Jeffrey Epstein’s misdoings were allegedly known by JPMorgan executives several years before the bank cut ties with the financier, new court filings show.
“JP Morgan’s relationship with Epstein in allowing his sex-trafficking venture to access large sums of cash each year went far beyond a normal (and lawful) banking relationship,” according to the filing, which also alleged that JPMorgan executives flagged potentially suspicious cash withdrawals made by Epstein.
Epstein was a client of the bank from 1998 until 2013. He was a registered sex offender for the last few years of his relationship with JPMorgan, following a 2008 conviction of sex crimes involving an underage girl.
He died in prison in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal charges that he operated a sex trafficking ring in the early 2000s.
The recent court filings are part of a lawsuit against JPMorgan by the U.S. Virgin Islands, where Epstein had a house. There are multiple lawsuits against JPMorgan right now regarding its ties to the disgraced financier.
Wednesday’s filing revealed that Mary Erdoes, CEO of JPMorgan Asset & Wealth Management, “admitted in her deposition that JPMorgan was aware by 2006 that Epstein was accused of paying cash to have underage girls and young women brought to his home,” according to CNBC.
JPMorgan declined to comment on the filing to CNBC.
Attorneys for the bank have denied allegations that executives knew about the crimes Epstein was awaiting trial for at the time of his death, and accused the U.S. Virgin Islands’ government of seeking “deeper pockets” in court filings.
Wednesday’s filing shows that bank executives grappled with whether it was appropriate to continue working with Epstein as early as 2006. JPMorgan’s Rapid Response Team noted Epstein was withdrawing between $40,000 and $80,000 in cash multiple times a month, totaling more than $750,000 per year, The Independent reported.
The team decided his accounts would be classified as high risk, but the bank maintained a relationship with him for several more years, according to the filing.
