News and Commentary

10 Bizarre Facts Surrounding Jeffrey Epstein

   DailyWire.com
Jeffrey Epstein
Rick Friedman/Corbis via Getty Images

The life and death of wealthy financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has inspired seemingly inexhaustible intrigue. Horrifying allegations of a sex trafficking ring along with Epstein’s long list of friends in high places have sparked countless conspiracy theories and inspired a flood of reports about the infamous broker’s use of wealth and influence to engage in decades of sexual abuse. Even after death — in part, in fact, because of his death — he remains a mysterious figure who continues to find his way into headlines. Here are 10 suspicious, disturbing, and often outright bizarre facts connected to the enigmatic life and death of Jeffrey Epstein.

1. Death by Hanging

Officially, Jeffrey Epstein died by hanging himself in a New York City jail cell in July of 2019. The details of his headline-dominating death, however, have prompted allegations of foul play, beginning with his autopsy, as reported by 60 Minutes:

The New York City Medical Examiner’s Office ruled Epstein’s death a suicide by hanging, but a forensic pathologist who observed the four-hour autopsy on behalf of Epstein’s brother, Mark, tells 60 Minutes the evidence released so far points more to murder than suicide in his view. Dr. Michael Baden’s key reason: the unusual fractures he saw in Epstein’s neck.

And the autopsy is just the tip of the iceberg. 60 Minutes details a whole slew of inconsistencies and questions that linger around Epstein’s demise. For example, he was taken off suicide watch and his cellmate was released the day before he breathed his last.

Stranger still, the two guards assigned to Epstein failed to check up on him for almost 12 hours — despite the established protocol requiring checks of every half-hour. More importantly, both of the guards have been charged with “falsifying documents and conspiracy to defraud the federal government.” Unsurprisingly, many have suggested the guards are merely scapegoats in a much larger scheme.

Even more inexplicable, the cameras viewing Epstein’s cell “malfunctioned.” 60 Minutes reports: “Sources say the camera that should have captured those angles was corrupted the night of Epstein’s death. Epstein’s cell was about 15 feet away and up a set of stairs from the guards’ station, with a single locked gate between them.”

That such a series of catastrophic errors could occur around the apparent suicide of a high-profile inmate like Jeffrey Epstein — a man with a potential mountain of dirt on countless powerful men around the world — really does beggar belief.

The Manhattan Correctional Center is seen on August 12, 2019 in New York City. Convicted sex offender and wealthy financier Jeffrey Epstein was found earlier in the week hung to death in an apparent suicide in his cell in the Federal jail where he was awaiting trial. (Photo by Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis via Getty Images)

Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis via Getty Images

2. A suspicious plea deal

Given his numerous friends in high places — from politicians across the entire spectrum to billionaires all over the world — it’s hard not to be suspicious about that fact that the charges Epstein faced in 2008 ended with a very convenient plea deal. Considering the sizable evidence against him, the deal amounted to a slap on the wrist.

The Miami Herald reported that Epstein faced a 53-page federal indictment in 2008 that included “…assembling a large, cult-like network of underage girls — with the help of young female recruiters — to coerce into having sex acts behind the walls of his opulent waterfront mansion as often as three times a day…”

Yet, somehow, Epstein and his lawyers finagled a secret plea deal in the face of massive evidence that allowed him to plead guilty to only two prostitution charges.

More importantly, the deal concealed the evidence and granted immunity to any potential “co-conspirators,” i.e., politicians and billionaires, according to a sizable investigative piece for The Miami Herald:

[A] deal was struck – an extraordinary plea agreement that would conceal the full extent of Epstein’s crimes and the number of people involvedNot only would Epstein serve just 13 months in the county jail, but the deal — called a non-prosecution agreement — 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, according to a Miami Herald examination of thousands of emails, court documents and FBI records.

The pact required Epstein to plead guilty to two prostitution charges in state court. Epstein and four of his accomplices named in the agreement received immunity from all federal criminal charges. But even more unusual, the deal included wording that granted immunity to ‘any potential co-conspirators’ who were also involved in Epstein’s crimes.

3. A private island

According to The New York Times, much of the sex trafficking, pedophilia, and other alleged criminal activity took place on Epstein’s private island known as “Little St. James” — or as some locals called it, “Pedophile Island.” As Town and Country describes it, “Little Saint James is a roughly 70-acre island located off the coast of St. Thomas in the United States Virgin Islands.”

As reported by the Miami Herald, Epstein’s flight records show “that during the time he was abusing young girls, he was flying former President Bill Clinton, Harvard professors and administrators, Nobel-prize winning scientists, actresses, actors, philanthropists and a who’s who of wealthy and powerful people to his island.”

