Former first lady Cecile deJongh and her husband, former Gov. John deJongh Jr.¶
influence local politicians, and says deJongh even asked Epstein to suggest changes to the territory’s sex offender law.¶
“Epstein’s primary conduit for spreading money and influence throughout the USVI government was First Lady deJongh,” who worked as Epstein’s local fixer for two decades, including throughout her husband John deJongh Jr.’s tenure as V.I. governor from 2007 to 2015, according to the filing.¶
DeJongh told Epstein which government officials to pay off, and devised ways to justify his victims’ presence in the territory by enrolling them at the University of the Virgin Islands so they could obtain student visas, according to the filing.¶
In a statement to The Daily News on Thursday, UVI President David Hall denied all allegations in the bank’s filing.¶
Attorneys for the bank say documents obtained during the discovery process, which is still ongoing, show that deJongh asked Epstein — a registered sex offender — to suggest changes to the territory’s sex offender law in 2011, and apologized profusely, via email, when not all of his revisions were included in the final version.¶
As a sex offender, Epstein occasionally encountered difficulties traveling through the airport with young women. But Epstein needed only “to email the USVI’s First Lady, who gamely intervened on his behalf” by reaching out to her husband, according to the filing, which cites a Nov. 15, 2012, email from Epstein to deJongh, “regarding sending ‘all 78 [USVI customs agents] a turkey’ for Thanksgiving.”¶
In return, Epstein paid deJongh well, and she received “a salary, bonuses, and other benefits, including $200,000 in 2007 alone,” according to the filing.¶
Epstein also paid tuition for the children of the then-governor and first lady — which allowed the deJonghs to funnel more of their personal money into the campaign — and said he would fund the former governor’s defense in a criminal corruption case that was later dropped, offering to “play any role in this you guys like,”¶
according to the filing.¶
“Lest there be doubt that Epstein’s goal was to gain influence, First Lady deJongh explicitly advised Epstein on how to buy control of the USVI political class,” according to the filing, telling him “how to vote and whom to support.”¶
The filing cited an email exchange between Epstein and deJongh, in which he asked her for a list of candidates he should vote for. DeJongh also suggested ways to influence senators, writing to Epstein that he should, “consider putting Celestino [White] on some sort of monthly retainer. That is what will get you his loyalty and access,” according to the filing.¶
De Jongh also “crafted a plan to facilitate Epstein’s easy travel to and from USVI,” and told him that, “we will need to work through [then-USVI Senator Carlton] Dowe” and White, according to the filing.¶
Epstein had particularly close ties to the Executive Director of the V.I. Port Authority, and “could count on his ‘great relationship’” with airport officials “to avoid scrutiny or detection” when traveling with young women as a registered sex offender, according to the filing.¶
Ellsworth also cited a communication from Cecile de Jongh to Epstein, on behalf of her husband, asking “if¶
Prior to his election, Gov. Albert Bryan Jr., in 2018, also “facilitated donations by Epstein to USVI’s schools and little leagues,” and Epstein also gave money to local politicians like V.I. Delegate to Congress Stacey Plaskett, and “asked that his contributions be kept secret,” according to the filing.¶
he would ‘support [then-USVI senator] Carlton Dowe’s bid to go back to VIPA’ who would be a ‘good person for us’ there.”¶
Bryan has publicly denied receiving campaign contributions from Epstein, but according to the filing, there are records of Epstein “discussing a $25,000 private gift to current Governor Bryan’s inaugural committee.”¶
Bryan is scheduled to be deposed on June 6, and Plaskett admitted to accepting $30,000 in campaign contributions from Epstein and his employees during her May 9 deposition.¶
“For two decades, and for long after JPMC exited Epstein as a client, the entity that most directly failed to protect public safety and most actively facilitated and benefited from Epstein’s continued criminal activity was the plaintiff in this case — the USVI government itself,” according to the filing.¶
The allegations are contained in a 30-page document by Felicia Ellsworth, an attorney representing JPMorgan Chase in its defense of a¶
lawsuit filed by the V.I. Justice Department in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.¶
The government has accused the bank of facilitating and profiting from Epstein’s crimes. But attorneys for the bank say the government provided a safe haven for Epstein and allowed him to continue bringing victims to the territory without scrutiny, even rewarding him with lucrative tax benefits.¶
Ellsworth initially submitted the 30-page filing on Tuesday with redactions through more than half of the document, and some pages were almost completely blacked out.¶
