NEW YORK: Eleven years after letting Jeffrey Epstein off lightly with a secret deal, federal prosecutors made another run at putting the billionaire financier behind bars on sex charges, accusing him Monday of abusing dozens of underage girls as young as 14.
The 66-year-old hedge fund manager who once socialized with some of the world’s most powerful people was charged in a newly unsealed indictment with sex trafficking and conspiracy and could get up to 45 years in prison.
Prosecutors said the evidence included a “vast trove” of hundreds or even thousands of lewd photographs of young women or girls, discovered in a search of his New York mansion.
Epstein, who was arrested over the weekend as he arrived in the US from Paris aboard his private jet, was brought into court Monday in a blue jail uniform, his hair disheveled, and pleaded not guilty. His lawyers argued that the matter had been settled a decade ago with a plea agreement in Florida involving similar allegations.
“This is ancient stuff,” Epstein attorney Reid Weingarten said in court, calling the case essentially a “redo” by the government.
The defendant was ordered jailed for a bail hearing next Monday, when prosecutors plan to argue that the rich world traveler might flee if released.
Epstein was accused of paying underage girls hundreds of dollars in cash for massages and then molesting them at his homes in Florida and New York from 2002 through 2005.
He “intentionally sought out minors and knew that many of his victims were in fact under the age of 18,” prosecutors said. He also allegedly paid some of his victims to recruit additional girls.
“In this way, Epstein created a vast network of underage victims for him to sexually exploit in locations including New York and Palm Beach,” prosecutors said.
US Attorney Geoffrey Berman of New York said that the non-prosecution agreement that spared Epstein from a heavy prison sentence a decade ago is binding only on federal prosecutors in Florida, where the deal was made, not on authorities in New York.
“While the charged conduct is from a number of years ago, it is still profoundly important to the many alleged victims — now young women,” Berman said. “They deserve their day in court. We are proud to be standing up for them by bringing this indictment.”
Assistant US Attorney Alex Rossmiller said that while there is some overlap between the Florida and New York cases, one of the counts against Epstein is based entirely on New York victims.
Federal authorities said new accusers have come forward since Epstein’s arrest, and they urged other possible victims to contact the FBI.
Some of Epstein’s accusers welcomed the indictment.
“The news of my abuser’s arrest today is a step in the right direction to finally hold Epstein accountable for his crimes and restore my faith that power and money can’t triumph over justice,” Sarah Ransome said through her lawyer.
Prosecutors in New York are seeking the forfeiture of Epstein’s mansion, a seven-story, 21,000-square-foot townhouse less than a block from Central Park. The home, formerly a prep school, is across the street from a home owned by Bill Cosby and has been valued at approximately $77 million.
Epstein, who is unmarried and whose friends have included President Donald Trump, former President Bill Clinton and Britain’s Prince Andrew, was arrested Saturday at an airport in New Jersey, just outside New York City. Prosecutors said they would oppose his release on bail.
“He has enormous wealth. The charges are very serious and carry with them a maximum sentence of 45 years, which to someone of Epstein’s age is basically a life sentence,” Berman said, “so we think he has every incentive to try and flee the jurisdiction.”
Epstein’s arrest came amid increased #MeToo-era scrutiny of the 2008 non-prosecution agreement that allowed Epstein to maintain his jet-set lifestyle that includes a Bentley and homes in Paris and the US Virgin Islands, where he owns an island.
Under the once-secret deal — overseen by Alexander Acosta, who was the US attorney in Miami at the time and is now Trump’s labor secretary — Epstein pleaded guilty to state charges of soliciting a minor for prostitution. He avoided a possible life sentence and served 13 months in jail, during which he was allowed out to go to his office during the day.
The deal also required that he reach financial settlements with dozens of his alleged victims and register as a sex offender.
Acosta has defended the agreement as appropriate, though the White House said in February that it was looking into his handling of the case.
The new charges were brought by the public corruption unit within the US attorney’s office in New York, which normally handles cases against politicians. Berman would not comment on why that was so and cautioned against reading anything into it.
Attorney General William Barr declined to comment on Epstein’s case and would not say offer an opinion whether federal prosecutors mishandled it initially, saying he has recused himself from the matter.
