U.S. prosecutors in Florida were aware that the late millionaire and financier Jeffrey Epstein was sexually assaulting teenage girls two years before reaching a plea deal with him, and ten years before his eventual imprisonment, according to transcripts released on Monday, July 1.
The transcripts reveal that the grand jury heard testimony that Epstein, then in his 40s, had raped teenage girls as young as 14 at his Palm Beach mansion, often paying them to commit statutory rape or assault.
The teenage victims testified and informed police that they were also paid cash or given rented cars if they brought more girls to Epstein.
The 2006 grand jury investigation was the first of many by law enforcement over the past two decades into Epstein’s rape and sex trafficking of teenagers. The investigation also examined Epstein’s connections with influential figures in government and society, which allowed him to evade prison or serious jail time for over a decade.
These investigations uncovered Epstein’s close ties to former President Bill Clinton and Britain’s Prince Andrew, as well as his former friendly relationship with former U.S. President Donald Trump.
Florida Circuit Judge Luis Delgado’s release of approximately 150 pages on Monday was unexpected, given that a hearing was scheduled for next week to discuss unsealing the graphic testimony. The release followed Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signing a bill in February that permitted the transcripts’ release on Monday or any time thereafter as ordered by Delgado. Typically, Florida grand jury transcripts remain secret indefinitely, but the bill created an exception for cases like Epstein’s.
According to the transcripts, Palm Beach Police Detective Joe Recarey testified in July 2006 that the initial investigation began when a woman reported in March 2005 that her high school-aged stepdaughter received $300 in exchange for “sexual activity with a man in Palm Beach.” Another teenager, whose name was redacted in the transcript, told detectives she was 17 years old when approached by a friend who said she could earn $200 by providing a massage at Epstein’s home.
At Epstein’s house, when he attempted to touch her, she expressed her discomfort. He then offered to pay her $200 if she brought “girls” to the house, emphasizing, “The younger, the better,” Recarey said.
As time passed, she brought six friends to Epstein’s house, including a 14-year-old, and likened herself to Hollywood Madame Heidi Fleiss in October 2005 interviews, Recarey recounted. When she brought over a 23-year-old friend, Epstein told her that the friend was too old.
“The more you did, the more money you made,” the detective said the teen told him. “She explained that there was going to be a massage or some possible touching, and you would have to provide the massage either topless or naked.”
Another teenager testified she visited Epstein’s house hundreds of times in the early 2000s, starting when she was 16. She testified that Epstein paid her $200 each time she gave him a massage while naked, rented her a car and gave her $1,000 the time he raped her.
“The details in the record will be outrageous to decent people,” Delgado wrote in his order. “The testimony taken by the Grand Jury concerns activity ranging from grossly unacceptable to rape — all of the conduct at issue is sexually deviant, disgusting, and criminal.”
