The Jeffrey Epstein victims compensation fund will pay from the deceased financier’s estate, which is valued at $630 million.
Julie K. Brown, an American investigative journalist for the Miami Herald, identified an estimated 80 victims of Jeffrey Epstein. The publication was able to locate 60 of them, but the true number of victims who were trafficked by Epstein and his accomplices may never come to light.
Some allege that hundreds of girls were flown to Epstein’s Pedophile Island, where the rich, famous and even British royalty visited. Epstein trafficked girls as young as 12. One example of alleged involvement with royalty is Prince Andrew, who is now estranged from the British royal family.
Who Were the Victims of Epstein?
Epstein preyed off of the vulnerable. He would seek underage girls from poor neighborhoods to exploit for sexual favors. Ghislaine Maxwell, his alleged madam, who is now arrested and behind bars, combed trailer parks in search of underage girls. Epstein told her, “The younger, the better.”
Ghislaine Maxwell allegedly even participated in some of the sexual abuse. One New York woman, a Parsons student who goes by the pseudonym “Samantha,” recounted her story of Maxwell. She was 19 at the time but told to lie about her age and say she was 16.
When Samantha arrived, Maxwell called her a filthy, lying whore. She put a ball gag in her mouth and had her hands bound before she knew what was happening. The next thing she knew, she was stripped naked and raped with a sex toy. It was alleged that Maxwell later called Epstein to join in the abuse.
After the incident, Maxwell gave Samantha $300 and told her to keep her mouth shut. She also allegedly threatened her life. This pattern appears again and again in the accounts of Epstein’s victims. It was common for them to threaten the victims to stay quiet by using and abusing their power.
Names of the Victims
Some of the known accusers of Jeffrey Epstein who have come forward include:
- Virginia Roberts Giuffre
- Michelle Licata
- Courtney Wild
- Maria Farmer
- Annie Farmer
- Sarah Ransome
- Jennifer Araoz
- Jena-Lisa Jones
The case of Epstein accuser Courtney Wild is one example of the vulnerable types that Maxwell sought. Wild spoke in an interview with the Herald and said that her mother was on drugs and didn’t have the means to provide for her.
Epstein sought girls that no one would listen to such as Wild. He went after underage girls in bad situations and preyed on them. Some of the trailer parks that Maxwell visited had frequent shootings and other conditions that made the girls easy prey.
The Aftermath of Sexual Abuse
Many of the women suffered long-lasting scars from the trauma of the sexual abuse. In the case of Samantha, she fled New York City to Los Angeles, where she became a sex worker. In other cases, the threats from Maxwell and Epstein left the victims so scared that they never had children because they didn’t want their kids to become the targets of Epstein.
At one time, no one would listen to anyone who spoke out against Epstein or Maxwell. They would think of the victims as people who only wanted money. Now it has been proven that the victims’ voices should have been heard. This fund is one way to do that, even if it’s too little, too late in some cases.
As of December 2020, over 100 victims of Epstein’s trafficking have sought compensation. The Jeffrey Epstein victims compensation fund will pay from the deceased financier’s estate, which is valued at $630 million.
This fund was first opened to limit the litigation against the estate and keep from court costs that could drag out for years. The claims may range from thousands of dollars to millions of dollars for each victim. Jordan Feldman, the administrator of the fund, said that over 100 victims had sent in claims packets. Speaking with a lawyer is the best way to figure out how to proceed with a claim.
Join the conversation!