According to court records in Florida, authorities say at least 40 underage girls were brought into Epstein’s Palm Beach mansion for sexual encounters after being recruited around the world.
Some of Epstein’s alleged victims have accused Prince Andrew and former Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz with taking part in Epstein’s sex ring. Buckingham Palace has vehemently denied any involvement by Andrew, and Dershowitz has accused the victims of lying about him.
The non-prosecution agreement, examined in detail in a series of stories in The Miami Herald, is being challenged in federal court in Florida. A federal judge ruled earlier this year that Epstein’s victims should have been consulted under the law about the agreement, and he is now weighing whether to invalidate it.
Federal prosecutors recently filed court papers in the Florida case contending the deal must stand.
“The past cannot be undone; the government committed itself to the NPA, and the parties have not disputed that Epstein complied with its provisions,” prosecutors wrote.
Wealthy financier Jeffrey Epstein charged with molesting dozens of girls
Wealthy financier Jeffrey Epstein charged with molesting dozens of girls
Bangladesh court defers Hindu leader’s bail hearing as tensions with India spike
- Krishna Das Prabhu, who was arrested in Bangladesh’s capital last week, faces charges of sedition after he led rallies in Chattogram
- Hindu groups say there have been thousands of attacks against them since August, when secular government of PM Hasina was overthrown
DHAKA: A court in southeastern Bangladesh on Tuesday rescheduled a bail hearing for a jailed prominent Hindu leader who led large rallies in the Muslim-majority country demanding better security for minority groups.
Krishna Das Prabhu, who was arrested in Bangladesh’s capital, Dhaka, last week, faces charges of sedition after he led huge rallies in the southeastern city of Chattogram. Hindu groups say there have been thousands of attacks against Hindus since early August, when the secular government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was overthrown.
Prabhu’s arrest comes as tensions spiked following reports of the desecration of the Indian flag across Bangladesh, with some burning it and others laying it on the floor for people to step on.
Bangladesh’s Foreign Ministry on Tuesday summoned India’s envoy, Pranay Verma, a day after a group of Hindus in Agartala, the capital of the northeastern Indian state of Tripura, stormed a consulate office of Bangladesh in protest over Prabhu’s arrest.
Anti-India protests were held in Dhaka, where security at the Indian High Commission was increased, and elsewhere over the incident in Agartala.
Relations between India and Bangladesh deteriorated after Hasina fled to India in the wake of mass protests which left hundreds of protesters dead and thousands wounded. India has since stopped issuing visas for Bangladeshi nationals, except for medical treatment.
India, which sheltered 10 million refugees and helped Bangladesh gain independence through a nine-month bloody war against Pakistan in 1971, considers Hasina as a trusted friend. Hasina’s father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was the independence leader of Bangladesh, then the eastern part of present day Pakistan.
The detention of Prabhu sparked violent protests by his supporters. A Muslim lawyer was hacked to death near the court in Chattogram hours after the news of his jailing surfaced and his supporters clashed with security forces. The situation caused concern in Hindu-majority India and the Bangladesh interim government, led by Nobel peace laurate Muhammad Yunus.
No reason was given why Prabhu, also known as Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachari, did not attend Tuesday’s court hearing.
Public Prosecutor Mofizul Haque Bhuiyan told The Associated Press by phone that Chattogram Metropolitan Session Judge Saiful Islam ordered a bail hearing be held on Jan. 2 after the prosecution petitioned for more time to study the case. He also said no defense lawyer represented Prabhu in court.
Two Hindu leaders who are close to Prabhu said that they were afraid to attend the court as many of the lawyers who represented Prabhu had faced cases after last week’s violence.
“A group of lawyers stood last time for him (Prabhu). Cases have been filed against at least 70 of them and many others willing to take part in the hearing today have been threatened,” one Hindu leader in Chattogram told the AP on condition of anonymity.
“Why was he (Prabhu) not brought to the court today? He is in police custody. He could have spoken for himself before the court if he was taken to the court. It’s a ploy to delay his release from prison, this is not justice,” the leader said.
