It turns out that Jenny’s visited with Epstein several times.
And, it turns out, she’d done much more than sit in the kitchen. Without her parents around, she’s much more willing to talk about it.
The first time she’d gone to the house on El Brillo Way, she says, Epstein had tried to take off her shirt. She’d become upset, and this had led to a fight—a “verbal disagreement”—with Epstein.
She’d left without getting paid. Gone down to the kitchen and told Wendy, “Let’s go!”
“If you’re uncomfortable,” Wendy had told her, “tell him to stop, and he will.”
On the other hand, Wendy had also told her, “The more you do, the more you get paid.”
A few weeks later, she agreed to return to the house on El Brillo.
Once again Sarah had taken Jenny upstairs and into the master bedroom. Sarah had set up the massage table, laid out the oils that Jenny would use.
Then Epstein had entered the room wearing only a towel.
Jenny had been wearing tight jeans. She had a tight belt on. She kept the jeans on, though Epstein still made a grab for her buttocks. Then he rolled onto his back and grabbed for her breasts. Jenny became upset yet again. But this time, she was paid two hundred dollars before leaving. She never did go back to the house. But, like Francine, she has one more thing to tell the detectives.
Another girl from her high school had been there on the day of her second visit with Epstein. Kristina. And later, Kristina told Jenny that she also had “a problem” with Epstein.
Girls seemed to be turning up all the time. And the detectives were just getting started.
One girl leads Chief Reiter’s team to another. And every time, they hear the same story. The girls are approached by Wendy Dobbs. They drive over to Epstein’s house. After a short wait in the kitchen—maybe some milk and cereal, if they feel hungry—they’re walked upstairs. Epstein’s there, waiting, wearing his towel. Sometimes with a vibrator. Sometimes the girls recommend their friends, and for this they receive a commission.
None of the girls comes from money. And none of them has been trained as a masseuse. Then again, how could they be? To become a licensed massage apprentice in Florida, you need to be eighteen years old, at least, and have a high school diploma or GED.
CHAPTER 16
Cynthia: October 6, 2005
Three days after meeting with Francine, the police drive to Boca Raton. They’re there to see Cynthia Selleck, who’s eighteen years old.* But according to the probable-cause affidavit that the Palm Beach PD is preparing in order to obtain an arrest warrant for Epstein, Cynthia was sixteen when Wendy Dobbs first took her to meet him.
During a sworn taped statement, she tells the police that she’d met Wendy at her high school. She says that Wendy had recruited her and prepped her for her first visit to Epstein’s house. And she says she’d ended up going to the house “a lot of times to provide massages over the past two years.” The affidavit states:
She considered Epstein a pervert, and he kept pushing to go further and further until [Cynthia] explained she would keep telling him she had a boyfriend.
Only recently, Cynthia says, did she begin to remove her clothes in the course of giving Epstein massages.
“Jeff would try to get away with more and more on each massage,” she tells the cops.
Still, Sarah had Cynthia’s cell phone number, and Sarah would call whenever Epstein was in Palm Beach to make an appointment for “work.”
Each time she went, Sarah would meet her at the kitchen door area. She would bring her upstairs and prepare the massage table. [Cynthia] advised Epstein would ask her questions about herself. Epstein knew she was a soccer player and would be attending [a nearby] university.
The cops want to know: Did Epstein know her real age?
[Cynthia] stated Epstein did and didn’t care. The most recent massage she provided was on October 1, 2005.
October 1.
That’s less than a week ago.
What the cops know now is that Epstein’s still at it.
What they’re about to learn seals Epstein’s fate.
CHAPTER 17
Alison: October 11, 2005
After speaking with Cynthia, Detectives Recarey and Dawson meet up, once again, with Alison. It’s been exactly one month since her arrest, and once again, she’s willing to talk. They have no trouble obtaining her sworn taped statement.
