well-connectedJeffreyEpsteinis
ofallegeddisturbingabuse
prosecutionforhisallegedcrimesin2008,
whenhewasoffereda pleadealthatsawhim
jailedfor 13 monthsforthesolecrimeof
solicitinga personunder 18 forprostitution(he
servedmuchofthatinworkreleaseathisPalm
Beachoffice).The66-year-oldnowfacesupto
45 yearsinprison.“Ifeellikethisweighthas
beenliftedoffmyshoulderstoday,”Licata,now
30,toldUSABC.“Ourstoriesaremattering.”
Thosestoriespainta shockingpictureofa
manwhousedhischarmandpowertoabuse
andmanipulateteenagers.CourtneyWildwas
a 14-year-oldA-studentwithbraceswhenshe
wasfirstintroducedtoEpsteinin 2002 fora
“massage”.HethenpaidWildtobringhim
moregirls,inwhatwaslikea pyramidscheme
ofsexualabuse.“Hetoldmehewantedthem
asyoungasI couldfindthem,’’the31-year-old
toldtheHerald, whichconducteda massive
investigationintoEpsteinbeforehisarrest.
Wild,whoselifeaftermeetingEpstein
involveddrugaddictionanda prisonsentence,
hasadmittedbringingEpsteinscoresofgirls,
forwhichshestillharboursfeelingsofguilt.
SaidWild:“BythetimeI was16,I had
probablybroughthim 70 to 80 girls.”
Anotheraccuser,VirginiaRobertsGiuffre,
toldtheHeraldshewasa 15-year-old
workingatDonaldTrump’sPalmBeach
resortMar-a-Lagoin 2001 whenEpstein’s
friend,EnglishsocialiteGhislaineMaxwell,
recruitedhertobea masseuseforthe
financier.Accordingtoa 2015affidavit,
Giuffre,whonowreportedlylivesinNSW
withherAustralianhusband,claimsEpstein
usedherasa sexslaveandforcedhertohave
sexwithprominentpeople,includingPrince
Andrew(BuckinghamPalaceandMaxwell
deniedtheallegationsin2015).“Itstartedwith one [person] and it trickled
intotwo,’’saidthenow mother-of-three
Giuffre.“Andbefore you know it, I’m beinglen
outtopoliticiansand academics and royalty.”
Throughsuchharrowing testimony, authoritie
havebuilttheircase against Epstein, who at
presstimeremained in custody amid bail
hearings.“Thiswas not a ‘he said, she said’
situation,”saidretired Palm Beach Police Chie
MichaelReiter,who oversaw the investigation
“Thiswas50-something ‘shes’ and one ‘he’–
andthe‘shes’allbasically told the same story.”
Thesewomenare now holding hope for
justice.“I’vewaited for this one day just to
happen,”saidLicata. “And it’s finally come.”
■ByMichaelCrookstesef
.MONEY
MAN
Epstein (second from right)
with Donald Trump and his
future wife, model Melania
Knauss, and British socialite
Ghislaine Maxwell at the
Mar-a-Lago club in
Palm Beach, Florida,
February 12, 2000.PrinceAndrewand
VirginiaRoberts
Giuffre,aged17,
2001.Giuffre,now31,
hasfileda criminal
lawsuitclaimingshe
hadunderagedsex
withPrinceAndrew
andJeffreyEpstein.Epstein with Woody
Allen and his wife,
Soon-Yi Previn, in
New York in 2013.Virginia Roberts Giuffre
holds a photo of herself at age
15, when she says Epstein began
sexually abusing her.SECRET
NAIRE’S
SPLASH NEWS(3); GETTYIMAGES (2)