JPMorgan Chase & Co. has alleged convicted sex offender and trafficker of minors Jeffrey Epstein paid tuition for the children of former U.S. Virgin Islands Gov. John de Jongh Jr.
Filed in U.S. District Court on Thursday as part of a lawsuit, JPMorgan claimed those tuition payments from Epstein allowed the former governor to “funnel additional money to his political campaigns.” Per CNBC:
Epstein also “offered to fund Governor de Jongh’s defense in the Governor’s criminal case,” where the then-governor was charged in 2015 in connection with the use of public funds to make security improvements at his private residence, according to the filing. Those charges were dropped in early 2016 by the Virgin Islands Department of Justice.
JPMorgan alleges Epstein’s generosity was part of his broader effort to build sway on the islands.
JPMorgan & Chase has been in a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Virgin Islands claiming the business aided in the disgraced Epstein’s sex trafficking ring, given he served as a customer between 1998 and 2013. He also owned two private islands in the territory where he would house his young prostitutes.
JPMorgan denies all charges and filed its claim with the court on Thursday as a defense against the accusations. The filing specifically named former first lady Cecile de Jongh as advising Epstein on how to “secure student visas and a work license for young women connected to” the former sex offender, according to CNBC.
“Lest there be doubt that Epstein’s goal was to gain influence, First Lady [Cecile] de Jongh explicitly advised Epstein on how to buy control of the USVI political class,” the filing said.
File/The logo for JPMorgan Chase & Co. appears above a trading post on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange in New York. Deutsche Bank and JPMorgan Chase are asking a federal court to throw out lawsuits that claim they helped Jeffrey Epstein abuse young women and maintain his sex-trafficking ring. The banks argue they provided routine services to Epstein. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)
It further alleged Cecile de Jongh had asked Epstein “what visas the ‘ladies’ have and trying to arrange English as a Second Language classes for them.” She had worked for Epstein during her husband’s governorship, which ran from 2007 to 2015. JPMorgan said she made $200,000 off Epstein in 2007 alone.
Neither of the de Jonghs have commented on the report.
Current U.S. Virgin Islands Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. was also named in the filing. According to KDAL, JPMorgan Chase cited him as “being among government officials who maintained ‘close ties’ with Epstein, saying that in 2018 he arranged donations from Epstein to schools and little leagues.”
A spokesperson for the U.S. Virgin Islands’ attorney general’s office called the accusations from JPMorgan “an obvious attempt to shift blame.”
“JPMorgan Chase facilitated Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse, and should be held accountable for violating the law,” the spokesperson said. “This is an obvious attempt to shift blame away from JPMorgan Chase, which had a legal responsibility to report the evidence in its possession of Epstein’s human trafficking, and failed to do so.”
In December 2021, a jury convicted former Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell of sex trafficking of minors, transporting a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, and three counts of conspiracy. She was later sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Epstein committed suicide in his jail cell in 2019 as he awaited trial for his crimes.
Paul Roland Bois joined Breitbart News in 2021. He also directed the award-winning feature film, EXEMPLUM, which can be viewed on Tubi, Google Play, YouTube Movies, or Vimeo on Demand. Follow him on Twitter @prolandfilms or Instagram @prolandfilms.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.