WASHINGTON (CN) — A group of eight women who were sexually abused and trafficked by Jeffrey Epstein filed a lawsuit Wednesday against the federal government over the FBI’s failure to act on reports regarding Epstein’s crimes as early as 1996.
The women, six of whom used the pseudonym Jane Doe to protect their identities, detail how they were abused by Epstein and his wealthy associates between 2002 and 2017, with some having been abused as minors.
Wednesday’s suit, brought in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, mirrors a similar suit filed in the Southern District of New York in February.
However, the women specify the purpose of the suit is to address the agency’s “continued failures” and to “finally hold the FBI accountable” where the failures occurred.
“Even worse, plaintiffs and numerous other women have filed the requisite documents as a pre-condition with the FBI to further their path for justice,” the women wrote. “Not only have the victims been ignored, but they have also been shunned by the judicial system that is supposed to protect them. It has been made abundantly clear that the rich and powerful are above the law.”
According to the women, the FBI’s negligence allowed Epstein to continue abusing them for over 20 years, all of which could have been prevented had the agents conducted a proper investigation and taken action.
Jane Doe #1 was sexually abused as a minor in New York and trafficked to Epstein’s Virgin Islands estate multiple times between 2007 and 2017, according to the suit, during which time she was forced to marry an Eastern European woman to further Epstein’s international sex trafficking ring. Jane Doe #2 was also abused in New York and was trafficked to the Virgin Islands multiple times between 2005 and 2017.
Jane Doe #3 was abused in New York between 2004 and 2005, Jane Doe #4 was abused between 2002 and 2008 and Jane Doe #5 was abused between 2006 and 2008. Jane Doe #6 was abused in New York and the Virgin Islands in 2004.
The six plaintiffs explained their use of pseudonyms due to some of them having been minors at the time of the abuse, as well as receiving threats from Epstein’s associates. Doe #2 specifically noted she was recently threatened prior to Wednesday’s suit.
Laura Newman, one of two named plaintiffs, says in the suit that she was abused in New York between 2004 and 2016. Sandra Ward, the second named plaintiff, was abused in California in 2003.
The eight women are represented by New York firm Merson Law, which represents 33 total women victimized by Epstein and his affiliates.
In 1996, FBI agents began receiving credible tips that Epstein was trafficking young women and underage girls, but failed to interview victims, respond to tips or arrest the “pedophile billionaire,” the women said. That year, Maria Farmer and her sister Annie reported to the New York Police Department and the FBI that they, along with other minors and vulnerable young women, had been sexually abused by Epstein and his co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell.
“In response to the call by Maria Farmer, the FBI ‘hung up’ on her and did nothing to investigate the report,” the women said.
Between 1996 and 2005, the FBI continued to receive reports of sexual abuse, trafficking and human rights violations, yet failed to act, the women say. In 2002, Epstein was given secret service clearance for travel to Africa, where he travelled with former President Bill Clinton — according to testimony by former Epstein pilot Larry Visoski — and several “very young women.”
During that time, Epstein repeatedly initiated passports and visas for his victims for such international travel but skirted the required background checks, a red flag the FBI failed to investigate, the women said.
It wasn’t until July 2006 that the FBI opened its investigation, after Florida’s Palm Beach Police Department received a report that a 14-year-old girl was recruited to Epstein’s mansion for a sexual massage in exchange for money. The police department alerted the FBI of likely child prostitution after it received the report in March 2005.
The FBI then closed their investigation on Sept. 18, 2008, after reaching a plea deal with Epstein in June 2008, where he pleaded guilty to two state solicitation of prostitution charges and received immunity from federal charges. Epstein received an 18-month prison sentence, but only served 13 months, most of which was spent outside his cell as part of a work-release program.
The investigation was not reopened until July 2019, when Epstein was arrested for sex trafficking of children and conspiracy. Just over a month later, on Aug. 10, 2019, Epstein was found dead in his cell after an apparent suicide.
Wednesday’s suit comes just eight days after a Second Circuit Court of Appeals panel unanimously upheld criminal sex trafficking convictions for Maxwell. The three-judge panel was unpersuaded by Maxwell’s claims that a lenient 2007 plea deal between Epstein and Florida prosecutors should have prohibited her facing charges.
The women made note of the New York appellate court’s decision in the suit, highlighting the fact that both the FBI and the Justice Department were aware of Maxwell and Epstein’s actions as early as 1996 but “chose to do nothing until 2019.”
The FBI did not respond to a request for comment.
The women are requesting a jury trial and $100 million in damages caused by the agency’s negligence.