In Dhaka, a group of Islamists under the banner of Islamic Movement Bangladesh rallied in front of the country’s main Baitul Mukarram Mosque in protest at Monday’s incident in Agartala. Another group, under the banner of Bangladesh Citizens’ Society, separately marched through the streets.
Protests were also organized by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, headed by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, in Barishal and Khulna cities. Hasina and Zia are arch rivals.
India’s Ministry of External Affairs said Monday that the attack on the Bangladesh Assistant High Commission in Agartala was “deeply regrettable.”
“Diplomatic and consular properties should not be targeted under any circumstances,” a ministry statement said.
It added that India was stepping up security arrangements at the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi and other diplomatic offices in the country.
Bangladesh’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the attack in Agartala and demanded security to prevent any further acts of violence against its diplomatic missions in India.
“The accounts received conclusively attest that the protesters were allowed to aggress into the premises by breaking down the main gate of Bangladesh Assistant High Commission in a pre-planned manner,” the foreign ministry said.
The Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council, an umbrella organization of the country’s minority groups, has denounced the arrest of Prabhu and called for his release.
Prabhu is a spokesman for the Bangladesh Sammilito Sanatan Jagaran Jote group. He was also associated with the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, widely known as the Hare Krishna movement.
Hindus and members of other minority groups say they have faced attacks since the ouster of Hasina. Yunus has said the threat to Hindus has been exaggerated.
Around 91 percent of Bangladesh’s population is Muslim, with Hindus making up almost all of the rest.
Bangladesh has faced political and social tensions since Hasina’s fall after a mass uprising ended her 15-year rule. Her critics had accused her of becoming autocratic.
The interim government has been struggling to establish order amid a background of mob justice, street protests, police administration issues and political uncertainty, with Yunus repeatedly urging for calm.
South Korea president declares emergency martial law
- The surprise move comes as the ruling and opposition parties continue to bicker over next year’s budget bill
- Opposition MPs last week approved a significantly downsized budget plan through a parliamentary committee
SEOUL: South Korea’s President Yoon Suk Yeol on Tuesday declared emergency martial law, saying the step was necessary to protect the country from “communist forces” amid parliamentary wrangling over a budget bill.
“To safeguard a liberal South Korea from the threats posed by North Korea’s communist forces and to eliminate anti-state elements... I hereby declare emergency martial law,” Yoon said in a live televised address to the nation.
“With no regard for the livelihoods of the people, the opposition party has paralyzed governance solely for the sake of impeachments, special investigations, and shielding their leader from justice,” he added.
The surprise move comes as Yoon’s People Power Party and the main opposition Democratic Party continue to bicker over next year’s budget bill. Opposition MPs last week approved a significantly downsized budget plan through a parliamentary committee.
“Our National Assembly has become a haven for criminals, a den of legislative dictatorship that seeks to paralyze the judicial and administrative systems and overturn our liberal democratic order,” Yoon said.
He accused opposition lawmakers of cutting “all key budgets essential to the nation’s core functions, such as combatting drug crimes and maintaining public security... turning the country into a drug haven and a state of public safety chaos.”
Yoon went on to label the opposition, which holds a majority in the 300-member parliament, as “anti-state forces intent on overthrowing the regime” and called his decision “inevitable.”
“I will restore the country to normalcy by getting rid of anti-state forces as soon as possible.”
South Korean parliament votes to defy president by lifting his declaration of martial law
- Hours later, parliament voted to lift the declaration, with the National Assembly Speaker Woo Won Shik declaring that lawmakers “will protect democracy with the people”
- Woo called for police and military personnel to withdraw from the Assembly’s grounds
SEOUL: South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law late Tuesday, vowing to eliminate “anti-state” forces as he struggles against an opposition that controls the country’s parliament and that he accuses of sympathizing with communist North Korea.
Hours later, parliament voted to lift the declaration, with the National Assembly Speaker Woo Won Shik declaring that lawmakers “will protect democracy with the people.” Woo called for police and military personnel to withdraw from the Assembly’s grounds.
The president’s surprising move harkened back to an era of authoritarian leaders that the country has not seen since the 1980s, and it was immediately denounced by the opposition and the leader of Yoon’s own conservative party.