“Little St. James,” multiple reports suggest, was something of a “fantasy island” for some folks in very high places.

A house stands above a boat on Little St. James Island, owned by fund manager Jefferey Epstein, in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, on Wednesday, July 10, 2019. This is where Epstein –- convicted of sex crimes a decade ago in Florida and now charged in New York with trafficking girls as young as 14 –- repaired, his escape from the toil of cultivating the rich and powerful. Photographer: Marco Bello/Bloomberg

Marco Bello/Bloomberg via Getty Images

4. A mysterious temple

Theories abound for the strange temple located on Epstein’s island. Was he in a cult? Was it the den of iniquity for him and his many clients’ perversions? Is it the entrance to an underground bunker?

The building serves as a veritable feast for countless conspiracy theorists online.

Though the structure bears some resemblance to a Jewish temple, the statues around and atop the building would be sacrilege to Judaism. According to Insider, any religious attribution seems, at the very least, odd.

“Epstein is Jewish, and it is possible that he wanted his own private synagogue,” Insider reported in summer 2019. “But the statuary would be out of place at such a temple, given the Old Testament’s prohibition on graven images. Though the cubic base and dome call to mind Islamic architecture, Poseidon would likewise be an odd choice for a mosque. Churches, of course, tend to feature crosses.”

Some of the more realistic and mundane theories assert that the building was simply a gym or a music room. “Based only on its furnishings, Epstein likely used the building to play piano, read books, work, and maybe relax,” Insider’s investigation suggests. While this theory appears to be “the closest to the truth,” it doesn’t fully explain some of the mysterious aspects about the temple’s design and location.

A building stands on top of a hill on Little St. James Island, owned by fund manager Jefferey Epstein, in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, on Wednesday, July 10, 2019. This is where Epstein –- convicted of sex crimes a decade ago in Florida and now charged in New York with trafficking girls as young as 14 –- repaired, his escape from the toil of cultivating the rich and powerful. Photographer: Marco Bello/Bloomberg

Marco Bello/Bloomberg via Getty Images

5. “The Lolita Express”

For those unfamiliar with Vladimir Nabokov’s novel, Lolita is a dense and twisted story about a man who falls in love with a 12-year-old girl. Often hailed as a classic, it remains a rather lewd read to this day.

That Jeffrey Epstein, an alleged sex trafficker of minors, would even dare to name his private jet after Nabokov’s novel suggests not just licentiousness, but a belief that he was untouchable regarding any meaningful criminal indictments against him.

“The jet allegedly had a bed installed where group sex with young girls would occur,” according to The Cut. “Chauntae Davies, a woman who was hired by Epstein as a masseuse and frequently flew on the plane acting as an air hostess, confirmed in an interview with Inside Edition that there was a bed on the plane. She said she was one of several young women who were hired to travel with Epstein to give massages or yoga instruction to him and his friends, though she never had sex with him. ‘On almost every trip that I did go on there were young girls around,’ she said.”

6. “More than 100 Jane Does”

While we may never truly know the full scope of his sexual depravity and predation, it’s abundantly clear that the charges against Jeffrey Epstein made by so many women did not arise out of thin air.

“Estimates of the total number of girls allegedly abused by Epstein varies, with accounts ranging from a few dozen to over 100,” The Cut reported in July 2019. “The recent indictment charges Epstein with sexually exploiting and abusing ‘dozens’ of underage girls at his homes in Manhattan, Palm Beach, and other locations, with allegations dating back as far as 2002. However, it seems likely that the total number of victims is much higher.”

The Miami Herald identified “about 80 women who say they were molested or otherwise sexually abused by Epstein from 2001 to 2006.”

Similarly, The New York Times reported on a “heavily redacted police report that was more than 100 pages long and mentioned more than 100 Jane Does.”

Sadly, Epstein’s alleged level of depravity makes Harvey Weinstein look like a Boy Scout by comparison.

A protest group called "Hot Mess" hold up signs of Jeffrey Epstein in front of the Federal courthouse on July 8, 2019 in New York City.

Stephanie Keith/Getty Images

7. Epstein hoped to “seed the human race with his DNA”

Epstein’s obsession with “transhumanism” coupled with a profound narcissism convinced him that his DNA was a prime candidate for humanity’s collective future.

A kind of eugenics with a dash of Social Darwinism thrown in, transhumanism remains best suited for evil plots in science fiction. Regardless, Epstein was apparently convinced of its merits and his role in furthering the cause.  The New York Times reported in July 2019:

Jeffrey E. Epstein, the wealthy financier who is accused of sex trafficking, had an unusual dream: He hoped to seed the human race with his DNA by impregnating women at his vast New Mexico ranch.

