US Virgin Islands: According to the attorney general of the US Virgin Islands, a nine-figure settlement has been signed between Jeffrey Epstein’s estate and the US Virgin Islands. Epstein’s estate, along with two co-defendants and ten Epstein-created entities, will pay the US Virgin Islands government more than $105 million in cash, US Virgin Islands Attorney General Denise George said in a statement on Wednesday.
To complete its settlements, the estate will also sell two private islands, Little St. James and Great St. James, to independent third parties, according to a statement from George’s office.
“This settlement restores the faith of the People of the Virgin Islands that its laws will be enforced, without fear or favor, against those who break them. We are sending a clear message that the Virgin Islands will not serve as a haven for human trafficking,” said George.
“Through this lawsuit and settlement, the Attorney General’s Office, acting on behalf of the Government, is enforcing the laws of the Virgin Islands against criminal enterprises and protecting public safety.”
George had previously sued the Epstein estate for allegedly bringing young women and girls to his island residence on Little St. James via a network of private planes, helicopters, boats, and vehicles. According to the lawsuit, the victims were “deceptively subjected to se*ual servitude, forced to engage in se*ual acts, and coerced into commercial se*ual activity and forced labor.”8
The agreement terminates Epstein’s estate’s ownership of properties in the US Virgin Islands and certifies that the islands cannot be used for illegal purposes by Epstein associates, according to the statement. According to the statement, half of the proceeds from the sale of Little St. James will also go to the US Virgin Islands government.
Epstein’s estate will also pay $450,000 to repair environmental damage in the Great St. James area, an island owned by Epstein from which he removed the remains of centuries-old historical structures of enslaved workers to make way for his development, according to the statement.
According to the statement, the settlement also includes the return of over $80 million in economic development tax benefits to the US Virgin Islands. The tax benefits were obtained fraudulently by Epstein and his co-defendants Darren K. Indyke and Richard D. Kahn to fuel their criminal enterprise, according to the statement.
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