Jeffrey Epstein met first known underage victim at prestigious Michigan arts camp: book
The account was detailed in an excerpt from a new book by Miami Herald investigative reporter Julie K. Brown
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Deceased convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein met his first known underage victim at a Michigan summer arts camp to which he had heavily donated and once attended by celebrities such as Felicity Huffman, Norah Jones, Jewel, and Josh Groban, according to an excerpt from a new book by Miami Herald investigative reporter Julie K. Brown.
The book, entitled "Perversion of Justice: The Jeffrey Epstein Story," details Brown’s years-long investigation into Epstein’s underage sex trafficking operation and its impact on his victims. Brown recounts how Epstein used his fortune to "prey on young girls," including attendees of arts camp Interlochen, where Epstein had built a lodge on campus.
Epstein would make frequent trips to the camp with his longtime associate Ghislaine Maxwell. In 1994, the pair reportedly "befriended" a thirteen-year-old girl at the camp.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"The girl had just lost her father, a classical music conductor, so she was still grieving and vulnerable," Brown writes in the excerpt. "The camp maintains that they’ve never received a complaint about Epstein, and the woman, who is now living in California, has not spoken publicly."
DOZENS OF GHISLAINE MAXWELL FILES UNSEALED BY FEDERAL COURT IN SEX TRAFFICKING CASE
"In a sworn deposition, Epstein’s former butler, Alessi, mentioned that the girl often visited Epstein’s Florida mansion and in later years, her name appears on the flight logs of his plane," she added.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Brown noted that a woman, who was not identified, filed a lawsuit in January 2020 alleging a similar meeting with Epstein at the camp when she was 13.
"The woman said she was sitting alone on a bench between classes when Epstein and Maxwell approached her, telling her that they were arts patrons who wanted to give talented young artists like her scholarships," the excerpt says.
In the lawsuit, the woman alleges Epstein and Maxwell began asking her questions about her background, with Epstein eventually asking for her phone number. Epstein later contacted the girl’s mother, claiming he "helped young talent," and invited both of them to his mansion in Palm Beach.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Over the next several months, Epstein and Maxwell tried to groom the thirteen-year-old girl. He told her to call him her "godfather," and Maxwell befriended her like an older sister, the suit claims," Brown writes. "They took her to the movies, went shopping, and invited her to spend more and more time at the estate. Soon, the sexual comments started."
Epstein purportedly paid for the girl’s music lessons and gave money to her mother.
The book says Epstein assaulted the girl for several years, with Maxwell allegedly scolding her if she resisted his advances. Epstein allegedly moved the girl and her mother to an apartment in New York and paid for her to attend a private school.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"In 1999, when she was eighteen, she finally left him and moved away to start a new life. For a while, Epstein repeatedly called and berated her for not appreciating him. But soon, the calls stopped. By then Epstein had moved on to new, younger prey," the excerpt says.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Epstein took his life while in federal prison in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. Maxwell has been jailed since last July and faces charges of enticement of minors, sex trafficking of children, and perjury.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Brown’s book on her Epstein investigations is set to be released on Tuesday.