Mr. Epstein over the years confided to scientists and others about his scheme, according to four people familiar with his thinking, although there is no evidence that it ever came to fruition.

Mr. Epstein’s vision reflected his longstanding fascination with what has become known as transhumanism…

According to Vanity Fair, the financier also wanted to “have his brain and penis cryogenically frozen and brought back to life at a future time and place” to further his dreams of apparently fathering the future of humanity.

8. Igor

That Epstein would invite a coterie of world-renowned scientists to his island and elsewhere and exhaust them with questions regarding transhumanism and his hopeful role in humanity’s future all while having a manservant named Igor is, potentially, high comedy. One can’t help but think of Young Frankenstein. The Intelligencer reported of Epstein’s former UFC fighter bodyguard and driver:

When Jeffrey Epstein pleaded guilty to soliciting an underage girl for prostitution in 2008 and served a 13-month sentence under the cushiest of conditions, it was his bodyguard and driver, former UFC fighter Igor Zinoviev, who frequently picked him up at the Palm Beach jail and shuttled him between the office and various appointments.

Regardless, as his bodyguard and driver, Zinoviev is a mercurial figure in the life and death of Jeffrey Epstein. A former MMA fighter, Zinoviev seems quite conflicted regarding his former boss and has signaled that he is hesitant to speak out of fear of reprisal, according to the Intelligencer:

He [Igor] talked about his response to Epstein’s apparent suicide and his memories of working for the man. A good chunk of the half-hour conversation involved revisiting things he had told me four years ago. To be honest, I didn’t expect that he’d try to back away from the assertions he made in our original interview — but he did. He also seemed, it is safe to say, quite nervous about saying anything at all.

9. More than two-dozen flights

The laundry list of sexual misconduct accusations that have hounded former president Bill Clinton reads like an excerpt from “Fifty Shades of Grey.” Clinton’s repeated palling around with Jeffrey Epstein on at least 26 flights courtesy of “The Lolita Express” — including an alleged trip to Africa with Epstein, Kevin Spacey, and Chris Tucker, as the Daily Beast notes — is yet another gigantic red flag.

Though the over two-dozen alleged flights have been widely reported, Clinton has “vehemently denied visiting any of Epstein’s out-of-state residences,” the Daily Beast reported in May 2020. “He’s not spoken to Epstein in well over a decade, and has never been to Little Saint James island, Epstein’s ranch in New Mexico, or his residence in Florida,” Clinton’s press secretary insisted.

However, some of the people interviewed for the Netflix documentary Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich claim they saw Clinton on Epstein’s private island.

The New York Post also reported that Clinton allegedly “carried on an affair” with Epstein’s closest confidante and alleged “pimp” Ghislaine Maxwell.

Worse, some have posited that the alleged affair between Clinton and Maxwell could be just a smokescreen of sorts to distract from far more damning allegations against Clinton. The New York Post further speculates:

If this alleged affair was, in fact, leaked by Clinton through his team — and his nickname wasn’t Slick Willie for nothing — it would be the ultimate Wag the Dog play. Only in Clintonworld would this story make things better: Sure, Bill hung around with a known pedophile, flew several times on Epstein’s private plane (known to all as “The Lolita Express”) and allegedly visited Epstein’s private island, known alternately as “Pedophile Island” and “Orgy Island,” but it was all for love with an appropriately-aged woman — just not his wife.

Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell attend de Grisogono Sponsors The 2005 Wall Street Concert Series Benefitting Wall Street Rising, with a Performance by Rod Stewart at Cipriani Wall Street on March 15, 2005 in New York City.

Joe Schildhorn/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images

10. A genuine sociopath?

Epstein didn’t seem to have any remorse for his actions. In fact, he tried to rationalize it all away in a manner befitting a typical sociopath. In a 2018 interview for The New York Times, Epstein tried to explain away his sexual predation by drawing from antiquity for support.

“[Epstein] said that criminalizing sex with teenage girls was a cultural aberration and that at times in history it was perfectly acceptable,” the Times reported. “He pointed out that homosexuality had long been considered a crime and was still punishable by death in some parts of the world.”

The life and death of Jeffrey Epstein will continue to intrigue historians and conspiracy theorists alike for decades. There are simply far too many dark twists and turns. That he rubbed elbows with some of the most powerful men in the world only adds to his bizarre and often lurid life and, finally, the mystery surrounding his death.

More from Sharif Khan: The 8 Most Insane Things That Happened In Seattle’s Radical ‘Autonomous Zone’

Already have an account?

Got a tip worth investigating?

Your information could be the missing piece to an important story. Submit your tip today and make a difference.

Submit Tip
The Daily Wire   >  Read   >  10 Bizarre Facts Surrounding Jeffrey Epstein