On Thursday, Ellsworth refiled the document with the majority of redactions removed, although several pages are still not fully public.¶
The new filing came after District Court Judge Jed Rakoff entered an order Tuesday, granting the bank’s motion to compel Epstein’s estate to produce all email correspondence containing the search terms “Cecile de Jongh,” “CDJ,” or “De Jongh.”¶
After briefing by both parties, Rakoff ruled that “the requested documents are relevant and that the burden of producing them is not excessive.”¶
That will allow lawyers for the bank to further delve into de Jongh’s work for Epstein, after years of speculation about her level of involvement in his¶
The V.I. government has asked the court to deny certain affirmative defenses. But Ellsworth responded in the bank’s latest filing that it’s the VI. government that bears responsibility for enabling Epstein’s crimes.¶
“To grant USVI immunity from these defenses would be to allow it to profit from Epstein twice: first directly, then again in a civil suit which it could just as easily see reflected in a mirror,” according to the filing.¶
A judge has not yet ruled on the dispute over affirmative defenses.¶
Meanwhile, the bank’s lawyers are naming Cecile de Jongh and other Virgin Islanders as key parties responsible for helping Epstein thrive in the territory, despite his status as a sex offender convicted of procuring children for prostitution in Florida in 2008.¶
The V.I. Justice Department is responsible for monitoring sex offenders in the territory, including Epstein, who claimed Little St. James island off St. Thomas as his primary residence for two decades before his August 2019 suicide.¶
Several sections of Ellsworth’s filing that remain partially redacted refer to the territory’s lack of enforcement of its sex offender laws, and the unredacted sections indicate that Epstein was given “leniency” and leeway other sex offenders were not.¶
Another unredacted line says that,¶
“Further, while the USVI did conduct site visits of Epstein’s residence, those inspections were cursory at best.”¶
“Even as to the regulations USVI did enforce, it did so incompetently,” according to the filing, which goes on with several additional paragraphs that remain redacted as of Thursday night.¶
VI. Justice Department spokeswoman Sandra Goomansingh did not respond to a request for comment Thursday.¶
Dates, dollar amounts unclear¶
Some of the allegations in JPMorgan’s filing conflict with previous public statements.¶
For example, the filing says Cecile deJongh arranged for several of Epstein’s victims to enroll at UVI so they could¶
See EPSTEIN, page 4¶
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The Virgin Islands Daily News¶
VIRGIN ISLANDS¶
Friday, May 26, 2023¶
American Airlines makes test flight from Miami to BVI airport¶
y DEAN GREENAWAY¶
daily News Staff¶
TORTOLA — Days before two american Airlines aircraft are expected land in the British Virgin Islands, a st flight touched down Thursday at Terrence B. Lettsome Airport.¶
The ERJ 175 aircraft Flight MQ9858 operated by Envoy, departed Miami at a.m. and landed at 11:30 a.m. in the VI with a crew that included two captains, a first officer and flight attendant. Some of the passengers on board were aware that it was a test flight, but others did not, according to officials.¶
“Today, they performed a test operation which is basically the aircraft made an approach, which was basically a touch and go. They saw the¶
runway, circled and came back to land into EIS,” Edward Singh, whose Platinum Services company, will handle cleaning and ramp services for the AA flights, told The Daily News. “It was to give the pilot an idea of where the threshold was — an idea of the runway length because the BVI basically has a small runway.”¶
Singh said the pilots landing the plane “didn’t use much runway which was great and it was a great landing.”¶
“The test operation was also to have the pilot be aware of the surrounding areas, the runway and where they’re going to be parked on the first day of operations,” he added.¶
In what will be a historic first, American is poised to land two planes on June 1, directly from Miami. In years¶
past BVI visitors would land in the U.S. Virgin Islands, and take a taxi to a ferry that would take them to the British island.¶
BVI Communications and Works Minister Kye Rymer said Thursday that the test flight was an “exciting moment for the territory on a whole.”¶
“I can’t neglect all the efforts from past boards, past governments and past ministers,” he said. “This has always been a topic where we want to get direct flights, so seeing this test flight happen today, it signifies that we are achieving what we set out to achieve and we’re grateful to God first and foremost, for blessing us to be able to get to this point today. We’re excited about next week when we’ll see the first flight with passengers.”¶
According to officials, Thursday’s test flight was important for such things as lining up the mobile staircase that passengers will disembark from, doing training on the aircraft “and getting a basic idea of what’s to be done on June 1 when they have two operations in one day.¶
