ERSON lea-other victims had to be t Epstein’s neighbor reported: o find them as quickly as pos- Palm Beach, more girls were ise on El Brillo Way. CHAPTER 12 Alison: September 11, 2005 I t might start with the Palm Beach Daily News, which usually covers charity balls, equestrian events, and gallery openings. Reporters there would kill to sink their teeth into something so juicy. On top of that, Chief Reiter knows, Palm Beach is full of freelance paparazzi and seasoned semiretired journalists. They’d kill for the story, too. For them, it’d be a real-life Body Heat. Over at WPTV, the local NBC affiliate, the phone rings one day. It’s a tip from a kid, sounding nervous. Something about girls from a local high school. There’s a prostitution ring out in Palm Beach, says the boy. The tip gets brought up in a midmorning meeting at which the producers divvy up ideas among the various reporters and newscasts. 35 HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_009184¶
JAMES PATTERSON “Where, exactly?” a producer asks. “He didn’t say, exactly,” an intern replies. “He said that a very rich man was involved.” “Who?” “Didn’t say.” “Did he leave a call-back number?” “No. The kid sounded really young. Fourteen, fifteen years old.” The producer thinks for a moment, makes a few scratches in his dog-eared notepad. “Okay,” he says. “I’m not sure what we can do with that for the moment.” At some point, some enterprising journalist will put enough pieces together to get a sense of the picture. Sooner or later, someone will talk. Maybe a parent. Maybe a cop’s girlfriend gets giddy at lunch. The girlfriend’s girlfriend mentions it to her husband, who says something to a golfing buddy in turn. Maybe the golfing buddy knows a reporter. Or maybe some lawyer goes off the rez, blitzed off those martinis they serve at the Palm Beach Grill. Sooner or later, there’s always talk. At that point, Chief Reiter’s job will get much, much harder-with Epstein on one side, the press on the other, and the chief taking flak from all sides. But right now, two months into Reiter’s investigation, the press is still speaking in whispers. Right now, Reiter wants to keep it that way. And, in the meantime, new pieces of the puzzle keep falling into place.¶
36 On September 11, over by the police. The patrol officer l vehicle. But Alison she’s cocky and ca from the dime bag remarkable story a ties with high sch says. She’s been g was sixteen. At first the cop gation into Jeffrey burnout. But back been bullshitting | The investigati Alison’s name a that have been pul a misdemeanor, sh Chief Reiter’s colle Jeffrey Epstein. The story Alisc Like Mary, she tells cops that Ep: although, she susp Recarey takes (transcribed from police), D stands “victim.”¶
- Alison’s name, som HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_009185
ERSON FILTHY RICH sks. On September 11, a young woman named Alison gets pulled n replies. “He said that a very over by the police.* She’s carrying a small amount of marijuana. The patrol officer handcuffs her and puts her in the back of his vehicle. But Alison’s been in the back of a police car before, and she’s cocky and canny enough to pivot the conversation away from the dime bag she’s been busted with. She tells the officer a remarkable story about an older man engaging in sexual activities with high school girls. Alison knows about it firsthand, she says. She’s been going to the house on El Brillo Way since she was sixteen. er?” young. Fourteen, fifteen years nent, makes a few scratches in : what we can do with that for sing journalist will put enough f the picture. Sooner or later, nt. Maybe a cop’s girlfriend gets rlfriend mentions it to her husblfing buddy in turn. Maybe the ff the rez, blitzed off those mar- h Grill. s talk. At that point, Chief Reitder-with Epstein on one side, chief taking flak from all sides. Reiter’s investigation, the press eep it that way. pieces of the puzzle keep falling¶
36 At first the cop’s skeptical. He hasn’t heard about the investigation into Jeffrey Epstein’s affairs. And, after all, Alison is a burnout. But back at the station, he finds out that Alison has not been bullshitting him. The investigation is real. Alison’s name and cell phone number match up with messages that have been pulled from Epstein’s trash. Instead of copping to a misdemeanor, she becomes another Jane Doe in the case that Chief Reiter’s colleague, Detective Joe Recarey, is building against Jeffrey Epstein. The story Alison ends up telling is extremely disturbing. Like Mary, she says, she was recruited in high school. She tells cops that Epstein would call her his “number one girl”— although, she suspects, there were many others. Recarey takes her statement. In the excerpts that follow (transcribed from a tape recording made by the Palm Beach police), D stands for “Detective Recarey,” and V stands for “victim.”¶
- Alison’s name, some identifying details, and dialogue have been changed. 37 HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_009186