Alison is eighteen, but she’s been going to Epstein’s house since 2002. Things got off to a slow start, she says. She received two hundred dollars for her first session, during which she had her bra off but her underwear on. Still, at the end of the session, Epstein had asked for her number.
Then the sessions got heavier. Much heavier, as Detective Recarey already knew. [Alison] stated that during her many visits a routine was established between her and Epstein, he wrote in his report.
She would enter the house and get naked in the bedroom. She would then start with a back massage. Epstein would roll on to his back and allow her to massage his chest area. [Alison] stated Epstein would then begin to masturbate himself and at the same time would insert his fingers in her vagina and masturbate her with his fingers.
[Alison] explained Epstein would continue this process until he ejaculated. He would then utilize a vibrator/massager on her vagina until [Alison] climaxed. [Alison] advised that during her frequent visits, Epstein asked for her real age, [and Alison] stated she was sixteen. Epstein advised her not to tell anyone her real age. [Alison] advised that things escalated within the home as Epstein would instruct and pay [Alison] to have intercourse with his female friend, Nada Marcinkova [sic]. [Alison] explained the intercourse included using strap on dildos, large rubber penis’[sic] and other devices that Epstein had at his disposal. Epstein would watch them have intercourse and masturbate himself. Occasionally, Epstein would then join in during the female on female intercourse and provide oral sex to both [Alison] and Marcinkova. This occurred during the time [Alison] was sixteen years of age.
[Alison] advised this continued to escalate during two years. The routine became familiar to [Alison]. Epstein’s assistant Sarah would telephone her every time Epstein was in the Town of Palm Beach and would place appointments for her to visit and work for Epstein. Each time something new was introduced, additional monies were produced and offered for [Alison] to allow the acts to happen. [Alison] consented to perform all these acts but was adamant that there was an understanding with Epstein that no vaginal penetration would occur with his penis. [Alison] explained that Epstein’s penis was deformed. [She] explained that his penis was oval shaped. [She] claimed when Epstein’s penis was erect, it was thick toward the bottom but was thin and small toward the head portion. [She] called Epstein’s penis “egg-shaped.” [She] stated Epstein would photograph Marcinkova and her naked and having sex and proudly display the photographs within the home. [Alison] stated during one visit to Epstein’s house in which she provided a massage to Epstein, his female friend, Nada [sic] Marcinkova, was also present. [Alison] provided the massage in which Marcinkova and her would fondle each other’s breasts and kiss for Epstein to enjoy. Towards the end of this massage, Epstein grabbed [Alison] and turned her over onto her stomach on the massage table and forcibly inserted his penis into her vagina: [Alison] stated Epstein began to pump his penis in her vagina. [She] became upset over this. She said her head was being held against the table forcibly, as he continued to pump inside her. She screamed “No!” and Epstein stopped. She told him that she did not want to have his penis inside of her. Epstein did not ejaculate inside of her and apologized for his actions and subsequently paid her a thousand dollars for that visit. [Alison] stated she knows he still displays her photographs through out the house.
What happened to Mary had been bad enough. But what happened to Alison was on a whole other level. She’d been caught with some pot, sure. But that was hardly a felony offense. It didn’t make her a liar. And, in important respects, Ali
son’s statement had aligned with Mary’s and with statements they’d been given by other girls, including Wendy Dobbs. Could Wendy be trusted? Probably not. Almost certainly not. But again, what she said was also in line with what the police had heard from other girls.
Detective Recarey and his team had done exceptional work on the investigation that Officer Pagan had started.
It was enough, Reiter decided, to cause a judge to issue a search warrant.
CHAPTER 18
Michael Reiter: October 2005
On October 20, Palm Beach police officers execute a search warrant, signed by Judge Laura Johnson, at Jeffrey Epstein’s home on El Brillo Way. Inside the house, an employee is on the phone with Epstein. They ask him, politely, to hang up. Then, guns drawn, they walk up the winding stairs to the home’s second story.
