US VIRGIN ISLANDS- Last week, Denise N. George, attorney general for the U.S. Virgin Islands filed a lawsuit against one of the most powerful financial institutions in the United States, JPMorgan Chase, alleging the financial behemoth benefited from the illegal sex trafficking operation facilitated by Jeffrey Epstein, as reported by Yahoo News.
It has long been alleged that the sex trafficking and exploitation of young women and girls arranged by Epstein involved a lot of the rich and powerful from politics, Hollywood, and business. George apparently struck some nerves.
Less than one week after George filed the lawsuit against JPMorgan Chase, she finds herself in search of a new job after she was dismissed from her position, according to Law & Crime. The timing seems clearly suspect, a vast understatement.
The lawsuit alleged the bank “facilitated, sustained, and concealed” Epstein’s human trafficking operation. Epstein allegedly committed suicide inside a New York City jail on Aug. 10, 2019. A number of suspicious circumstances surrounded his death, including the timely malfunction of surveillance cameras.
The lawsuit, consisting of 30 heavily-redacted pages, was filed in a New York courtroom on Dec. 27.
“JP Morgan turned a blind eye to evidence of human trafficking over more than a decade because of Epstein’s own financial footprint, and because of the deals and clients that Epstein brought and promised to bring to the bank,” the lawsuit alleged. “These decisions were advocated and approved at the senior levels of JP Morgan, including by the former chief executive of its asset management division and investment bank, whose inappropriate relationship with Epstein should have been evident to the bank. Indeed, it was only after Epstein’s death that JP Morgan belatedly complied with federal banking regulations regarding Epstein’s accounts.”
Two class action lawsuits had already been filed against JP Morgan Chase and Deutsche Bank, accusing them of “complicity” in Epstein’s sex trafficking operation. Those suits were filed anonymously. Although Epstein “committed suicide” prior to being tried on charges related to the scheme, his co-conspirator, Ghislaine Maxwell was tried, convicted and sentenced to 20 years in prison.
On Dec. 31, however, George was removed from her post, with local news outlets claiming she had not informed the US territory’s governor, Albert Bryan, about the pending lawsuit. Law & Crime reached out to George’s office for comment, however none was received, probably due to the fact that Monday is a federal holiday in observance of New Year’s Day.
News of George’s termination, citing anonymous sources, was first reported by The Virgin Islands Consortium. Bryan later confirmed her termination, however refused to explain the reasoning, in a statement to a number of news outlets. Given the tangled web surrounding Epstein and his sex trafficking ring, the firing of George seems suspicious, to say the least.
“I relieved Denise George of her duties as attorney general this weekend,” Bryan wrote in a statement sent to Law & Crime. “I thank her for her service to the people of the territory during the past four years as attorney general and wish her the best in her future endeavors.”
“Epstein Island,” aka Little Saint James, where many of the dalliances involving the rich and powerful and young girls and women were alleged to have taken place, is located in the British Virgin Islands, east of Puerto Rico. Among those who are alleged to have visited Epstein Island are former President Bill Clinton and Prince Andrew of England.
Law & Crime asked for additional context for George’s termination, however a spokesman for Bryan said, “I am not at liberty to discuss details on personnel matters.”
It was reported that Bryan has appointed Assistant Attorney General Carol Thomas-Jacobs to serve as acting attorney general to replace George. Law & Crime reached out to Thomas-Jacobs for comment, and she did not respond to those inquiries. Court documents show that she also worked on the Epstein investigation.
It was Thomas-Jacobs who signed her name to a complaint suing Epstein under the Virgin Islands’ Criminally Induced and Corrupt Organizations Act (CICO) enforcement action, which is the local version of a federal racketeering lawsuit. In that action, it was also alleged Epstein estate executors Darren K. Indyke and Richard D. Kahn acted in the capacity of Epstein’s “indispensable captains.”
Indyke and Kahn both denied the allegations in the CICO complaint and did not concede wrongdoing under a recent settlement of that case. The resolution of that complaint instructed the estate to continue providing documents for the attorney general’s “ongoing investigation.”
In the matter filed by George before her untimely dismissal, it was identified as being related to the proposed class action suit filed against JPMorgan Chase and Deutsche Bank in the same court, currently pending before senior U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff. Those two cases, since consolidated, are slated to go to trial this summer in the Southern District of New York federal court.
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