Following Yoon’s announcement, South Korea’s military proclaimed that parliament and other political gatherings that could cause “social confusion” would be suspended, according to South Korea’s Yonhap news agency.
The military also said that the country’s striking doctors should return to work within 48 hours, Yonhap said. Thousands of doctors have been striking for months over government plans to expand the number of students at medical schools. The military said anyone who violates the decree could be arrested without a warrant.
Under South Korean law, martial law can be lifted with a majority vote in the parliament, where the opposition Democratic Party holds a majority.
Soon after the declaration, the National Assembly speaker called on his YouTube channel for all lawmakers to gather at the Assembly building. He urged military and law enforcement personnel to “remain calm and hold their positions.
All 190 lawmakers who participated in the vote supported the lifting of martial law. Television footage showed soldiers who had been stationed at parliament leaving the site after the vote.
Earlier, TV showed police officers blocking the entrance of the Assembly and helmeted soldiers carrying rifles in front of the building.
An Associated Press photographer saw at least three helicopters, likely from the military, that landed inside the Assembly grounds, while two or three helicopters circled above the site.
The leader of Yoon’s conservative People Power Party, Han Dong-hoon, called the decision to impose martial law “wrong” and vowed to “stop it with the people.” Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung, who narrowly lost to Yoon in the 2022 presidential election, called Yoon’s announcement “illegal and unconstitutional.”
Yoon said during a televised speech that martial law would help “rebuild and protect” the country from “falling into the depths of national ruin.” He said he would “eradicate pro-North Korean forces and protect the constitutional democratic order.”
“I will eliminate anti-state forces as quickly as possible and normalize the country,” he said, while asking the people to believe in him and tolerate “some inconveniences.”
Yoon — whose approval rating has dipped in recent months — has struggled to push his agenda against an opposition-controlled parliament since taking office in 2022.
Yoon’s party has been locked in an impasse with the liberal opposition over next year’s budget bill. The opposition has also attempted to pass motions to impeach three top prosecutors, including the chief of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, in what the conservatives have called a vendetta against their criminal investigations of Lee, who has been seen as the favorite for the next presidential election in 2027 in opinion polls.
Yoon has also dismissed calls for independent investigations into scandals involving his wife and top officials, drawing quick, strong rebukes from his political rivals.
Yoon’s move was the first declaration of martial law since the country’s democratization in 1987. The country’s last previous martial law was in October 1979.
King Charles welcomes Emir of Qatar as state visit begins
- The emir and his wife Sheikha Jawaher bint Hamad bin Suhaim Al-Thani arrived at Horse Guards Parade
- Joined by Prince William and Princess of Wales, Catherine
LONDON: King Charles and Keir Starmer welcomed Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, for a state visit to Britain on Tuesday.
The emir and his wife Sheikha Jawaher bint Hamad bin Suhaim Al-Thani arrived by car at Horse Guards Parade in London with Prince William and his wife Catherine, who was marking her return to formal state visit duties after undergoing preventative chemotherapy for cancer.
Charles, who is continuing his own treatment for cancer, and the emir inspected the 1st Battalion Welsh Guards while a military band played.
The reception was to be followed by a trip to Westminster where the emir was set to address both chambers of the British Houses of Parliament.
Trump says he’ll attend Notre Dame Cathedral reopening celebration in Paris this weekend
- Trump announced that he will be among them in a post on his Truth Social site Monday evening
- “It is an honor to announce that I will be traveling to Paris, France, on Saturday to attend the re-opening of the Magnificent and Historic Notre Dame Cathedral,” he wrote
NEW YORK: President-elect Donald Trump will attend the reopening celebration for Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris this weekend, his first foreign trip since the election.
The cathedral is set to reopen Saturday after more than five years of reconstruction following a devastating fire in 2019 that engulfed and nearly destroyed the soaring Paris landmark. The ceremonies being held Saturday and Sunday will be high-security affairs, with about 50 heads of state and government expected to attend.
Trump announced that he will be among them in a post on his Truth Social site Monday evening.
