Jeffrey Epstein arrested for child sex trafficking
Sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was arrested this past Saturday from a complaint by the Public Corruption Unit of the Southern District of New York. According to the latest indictment, Epstein “enticed and recruited” minor girls to visit him at his Manhattan mansion and Palm Beach estate to engage in sexual acts with him, after which he would give the victims cash. Prosecutors allege that some victims were as young as 14.
Upon arraignment, Jeffrey Epstein plead not guilty to the charges that were put for forth against him. Prior to this arrest, Epstein was charged by federal prosecutors in Florida in 2007 for coercing minors into performing sexual acts for his pleasure. Epstein pleaded guilty to two counts of prostitution charges in state court and in exchanged received federal immunity both for himself and “any potential co-conspirators”. Epstein served 13 months in Palm Beach County Jail with very inappropriate restrictions, that allowed him to leave the prison for up to twelve hours a day.
At the time of the arrest, the US attorney general of the Southern District of Florida was Alex Acosta. Upon Epstein’s arrest, Acosta’s handling of the case was said to be wildly inappropriate for granting Epstein a plea deal that did not deter him from committing further crimes in the future. Acosta currently resides as President Trump’s Labor Secretary and is facing copious amounts of backlash as Epstein’s case begins to resurface. True accountability is still glaringly absent for Alex Acosta, who approved the permissive plea deal granted to Epstein. President Trump has previously spoken on behalf of Jeffrey Epstein’s character describing him as a “terrific guy and he’s a lot of fun to be with. 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.” A lawyer for Trump denied any connection between the President and Epstein. A lawyer representing three of the alleged victims said that Trump was helpful in building a civil lawsuit against Epstein.
Epstein is unlikely to receive an Acosta-style deal in this case. Charges of federal sex-trafficking carry mandatory minimums of 10-15 years. In other words, with full compliance and cooperation agreement with the government, Epstein will serve at least 10-15 years in prison if convicted.