From left to right: accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein and future President Donald Trump pose together at the Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida in 1997.Photo: Davidoff Studios/Getty
Billionaire financier Jeffrey Epstein was arrested and charged this weekend with coercing young girls into sex acts for money, bringing his alleged relationship with President Donald Trump and a prominent member of his cabinet under the microscope.
Epstein, 66, was charged with sex trafficking of minors and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of minors, theU.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New Yorksaid. On Monday, Epstein pleaded not guilty in a New York courtroom, according toCNN.
The case brings renewed scrutiny to Epstein’s apparent friendship with Trump, who spoke highly of the financier toNew Yorkmagazine in 2002.
“I’ve known Jeff for 15 years. Terrific guy. He’s a lot of fun to be with,” Trump said. “It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side. No doubt about it – Jeffrey enjoys his social life.”
Politicoreported in 2017 that Trump flew at least once on one of Epstein’s private planes, and Epstein had the future commander-in-chief’s phone numbers in his personal phone directory.
There’s also the Mar-a-Lago connection, as Virginia Giuffre, a former towel girl at Trump’s Florida resort, claimed Epstein used his girlfriend at the time to recruit her into sexual slavery while she worked at the Palm Beach club, according to Politico.
TheNew York Timesalso reports that a lawyer for Trump denied him ever having had a social relationship with Epstein.
Meanwhile, Trump’s Secretary of Labor, Alexander Acosta, has also found himself wrapped up in the scandal, as he played a pivotal role in helping Epstein avoid federal charges more than a decade ago.
Alexander Acosta.Al Drago/Getty
Acosta was the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida when he struck a deal with Epstein’s lawyers in 2008 that allowed him to avoid federal charges, and with that, the possibility of life in prison, according to theTimes.
As part of the deal, Epstein instead pleaded guilty to two state charges of soliciting a minor for prostitution and served 13 months in jail.
The outlet also reports that the deal “essentially shut down an ongoing FBI probe into whether there were more victims and other powerful people who took part in Epstein’s sex crimes.”
Acosta has also faced criticism for not letting Epstein’s underage victims know about the plea agreement, something a federal judge ruled in February broke the law, according toUSA Today.
A DOL spokesperson told PEOPLE, “We are deferring to the Department of Justice for comment.”
Epstein’s attorney did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s requests for comment.
A spokesperson for the White House did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s requests for comment.
Epstein’s detention hearing set for Thursday.
source: people.com
