Secret transcripts from Jeffrey Epstein investigation finally released
<p>Secret transcripts from the 2006 Grand Jury investigation into allegations of sex trafficking and rape against Jeffrey Epstein have been made public for the first time. </p>
<p>On Monday, approximately 150 pages of unseen transcripts were released to the public, which were released weeks earlier than originally anticipated. </p>
<p>“It is our hope that the release of these records gives peace of mind to our community and gives Jeffrey Epstein’s victims the closure they deserve,” Clerk of the Circuit Court in Palm Beach County, Florida, Joseph Abruzzo, said in a <a title="www.mypalmbeachclerk.com" href="https://www.mypalmbeachclerk.com/Home/Components/News/News/734/16" target="_blank" rel="noopener">press release</a>.</p>
<p>In February, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a bill that allowed the documents to be released, with the judge planning a hearing for next week to discuss when and how they would be released. </p>
<p>“The details in the record will be outrageous to decent people,” Circuit Judge Luis Delgado wrote in his ruling. </p>
<p>“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.”</p>
<p>The transcripts detail a testimony in 2005, where an anonymous 17-year-old girl was approached by a friend who said she could make $US200 ($300) if she gave a massage “to a wealthy man in Palm Beach”.</p>
<p>She went to his house and was led to a room by Epstein’s assistant, and was instructed to remove her clothes by the millionaire. </p>
<p>According to Palm Beach Police Detective Joe Recarey’s testimony, Epstein told the girl he would pay her if she brought “girls” to his home, “And he told her, ‘the younger, the better’.”</p>
<p>Over an undetermined amount of time, the girl brought six friends from her high school to Epstein’s home, including a 14-year-old girl.</p>
<p>Following the Grand Jury investigation in 2006, Epstein took a plea deal with South Florida federal prosecutors in 2008. </p>
<p>The deal, which has been criticised for being too lenient, allowed him to get away with several federal charges of abuse against underage girls if he pleaded guilty to Florida state charges, as he pleaded guilty to soliciting and procuring a minor for prostitution.</p>
<p>Epstein was found dead in his jail cell in August 2019 after spending just over a month in custody as he awaited sentencing.</p>
<p><em>Image credits: MGG/Shutterstock Editorial/Palm Beach County Circuit Court</em></p>