JAMES PATTERSON D: Well, ah, start from, like, how you met him, and then I’ll— I’ll take you through. V: Okay. Um, we [Alison and a female friend] worked at Hollister together in the Wellington Green mall, and I was mentioning to her how I wanted extra money to go to Maine…I wanted to go camping for the summer, and I couldn’t afford a plane ticket. And—she goes, “Oh, well, you can get a plane ticket in two hours.” I said, “What are you talking about?” Like, what are you—that didn’t make any sense to me, a plane ticket in two hours; what are you talking about? And she goes, “Oh, we can go give this guy a massage, and, um, he’ll pay two hundred dollars for, like, forty-five minutes or an hour.” And that’s all she told me—no details, no nothing. … She said that he wanted cute girls, so I looked cute, did my best. I didn’t—I didn’t think that it was what it was. I wasn’t naive enough to think that he was gonna pay me two hundred dollars just for nothing—I, I don’t know, like, I don’t know what was going through my head. I absolutely don’t know. And I—the back of my mind was thinking, oh, well, it could be legitimate, but I was also thinking, you know, at the same time, is she fucking crazy? Like, this guy’s not gonna pay you money for not doing anything, not letting him cop a feel or nothing. You know? So I didn’t know what to think, I was like, “Oh…if he does something that I have a problem with, then I’ll leave.” D: Who were you introduced to? V: One of his girlfriends. One of his, like, slaves that he has live with him. And when I say “slaves,” like, one of the girls that 38 he bought to, like, I to one of them pro Sarah. Um, that’s hi but I don’t know. Ur and she’s the one w second. And from really—I didn’t pay So…we were waiti um, Jeffrey comes He just introduced ‘cause I was pissed was pissed off. He and says, “Thank y stairs,” and I was lil And that’s how I wa … Um. Hold on—I’m head. I wore a skirt wore a skirt and jus his legs, and he ask think I said no at f showing”—he talk you’re not showing even know. So I en goes—well, I think top of me. So—and D: When you’re sayir breasts? V: Yeah. And then he a my shirt, but I kept¶
IRSON you met him, and then I’ll— [ale friend] worked at Hollister en mall, and I was mentioning y to go to Maine…I wanted to and I couldn’t afford a plane ell, you can get a plane ticket in you talking about?” Like, what sense to me, a plane ticket in g about? And she goes, “Oh, we and, um, he’ll pay two hundred utes or an hour.” And that’s all thing. girls, so I looked cute, did my that it was what it was. I wasn’t e was gonna pay me two hun- -I, I don’t know, like, I don’t gh my head. I absolutely don’t ny mind was thinking, oh, well, was also thinking, you know, at ing crazy? Like, this guy’s not t doing anything, not letting him now? So I didn’t know what to he does something that I have a 0? of his, like, slaves that he has live ‘slaves,” like, one of the girls that 38 FILTHY RICH he bought to, like, have sex with him. Um, I was introduced to one of them probably, like…Sarah. I was introduced to Sarah. Um, that’s his assistant, I think. I think they have sex, but I don’t know. Um, I was introduced to his assistant Sarah, and she’s the one who told me that he would be ready in a second. And from there I met various other girls. I don’t really-I didn’t pay attention to who they were, though… So…we were waiting on the couch in the bathroom, and, um, Jeffrey comes up, and he’s like, “Hey, I’m-I’m Jeffrey.” He just introduced himself, and he hands-I remember this ‘cause I was pissed off that she got paid to bring me. Like, I was pissed off. He hands her a wad of hundred-dollar bills and says, “Thank you,” and she says, “I’ll wait for you downstairs,” and I was like, “All right, I’ll see you in a little while.” And that’s how I was brought to Jeffrey. Um. Hold on-I’m remembering. I’m, like, picturing in my head. I wore a skirt. I remember specifically what I wore: I wore a skirt and just a regular T-shirt. And I was massaging his legs, and he asked me to take off my skirt. And I said-I think I said no at first. And he’s like, “Come on, you’re not showing”-he talked me into it, basically. He’s like, “Oh, you’re not showing anything,” or [he] did something; I don’t even know. So I ended up taking off my skirt, and then he goes-well, I think he just started touching, you know, the top of me. So-and then he asked me. D: When you’re saying “the top of you,” you mean your breasts? V: Yeah. And then he asked me to take off my shirt. So I took off my shirt, but I kept my underwear on. And I wouldn’t take 39¶
JAMES PATTERSON my underwear off: I told him no. And he still paid me the same amount. And that was that. I went home. … D: So, in other words, he- V: Finished with himself and that was it. Yeah, he ejaculated. Specifically. D: That was the first time you went there? V: Mm-hmm. D: And-I know, take a deep breath, I know, I can see it in your eyes already. From then on, you went there multiple times? V: I had problems with it. [With] what happened the first time. But three hundred dollars for forty minutes-that was a lot for a sixteen-year-old girl making six bucks an hour. D: So you’re saying you’re sure you were sixteen now? V: Um, I don’t want to say I’m sure of my age. I was under seventeen, one hundred percent. … D: Okay. Um, when you-the first time you went, when he masturbated, did you see? V: [giggles] D: His member? V: Oh, I thought you were going to ask me if I saw, like, his come. D: No. V: I saw all of the above. D: You saw him naked, fully naked? Fully naked? V: Yeah, a hundred percent naked. He had a towel on for some of it, but that doesn’t mean anything. Like, he was naked. D: He took off the towel? V: I saw everything, yeah. 40 I mean, I’m sorry, cised, a hundred a has some sort of bir it is [giggles]; I’ve n done anything wh it-out of the who his penis. Like, hebut I’ve never ever l or “I’m gonna do th I don’t know-do y … I’m just really emb drop of water. It’s r top, where it’s attac Like, I just could te can obviously tell i he wasn’t. … D: The next time you escalate more? V: Mm-hmm. I actually me to start working went there. But I sta he was in the coun him that I wouldn’t was my rule. Nothir ing, absolutely noth three or four hundr Um, I still never-1 entire time I never, e HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_009189¶
ERSON no. And he still paid me the it. I went home. at was it. Yeah, he ejaculated. nt there? ath, I know, I can see it in your u went there multiple times? I what happened the first time. forty minutes-that was a lot ting six bucks an hour. ou were sixteen now? re of my age. I was under sevenfirst time you went, when he , to ask me if I saw, like, his come. iked? Fully naked? ked. He had a towel on for some anything. Like, he was naked. 40 FILTHY RICH I mean, I’m sorry, he is circumcised, my bad. He’s circumcised, a hundred and ten percent sure. A matter of fact, he has some sort of birth defect. On his thing. I don’t know what it is [giggles]; I’ve never really looked at it, because I’ve never done anything where I had to touch it. I’ve never touched it-out of the whole time I worked for him, I never touched his penis. Like, he-I’m pretty sure he rubbed it against me, but I’ve never ever been, like, “Okay, I’m letting you do this” or “I’m gonna do this to you.” Um, it’s really weirdly shaped. I don’t know-do you want me to, like, tell you this? … I’m just really embarrassed. Um, it’s like a teardrop, like a drop of water. It’s really fat at the bottom and skinny at the top, where it’s attached. And he never gets fully hard, ever. Like, I just could tell by looking at it-like, by looking you can obviously tell if you’re hard or not, and I could tell that he wasn’t. … D: The next time you went, or as you continued to go, did it escalate more? V. Mm-hmm. I actually-I don’t remember how long it took me to start working for him regularly, from the first time I went there. But I started working every day. Every single day he was in the country I would be there…And, um, I told him that I wouldn’t let him put anything inside of me; that was my rule. Nothing inside of me-no fingers, no, no nothing, absolutely nothing inside of me. He increased my pay to three or four hundred dollars as long as he could touch me. Um, I still never-I, I swear I never touched him, the whole entire time I never, ever touched him. Um, but he, he- 41 HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_009190¶
JAMES PATTERSON D: How many times would you say you went? V: Hundreds. Hundreds. I was—he used to tell me I was his favorite. He bought me a car. He bought me— D: This Jeep that you’re driving? V: No. I had a brand-new Dodge Neon. I got a plane—I got a plane ticket to New York; I got spending money whenever I wanted. Like, I was in there deep. I was—he asked my parents to emancipate me so I could live with him. Or he didn’t ask my parents, he asked me to ask my parents, I’m sorry. He actually wanted me to come live with him. D: As, like, a girlfriend? V: Sex slave, whatever you want to call it. Yeah. Um, but it escalated—he, he just increased my pay, as long as he could touch me. I wouldn’t let him put anything inside of me. And then one day he just did, one day he just put his hand, like, his fingers—and, um… D: How long, would you say, from the very first time you went? V: Months. Honestly, I never kept track, like, of, of what happened when. I just can tell you in which order things progressed. … It was—it was, like, towards the middle and end of my school year. But I remember that for the last, like, six or eight weeks of high school, I didn’t have a car ‘cause I gave it back to him. Because he—he asked me to have sex with him and, like, like suck him and stuff [giggles], and I was just like, no. Definitely not. I was like, “I’ll let you touch me, but I’m not gonna do that.” … Yeah, the car was a Dodge Neon 2005. He got it for me before the New Year, because I remember I got it—it was an edition 42 that was a year bef got it, I obviously got a 2005 Neon in car was awesome [; … I gave it back befor for me. He wanted wanna—I didn’t w have sex with him. to walk away from that. And I’m glad t … But I lied to him wh bridges, because h Spectacular. Even i him. Until this day to him in, like, a co would give me as m know that I hate hi figured he used me that, but I figured if D: Okay. Let me bring V: Sure. D: When did things st when the massages V: They escalated whe stand the question. D: Okay. The first time V: Are you asking for a D: Oh, no, no, no— HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_009191¶