Scouting, scholarships, massages: How Epstein lured girls into pyramid of abuse
Over decades, Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell lured vulnerable girls with scholarships, cash, and promises of opportunity, grooming them into a network of abuse spanning Florida, New York, New Mexico, Europe, and the Virgin Islands.
It began with small talk over ice cream at a summer arts camp in Michigan. A 14-year-old girl, known in files as Jane, met Ghislaine Maxwell walking her Yorkshire terrier. Their conversation was casual at first, until Jeffrey Epstein, then aged 41, joined them, speaking of scholarships he funded and a camp lodge bearing his name, according to a report by The Times.
What seemed harmless became the first step into a carefully constructed world of exploitation.
Soon, Epstein travelled to Palm Beach in Florida and charmed Jane's mother, inviting them to his mansion. He praised the girl's potential and offered support, luring her deeper. Within months, Jane was giving Epstein 'massages' for money that quickly escalated into sexual abuse.
She remained trapped for nearly three years. Her story is just one among hundreds documented in the 3.5 million pages of files released by the US Department of Justice (DoJ), which include emails, police reports, photographs, and survivor testimonies. The DoJ estimates Epstein abused more than 1,000 women, most of whom remain anonymous behind redaction boxes.
GROOMING, RECRUITMENT & THE MONEY TRAP
Epstein's methods varied by location and target. In Florida, he sought girls from disadvantaged neighbourhoods, offering cash for massages at his Palm Beach estate. In New York, he targeted aspiring young women, dangling scholarships, elite connections, and invitations to Manhattan townhouse parties.
In Eastern Europe, modelling contacts were used to lure women with promises of fame before transporting them to the United States.
The Times report also claimed that Maxwell was central to recruiting. Witnesses said she scouted schools, asking questions about family situations to identify vulnerability. Grooming began with seemingly innocent gestures: cinema trips, shopping, gifts, and attention.
Epstein would pay USD 300 for a massage, and another USD 300 if a girl brought a friend, creating a self-perpetuating network.
Survivours were flown across the country to Palm Beach, New York, New Mexico, or Epstein's private island in the US Virgin Islands, and in some cases, housed in London or Paris.
Money and opportunity were tools of control. Epstein funded rent, flights, medical care, and even scholarships to art and dance schools.
Some survivours were encouraged to recruit others for "private sessions". Emails show careful planning of payments, tuition, and resources, cementing dependence and making escape difficult.
A LAYERED SYSTEM OF EXPLOITATION
Over time, Epstein and Maxwell formalised the network. Emails discuss "finding friends for massage", selecting girls based on looks, age, and perceived intelligence.
What started with teenagers recruiting school friends evolved into a sophisticated abuse and trafficking ring. Diaries recovered in the files reveal repeated pregnancies, with survivors describing themselves as "human incubators" in Epstein and Maxwell's twisted scheme.
Epstein died by suicide in prison in 2019 and Maxwell was sentenced to 20 years in 2022.
A 2020 compensation fund has paid USD 120 million to 150 survivours, but for many, financial restitution cannot undo the trauma.
"It's a horror story that I survived. I'm still so scared that Jeffrey is around every corner," The Times quoted from one of the survivor's journals. These documents reveal only a fraction of the calculated system Epstein built, a pyramid of abuse sustained by manipulation, money, and fear.
It began with small talk over ice cream at a summer arts camp in Michigan. A 14-year-old girl, known in files as Jane, met Ghislaine Maxwell walking her Yorkshire terrier. Their conversation was casual at first, until Jeffrey Epstein, then aged 41, joined them, speaking of scholarships he funded and a camp lodge bearing his name, according to a report by The Times.
What seemed harmless became the first step into a carefully constructed world of exploitation.
Soon, Epstein travelled to Palm Beach in Florida and charmed Jane's mother, inviting them to his mansion. He praised the girl's potential and offered support, luring her deeper. Within months, Jane was giving Epstein 'massages' for money that quickly escalated into sexual abuse.
She remained trapped for nearly three years. Her story is just one among hundreds documented in the 3.5 million pages of files released by the US Department of Justice (DoJ), which include emails, police reports, photographs, and survivor testimonies. The DoJ estimates Epstein abused more than 1,000 women, most of whom remain anonymous behind redaction boxes.
GROOMING, RECRUITMENT & THE MONEY TRAP
Epstein's methods varied by location and target. In Florida, he sought girls from disadvantaged neighbourhoods, offering cash for massages at his Palm Beach estate. In New York, he targeted aspiring young women, dangling scholarships, elite connections, and invitations to Manhattan townhouse parties.
In Eastern Europe, modelling contacts were used to lure women with promises of fame before transporting them to the United States.
The Times report also claimed that Maxwell was central to recruiting. Witnesses said she scouted schools, asking questions about family situations to identify vulnerability. Grooming began with seemingly innocent gestures: cinema trips, shopping, gifts, and attention.
Epstein would pay USD 300 for a massage, and another USD 300 if a girl brought a friend, creating a self-perpetuating network.
Survivours were flown across the country to Palm Beach, New York, New Mexico, or Epstein's private island in the US Virgin Islands, and in some cases, housed in London or Paris.
Money and opportunity were tools of control. Epstein funded rent, flights, medical care, and even scholarships to art and dance schools.
Some survivours were encouraged to recruit others for "private sessions". Emails show careful planning of payments, tuition, and resources, cementing dependence and making escape difficult.
A LAYERED SYSTEM OF EXPLOITATION
Over time, Epstein and Maxwell formalised the network. Emails discuss "finding friends for massage", selecting girls based on looks, age, and perceived intelligence.
What started with teenagers recruiting school friends evolved into a sophisticated abuse and trafficking ring. Diaries recovered in the files reveal repeated pregnancies, with survivors describing themselves as "human incubators" in Epstein and Maxwell's twisted scheme.
Epstein died by suicide in prison in 2019 and Maxwell was sentenced to 20 years in 2022.
A 2020 compensation fund has paid USD 120 million to 150 survivours, but for many, financial restitution cannot undo the trauma.
"It's a horror story that I survived. I'm still so scared that Jeffrey is around every corner," The Times quoted from one of the survivor's journals. These documents reveal only a fraction of the calculated system Epstein built, a pyramid of abuse sustained by manipulation, money, and fear.