“Everything ran pretty smoothly, no hiccups or problems. The aircraft parked safely, the crew got off, met with key persons in the community and other organizations. Everything went pretty well,” Singh said.¶
In preparation for the inaugural flight, Singh said employees had been training for the last month. The test flight gave the trained clean and search team an idea of how quickly they could clean the aircraft, including every single cabin and seat within a 15-minute timeframe. Ramp personnel were also being trained on lining up the staircase properly to ensure a safe operation, and transferring luggage.¶
“It’s a great initiative by American Airlines to do the test flight today, because it gives the agents who were being trained from scratch and idea of what to do from day No. 1,” Singh said.¶
Rymor was on the tarmac with other officials when the flight landed, and saw the fly-by where the pilots took measures — including videos of the runway — to understand airport infrastructure.¶
The pilot used Runway 26, made an immediate left as a mountain is on the right, circled and returned for a safe landing.¶
ONTINUED FROM PAGE 3¶
btain student visas.¶
“Ultimately UVI structured a espoke class to enroll victims and provide cover for their presence in the territory—the same year Epstein donated $20,000 to the university through one of his companies,” Ellsworth wrote.¶
But UVI representatives previously told The Daily News that the university only received a total of $17,900 from Epstein and his companies over several years.¶
The year that donation was made is not listed in Ellsworth’s filing, which ites exhibits produced by the Epstein state that are sealed from public view. In 2019, The Daily News requested information from UVI about any donations received from Epstein or any¶
of his charities and companies.¶
UVI spokeswoman Tamika Thomas Williams provided a list of seven contributions accepted between 2003 and 2007 from “Enhanced Education, one of Mr. Epstein’s organizations,” totaling $17,900, including $5,000 in “annual giving,” $3,900 for the “Upward Bound Program” and $9,000 to the annual Celebrity Golf Classic.¶
“Mr. Epstein continued to show interest in supporting major initiatives subsequent to his 2008 conviction; however, the UVI Board of Trustees decided it was in the best interest of the University to decline future gifts,” Williams wrote at the time.¶
UVI President Hall provided a statement to The Daily News Thursday night, confirming that there is no evidence it received a $20,000¶
“From our preliminary review, having received the information in the JP Morgan court filing late this afternoon, the University of the Virgin Islands has searched its records for gifts from Mr. Epstein or in the name of his known companies in the amount of $20,000 relating to the ESL Program and we could find no record that the University received such gifts,” Hall noted in the statement.¶
check from Epstein.¶
Hall said he also reviewed the statements about the “bespoke” class created for Epstein’s victims, “and can state unequivocally that I was not aware of the activities described, and as President never approved or authorized a course being developed for individuals connected with Jeffrey Epstein.”¶
Hall added that, “The University¶
is engaged in the furtherance of our mission to advance the educational goals of our students and this institution clearly has never aided or supported the activities of Jeffrey Epstein.Ӧ
There are other inconsistencies in JPMorgan’s latest filing.¶
Ellsworth wrote that several Virgin Islands officials, including deJongh, former Gov. Kenneth Mapp, and Dawn Henry visited Epstein’s islands “with regularity.”¶
Henry, former Commissioner for the V.I. Department of Planning and Natural Resources, told The Daily News in a February 2020 interview that she never personally set foot on either Little or Great St. James island, but DPNR officers did visit the islands to enforce zoning and environmental laws.¶
When reached by phone Thursday, Henry declined to comment, citing her upcoming deposition in the case.¶
The article, titled “Former DPNR Commissioner says territory must learn from Epstein’s legacy,” focused on an interview Henry gave about her personal dealings with Epstein.¶
In that interview, Henry described how she and other officials struggled to cite Epstein for destructive illegal construction and environmental violations on his private islands, and his expectation that he would receive special treatment.¶
Thursday’s filing by JPMorgan also includes a quote from Henry that was taken out of context from a Feb. 18, 2020, article in The Virgin Islands Daily News.¶
Henry emphasized that DPNR was not responsible for enforcing the territory’s sex offender laws, and noted that the VI. Justice Department declined to investigate Epstein while he was alive, but did file a civil action against his¶
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