News

US: Billionaire Arrested On Sex Trafficking Charges

A hedge fund billionaire has been arrested on sex trafficking charges in the New York area, after having long been followed by accusations of molesting young girls, US media reported.

Jeffrey Epstein, who is expected to appear before a federal magistrate on Monday, was arrested Saturday at a New Jersey airport after arriving from Paris in his private jet, CBS Miami reported.

A source familiar with the case told the television station Epstein was charged with one count of sex trafficking and one count of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking.

Epstein had long been the subject of accusations of paying young girls for sexual massages at his Palm Beach, Florida mansion.

A police investigation found that he had engaged in sex with underage girls, some as young as 13, according to reporting by the Miami Herald.

But Epstein avoided federal prosecution in those cases with a 2007 plea deal negotiated by R. Alexander Acosta, now the US labor secretary and at the time the top federal prosecutor in Miami.

Under the deal, he pleaded guilty to a state charge of soliciting prostitution from a minor and was sentenced to 18 months in the county jail.

The Miami Herald investigation found that Epstein was granted work release privileges that allowed him to leave jail for 12 hours a day, six days a week, and that he was released after 13 months.

The revelations threw a spotlight on Epstein, a well-connected financier whose friends included US President Donald Trump and former president Bill Clinton.

It also drew attention to Acosta’s role in negotiating the plea deal.

 

admin

Recent Posts

Ford Trims Workforce: 4,000 Jobs to Go in Europe

US car giant Ford on Wednesday announced 4,000 more job cuts in Europe, mostly in…

2 days ago

Tinubu Dissolves UNIZIK Council, Sacks VC, Registrar, Otukpo Pro-Chancellor

  President Bola Tinubu has approved the dissolution of the Governing Council of Nnamdi Azikiwe…

2 days ago

Ekiti Workers to Earn N70,000 Minimum Wage as Govt Signs MoU with Unions

  The Ekiti State Government has reached an agreement with labour leaders in the state,…

2 days ago

N610bn Constituency Projects Under ICPC Scrutiny in 21 States, FCT

  The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has initiated the seventh…

2 days ago

Iraq Undertakes Historic Census After 40-Year Gap

Iraq is holding its first nationwide census in nearly four decades this week, a long-awaited…

2 days ago

Relief as Rep ‘Lafi’ Empowers 300 Constituents Through Skill Acquisition Programme

  Over 300 constituents of Akinyele/Lagelu Federal Constituency in Oyo State benefitted from a skill…

3 days ago