US court unseals Epstein-linked names
The names of nearly 200 people cited in a 2015 civil suit brought by Jeffrey Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre have been released by a US court, having been under seal since the case was settled in 2017.
Hundreds of court filings containing the names were unsealed on the order of US District Judge Loretta Preska last month, with a court spokesperson saying they would be made public on a rolling basis beginning on January 1. Files released on Wednesday include the names of billionaire Glenn Dubin and his former private chef Rinaldo Rizzo, former Victoria's Secret CEO Lex Wexner, magician David Copperfield, and many others.
High-profile public figures, such as ex-US President Bill Clinton and the UK’s Prince Andrew, who had already been publicly named in connection to the case, were also included.
Though flight records show that Clinton traveled on Epstein’s private jet on several occasions and at least one witness cited in the court filings claimed that he liked “young” girls, a spokesman for the former president said in 2019 that Clinton had not spoken to Epstein in more than a decade and was unaware of any criminal activity in the time he knew him.
Court records released on Wednesday also allege that Prince Andrew had groped a woman at Epstein’s home in Manhattan in 2001. A separate case brought by Giuffre against the British royal alleged that she was made to have sex with Prince Andrew several times while underage, though the case was settled out of court last year. While he has acknowledged a friendship with Epstein, Prince Andrew continues to deny all wrongdoing.
The full list of names includes known associates of Epstein, as well as witnesses, victims and others incidentally related to the defamation case. The names of underage victims who did not testify will remain under seal, according to Judge Preska, who has also allowed individuals to appeal the release of certain documents.
In one instance, the attorney for a person identified only as ‘J. Doe 107’ requested their client’s name be kept under wraps, noting that she lives in a “culturally conservative country” and is “in fear of her name being released” given the nature of the case. The judge is now considering the request.
The documents are related to a 2015 defamation suit brought against Epstein confidant Ghislaine Maxwell by Giuffre, which was later settled out of court. Maxwell has since been convicted to 20 years in prison after being charged for grooming victims for Epstein.
In the 2015 case, Giuffre claimed that Maxwell and Epstein directed her to have sex with men starting when she was just 17, and that Epstein himself had also sexually abused her.
Epstein was charged for several sex trafficking offenses in 2019, but was found dead in his New York jail cell before the case could be tried. The death was ruled a suicide, with the Justice Department later finding that negligence by prison staff had allowed Epstein to take his own life in custody.
