The North News
New Delhi, December 22
A civil lawsuit filed in a Florida court has accused the late financier Jeffrey Epstein of sexually abusing and exploiting a teenage girl as part of an alleged scheme targeting vulnerable minors.The complaint, lodged in the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida in 2010, details claims by an anonymous plaintiff identified as C.L., who says she was 15 years old when she was first introduced to Epstein.
According to the case file, Epstein – described as a billionaire money manager with extensive properties including a mansion in Palm Beach, Florida – operated a systematic pattern of recruiting underage girls for sexual acts disguised as “massages”. The document alleges that Epstein and his assistants enticed economically disadvantaged minors, some as young as 14, to his Palm Beach residence. There, they were reportedly paid cash after being coerced into removing their clothes and subjected to various forms of sexual assault, including fondling, penetration, and the use of vibrators.
The North News examined the Epstein files, uncovering details of the exploitation faced by underage girls.
In the plaintiff’s case, she claims she was approached by a high school friend who was also allegedly a victim. On her first visit to Epstein’s home, she was led to a room with a massage table where Epstein allegedly instructed her to undress and massage him while he was naked. The filing states he then touched her breasts and vagina, masturbated, and ejaculated before paying her $200 (£158) and escorting her out. Subsequent encounters reportedly escalated, with Epstein or his associates – including a named individual, Sarah Kellen – allegedly pressuring her to recruit other girls and threatening her against speaking out. The plaintiff says Epstein warned her that “bad things could happen” if she told anyone. The lawsuit cites Epstein’s 2008 guilty plea in a Florida state court to charges of solicitation of prostitution and solicitation of a minor for prostitution. As part of a non-prosecution agreement with federal authorities, Epstein reportedly acknowledged certain victims, including the plaintiff, and waived his right to contest liability in civil suits under specific US laws. The complaint brings three counts under federal statutes, including coercion to engage in prostitution, sexual exploitation of children, and participation in a child exploitation enterprise. It seeks damages for physical and emotional harm, loss of income, and medical expenses, claiming the injuries are permanent. Epstein, who died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex-trafficking charges, faced multiple similar allegations during his lifetime. He consistently denied wrongdoing in other cases. This document emerges amid ongoing scrutiny of Epstein’s activities, including his associations with high-profile figures, though the lawsuit focuses solely on the plaintiff’s experiences between approximately 1998 and 2007.
