Jeffrey Epstein repeatedly raped one of his purported victims in front of her son, the Miami Herald reported citing court documents it obtained. According to the newspaper, the incident occurred after the woman, who was 26 at the time of the incident, agreed to visit Epstein at his mansion.
Epstein reportedly lured her in under the pretext that he needed a haircut. The woman, who was also a trained hairdresser, agreed and arrived at the Palm Beach house, the Miami Herald writes.
According to the court documents, the billionaire appeared naked in front of her and raped the young woman with the help of his ex-girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell. After the reported attack, he gave his victim $200. But her suffering was far from over, the newspaper writes.
The billionaire and his companion allegedly started threatening her. The couple told the alleged victim that they called the police, who could arrest her for prostitution, take away her son from her, and deport her from the United States, the court documents revealed. The pair also reportedly vowed to feed her to alligators if she dared to speak about the reported sexual assault.
"Epstein then ushered the plaintiff to the body of water and told her in explicit detail that - as had happened to other women in the past, according to the pair - she would end up in this body of water and be devoured should she ever reveal what Epstein had done to her", the lawsuit said as cited by the Miami Herald.
The woman was later taken to a hotel in Florida, where according to the court documents, she was raped repeatedly by Epstein in the presence of her son. She claims that over several months she was intimidated by the financier and his ex-girlfriend, who told her that they had influence over the FBI and US immigration agencies.
Sex With Epstein's Friends and His Locked Box
The disgraced billionaire manipulated the victim, promising to find her husband a job in the FBI, the court documents purport. In return Epstein asked her to "entertain" his friends – older men. The victim claims she underwent vaginal surgery to make her look like a virgin at the request of a "high-profile client".
In 2008, when Epstein was under investigation by US authorities, the billionaire asked the woman to keep a locked box as well as a number of phones and electronic devices that Epstein reportedly did not want to be seen by investigators. He allegedly ordered the woman to never open the box and threatened her with murder if she ever did. Maxwell collected all the things a month later.
The first criminal case against Epstein ended with him striking a plea deal, which helped avoid serious punishment. Back then, he pleaded guilty to two felony charges, including to soliciting a minor for prostitution. He served more than a year in prison. During his sentence he was allowed to leave his cell for up to 12 hours a day, six days a week to work. After 13 months in prison, his punishment was changed to house arrest.
According to the Miami Herald, the court documents don't specify when Epstein ended his purported abuse of the woman.
Who is Jeffrey Epstein?
From former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Bill Clinton to Donald Trump and Bill Gates, it seems the late financier rubbed shoulders with just about every celebrity and politician. His alleged victims tried to sue him, but the cases were either dropped or settled. This continued until 2019, when several women came forward with accusations and Epstein was arrested on charges of running a sex trafficking network of minors.
On 10 August 2019, he was found dead in his prison cell. The news caused a wave of indignation among his accusers as well as sparked conspiracy theories, with people suggesting that he was killed by his powerful friends who were afraid of being implicated in the scandal.
The only person who can shed light on his crimes is his former girlfriend and life companion Ghislaine Maxwell. She was arrested in July of 2020 and is now awaiting trial in the Metropolitan Detention Centre in New York City. Her trial is scheduled for this summer.