ is violating the law to protect those individuals...We will first pursue all options to force the DOJ to release those names, and several options remain."
Massie went on to claim that the FBI has the names of at least 20 'powerful men' who are accused of victimizing young women and girls in connection to Epstein.