“It is an honor to announce that I will be traveling to Paris, France, on Saturday to attend the re-opening of the Magnificent and Historic Notre Dame Cathedral, which has been fully restored after a devastating fire five years ago,” he wrote. “President Emmanuel Macron has done a wonderful job ensuring that Notre Dame has been restored to its full level of glory, and even more so. It will be a very special day for all!”
The trip will be Trump’s first abroad since he won November’s presidential election. He traveled to Scotland and Ireland in May 2023, as a candidate, to visit his local golf courses.
Trump was president in 2019 when a massive fire engulfed Notre Dame, collapsing its spire and threatening to destroy one of the world’s greatest architectural treasures, known for its mesmerizing stained glass.
Trump watched the inferno in horror, along with the rest of the world.
“So horrible to watch the massive fire at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris,” he wrote on what was then named Twitter, offering his advice to the city.
“Perhaps flying water tankers could be used to put it out. Must act quickly!” he wrote.
French officials appeared to respond shortly after, noting that “All means” were being used to extinguish the flames, “except for water-bombing aircrafts which, if used, could lead to the collapse of the entire structure of the cathedral.”
Trump also spoke with Macron and Pope Francis at the time to offer his condolences and said he had offered them “the help of our great experts on renovation and construction.”
Trump and Macron have had a complicated relationship.
During Trump’s first term in office, Macron proved to be among the world leaders most adept at managing the American president’s whims as he tried to develop a personal connection built in no small part on flattery.
Macron was the guest of honor at Trump’s first state dinner and Trump traveled to France several times. But the relationship soured as Trump’s term progressed and Macron criticized him for questioning the need for NATO and raising doubts about America’s commitment to the mutual-defense pact.
As he ran for a second term this year, Trump often mocked Macron on the campaign trail, imitating his accent and threatening to impose steep tariffs on wine and champagne bottles shipped to the US if France tried to tax American companies.
After Trump won another term last month, Macron rushed to win favor with the president-elect. He was among the first global leaders to congratulate Trump — even before The Associated Press called the race in his favor — and beat UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer to the punch in delivering a congratulatory phone call.
“Congratulations, President @realDonaldTrump,” Macron posted on X early on Nov 6. “Ready to work together as we did for four years. With your convictions and mine. With respect and ambition. For more peace and prosperity.”
Macron and other European leaders are trying to persuade Trump not to abandon America’s support for Ukraine in its fight against Russia’s nearly three-year invasion. European leaders hope to convince Trump that a victory by Russia would be viewed as a defeat for the US — and for the incoming president, by extension — hoping to sell him on the need to pursue an end to the war more favorable to Kyiv than he might otherwise seek.
Trump over the weekend announced that he intends to nominate real estate developer Charles Kushner, the father of his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, to serve as ambassador to France. The elder Kushner was pardoned by Trump in December 2020 after pleading guilty years earlier to tax evasion and making illegal campaign donations.
The reopening of Notre Dame will be an elaborate, multi-day celebration, beginning Saturday.
Paris Archbishop Laurent Ulrich will preside at a reopening service that afternoon, banging on Notre Dame’s shuttered doors with his staff to reopen them, according to the cathedral’s website.
The archbishop will also symbolically reawaken Notre Dame’s thunderous grand organ. The fire that melted the cathedral’s lead roofing coated the huge instrument in toxic dust. Its 8,000 pipes have been painstakingly disassembled, cleaned and retuned.
Macron will attend and address the VIP guests.
After the service, opera singers Pretty Yende, from South Africa, and Julie Fuchs, from France; Chinese pianist Lang Lang; Paris-born cellist Yo-Yo Ma; Benin-born singer Angelique Kidjo; Lebanese singer Hiba Tawaji and others will perform at a concert Saturday evening, according to the show’s broadcaster, France Télévisions.
On Sunday morning, the Paris archbishop will lead an inaugural Mass and consecration of the new altar.
Nearly 170 bishops from France and other countries will join the celebration, along with priests from all 106 parishes in the Paris diocese. The Mass will be followed by a “fraternal buffet” for the needy.
Ile de la Cité, where the cathedral sits in the middle of the River Seine, will be blocked off to tourists for the events. A public viewing area with room for 40,000 spectators will be set up along the Seine’s southern bank.