Detective Recarey remains outside and reads the warrant, out loud, to Epstein’s houseman while another officer videotapes them.
“This is your copy,” Recarey says as he hands over the warrant. “When we are concluded, I will leave a list of what items we’ve taken, okay? I would ask that you don’t answer your telephone. I know that the gentleman was having a conversation with Mr. Epstein at the time. So I’m sure he’s trying to call and find out what’s going on. He will be told what was going on as soon as we’re done. Okay?”
Inside the house, detectives see the pink-and-green couch that Mary and other girls had described. They see photos of naked young girls—in some cases, girls they’ve spoken to about Epstein. They also find message pads on which are written first names, dates, and numbers for the girls.
Sometimes there are notes to go with the names and numbers: “I have girls for him.” Or “I have 2 girls for him.”
These notes are signed by one Sarah Kellen.
Epstein’s house has a strangely antiseptic quality. Some of the bedrooms look almost like doctors’ offices. In the bathroom off Epstein’s bedroom, there’s a massage table as well as stands holding strange machines, which looked like something you’d find in a dermatologist’s office.
In a wood-colored armoire beside Epstein’s bed, they see a bottle of peach-flavored Joy Jelly. In the bathroom, there are soaps shaped like penises and vaginas, bottles of Mango Mist, more Joy Jelly, and boxes of tampons.
The officers find stacks of UFC videos and DVDs of Rock Star and other B-list movies.
They also find receipts for books bought on Amazon, such as SlaveCraft: Roadmaps for Erotic Servitude.
On the first floor, detectives are drawn to two secret cameras hidden in clocks. On the computer hard drive, they see several photographs of Wendy and other girls. These images appear to come from the camera inside the clock behind Epstein’s desk.
The officers know where the cameras are because they helped install them—in 2004, when Epstein complained that someone had stolen a gun and $2,700 from him. Detective Recarey had investigated that case. But before he could arrest Epstein’s handyman, Juan Alessi, for the theft, Epstein contacted a captain in the Palm Beach PD and prevailed upon him to have the investigation called off.
Epstein had met Alessi at a luncheonette, he explained, and Alessi had agreed to pay back the money. At the time, it made no sense to prosecute: Epstein was a busy man. He was going to get his money. But he did invite the police into his home to install the cameras. This was a service that the Palm Beach PD provided (though Epstein would be the only one with access to the footage). But while they were there, the police had noticed a group of attractive young women who seemed to be camped out at the house.
The group included Sarah Kellen and Nadia Marcinkova.
None of the girls was a relative of Epstein—that fact had caught the cops’ attention.
And now, as the search continues, the cops see photographs of the very same girls.
On Epstein’s desk, the officers find Alison’s high school transcript.
The thing is, the detectives can’t shake the feeling that the Epstein house has been tidied up for their arrival. Shelves look as though they’ve been emptied, and several photographs appear to have been removed from the walls.
“[Judging] by the condition of the place to be searched,” Chief Reiter will say in his deposition for B.B. vs. Epstein, “someone probably had cleaned it up a bit.”
Maybe there’s nothing too surprising about this. After all, Reiter’s team knows that Epstein’s gotten wind of their investigation. What is surprising is that for a house that’s been scrubbed, there’s so much left lying around.
In fact, the oddest thing about the search is that someone appears to have gone through the house, gotten rid of incriminating materials, but left many clues behind.
It was as if the things the police were seeing didn’t even register as wrong.
There’s another feeling the cops can’t shake: the nagging sense that they themselves are being investigated and tailed.
First Reiter hears through the grapevine that Epstein’s lawyers have hired private investigators to perform background checks.
A public-records demand has been filed in an effort to obtain Reiter’s own records.
Detective Recarey tells Reiter that he, too, is being surveilled and that his trash has been picked through.
