A U.S. court has released documents revealing the names of numerous associates of the late sex offender Jeffery Epstein.
It includes former U.S. President Bill Clinton and Prince Andrew.
Here’s what you need to know.
First, who was Epstein?
Jeffrey Epstein was a well-known American hedge fund manager and a convicted sex offender.
In 2008, Epstein pleaded guilty in a controversial deal to charges related to sex-trafficking minors. He served 13 months in jail.
In 2019, police arrested him again on new federal sex trafficking charges. Epstein was denied bail and died in his jail cell at age 66 while awaiting trial. A coroner ruled his death as a suicide.
He was known to be friends with an array of high-profile politicians, celebrities and wealthy men.
What has happened now?
A court has made the historical court documents related to Epstein public. The documents were previously private to hide the names of victims, witnesses, associates or friends of Epstein.
Associates named in the documents include former presidents Bill Clinton and Donald Trump, as well as Prince Andrew (the second son of Queen Elizabeth II). Many of the people named had already been publicly identified as associates of Epstein.
There is no accusation of wrongdoing.
What do the documents say?
The documents reveal testimonies from women who were victims of Epstein.
It mentions Bill Clinton several times. One alleged victim of Epstein, Johanna Sjoberg, testified that Epstein told her “[Bill] Clinton likes them young, referring to girls”.
The documents do not accuse Clinton of wrongdoing. In a statement in 2019, Clinton said he knew “nothing about the terrible crimes” of Epstein.
Prince Andrew
Sjoberg also claimed Prince Andrew “put his hand on my breast” while they posed for a photo at one of Epstein’s houses.
Prince Andrew has repeatedly rejected allegations of wrongdoing in connection to Epstein. He settled a lawsuit in 2022, without admitting wrongdoing.
It was alleged Epstein had arranged for Prince Andrew to sexually abuse and rape a 17-year-old.
Sjoberg also said she saw Michael Jackson at Epstein’s house in Palm Beach. When asked if she massaged him, she said: “I did not.”
The release
The documents relate to a 2015 defamation lawsuit brought forward by Virginia Giuffre, a victim of Epstein, against Ghislaine Maxwell.
Maxwell is the former partner of Epstein who helped facilitate his crimes. She is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for helping Epstein sexually abuse young girls.
Both parties settled the defamation lawsuit out of court, but it left a lot of the case’s evidence sealed.
American newspaper The Miami Herald commenced a legal battle to obtain the sealed court documents.
The newspaper won, leading to the public release today. It’s expected more documents will become public.
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