Jeffrey Edward Epstein (January 20, 1953 – August 10, 2019) was an American financier and convicted sex offender, best known for his alleged sex trafficking of minors and close connections with many of the world’s elite. Epstein began his career in finance at the investment bank Bear Stearns, before forming his own firm, J. Epstein & Co. Until his conviction for sex crimes in 2008, Epstein was a well-connected multimillionaire who moved among the financial, political, and cultural elite of society.
In 2005, the Palm Beach police in Florida began investigating Epstein after a parent complained that he molested her 14-year-old daughter. Epstein eventually pleaded guilty and was convicted in a Florida state court in 2008 of soliciting a prostitute and of procuring an under-18 girl for prostitution. He served 13 months in custody with work release, as part of a plea deal, where federal officials had identified 36 girls as young as 14 years old who had been molested.
Epstein was arrested again on July 6, 2019, on federal charges for sex trafficking of minors in Florida and New York. He died on August 10, 2019, after reportedly hanging himself in his Manhattan prison cell.