A group of anonymous individuals who claim to have fallen victim to Jeffrey Epstein launched a lawsuit against the government on Wednesday. The individuals assert that the FBI was given trustworthy tips linked to Epstein’s criminal activities dating back to 1996 but failed to thoroughly investigate until 2006. The plaintiffs further argue that the FBI continued to ignore substantial leads until Epstein’s arrest in 2019, thus enabling alleged sex trafficking, abuse, and torture of the victims due to the Bureau’s negligence.
“As a direct and proximate cause of the FBI’s negligence, plaintiffs would not have been continued to be sex trafficked, abused, raped, tortured and threatened,” the lawsuit reads. “Jane Does 1-12 bring this lawsuit to get to the bottom — once and for all — of the FBI’s role in Epstein’s criminal sex trafficking ring.”
According to the victims, the FBI did not merely disregard tips but permitted the continuation of Epstein’s victimization of young women, including Jane Does 1-12, throughout the investigation. They allege that the FBI had concrete evidence such as photos, videos, and personal testimonies — all attesting to child prostitution — but deviated from their standard protocols by failing to investigate and arrest Epstein promptly.
The plaintiffs seek an amount in damages to be determined at trial. Epstein, who was served an 18-month sentence in 2006 for soliciting prostitution, was arrested again in 2019. He died in prison sometime after his arrest — the circumstances of which are still the subject of intense public debate and speculation. The lawsuit comes on the heels of an unrelated court decision that disclosed documents from Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre’s civil suit against Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s former associate.