In his entire career as a police officer, this is the first time that Reiter’s seen or heard of such a thing: a suspect investigating his investigators. But for the moment, he puts it aside. Recarey’s doing great work on the investigation. He’s deeply invested, and for good reason: the detective’s got four kids of his own. Right now, more victims are coming out of the woodwork. And now that the warrant’s been executed, there’s no downside to interviewing Epstein’s servants.
CHAPTER 19
Detective Recarey, Probable-Cause Affidavit: May 2006
On November 21, 2005 I interviewed Jose [sic] Alessi, a former houseman for Jeffrey Epstein. Alessi stated he was employed for eleven years with Mr. Epstein, from approximately 1993 through 2004. Alessi stated he was the house manager, driver and house maintenance person. It was his responsibility to prepare the house for Epstein’s arrival. When asked about cooks or assistants, Alessi stated they traveled with Epstein on his private plane. I asked Mr. Alessi about the massages that have occurred at Epstein’s home. Alessi stated Epstein receives three massages a day. Each masseuse that visited the house was different. Alessi stated that towards the end of his employment, the masseuses were younger and younger. When asked how young, Mr. Alessi stated they appeared to be sixteen or seventeen years of age at the most. The massages would occur in Epstein’s bedroom or bathroom. He knew this because he often set up the massage tables. I asked if there were things going on other than a massage. Alessi stated that there were times towards the end of his employment that he would have to wash off a massager/vibrator and a long rubber penis, which were in the sink after the massage. Additionally, he stated the bed would almost always have to be made after the massage.
On January 4, 2006 I interviewed another former houseman, Mr. Alfredo Rodriguez. During a sworn taped statement, Mr. Rodriguez stated he was employed by Jeffrey Epstein for approximately six months, from November 2004 through May of 2005. His responsibilities as house manager included being the butler, chauffeur, chef, houseman [and to] run errands for Epstein and provide for Epstein’s guests. I asked Rodriguez about masseuses coming to the house. Rodriguez stated Epstein would have two massages a day. Epstein would have one massage in the morning and one massage in the afternoon everyday he was in residence. Rodriguez stated he would be informed to expect someone and make them comfortable until either Sarah Kellen or Epstein would meet with them. Rodriguez stated once the masseuses would arrive, he would allow them entry into the kitchen area and offer them something to drink or eat. They would then be encountered by either Sarah Kellen or Epstein. They would be taken upstairs to provide the massage. I asked Rodriguez if any of the masseuses appeared young in age. Rodriguez stated the girls that would come appeared to be too young to be masseuses. He st
ated one time under Epstein’s direction, he delivered a dozen roses to [Mary’s high school] for one of the girls that came to provide a massage. He knew the girls were still in high school and were of high school age. I asked Rodriguez about the massages. He felt there was a lot more going on than just massages.
He would often clean Mr. Epstein’s bedroom after the alleged massages and would discover massagers/vibrators and sex toys scattered on the floor. He also said he would wipe down the vibrators and sex toys and put them away in an armoire. He described the armoire as a small wood armoire which was on the wall close to Epstein’s bed. On one occasion Epstein ordered Rodriguez to go to the Dollar rent a car and rent a car for the same girl he brought the roses to, so that she could drive her self to Epstein’s house without incident. Rodriguez said the girl always needed rides to and from the house.
Rodriguez produced a green folder which contained documents, and a note with Mr. Epstein’s stationery with direction to deliver a bucket of roses to [Mary’s] High School after [a] high school drama performance….
During the course of the investigation, subpoenas were obtained for cell phone and home phone records from several victims and witnesses along with the cell phone records of Sarah Kellen. An analysis of these records was conducted which found numerous telephone calls were made between Sarah Kellen and the victims. These records indicate the dates the calls were made are consistent with the dates and times the victims/witnesses stated they were contacted. Specifically, the phone records showed Kellen called [Wendy Dobbs] during the exact times and dates when [name redacted] advised the incident occurred. Kellen also coordinated the encounters with [name redacted] during the time frame the girls stated they occurred.