Michael Jackson Mentioned In Jeffrey Epstein List; Stephen Hawking Also Included
Michael Jackson, Stephen Hawking, and David Copperfield were among the prominent people named in newly unsealed court documents as associates of the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Although Jackson, Hawking, and Copperfield were mentioned in deposition transcripts and other documents, there is no evidence to suggest their involvement in Epstein's criminal activities, TMZ reported.
The records are part of a civil defamation lawsuit filed in 2015 against Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein's confidante, by Virginia Roberts Giuffre, who said she was a victim of sex trafficking and abuse. Maxwell is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for her role in recruiting and grooming underage girls for Epstein, who died by suicide in a New York City jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.
In her deposition, Epstein accuser Johanna Sjöberg testified that she met Jackson at the late financier's Palm Beach, Florida, home but did not accuse the late pop icon of any wrongdoing.
Meanwhile, an unsealed email revealed that Epstein offered a reward to Giuffre's friends, acquaintances, and family members to disprove an allegation that Hawking participated in an orgy in the Virgin Islands, where the convicted sex offender had a home.
No specific allegation directly from Giuffre against the renowned theoretical physicist and cosmologist, who passed away in 2018, was mentioned in the unsealed documents.
Hawking visited Epstein's private island as part of a science conference trip to St. Thomas, Sky News reported. His visit came in March 2006, shortly before Epstein was first charged with counts of unlawful sex with a minor.
Stephen Hawking pictured on Jeffrey Epstein's 'Island of Sin' pic.twitter.com/vqG9X44UzL
— Effie Lewis (@EffieLewis) January 12, 2015
via @Telegraph http://t.co/jNImxaKCfZ
Copperfield was mentioned six times in the documents. Sjöberg, in her deposition, described having dinner with the magician at Epstein's home.
She claimed that Copperfield asked her about girls "getting paid to find other girls" without specifying what he meant.
The names mentioned in the documents, totaling 40 out of an expected 250, also included Prince Andrew, former President Bill Clinton, and former President Donald Trump.
While the newly released records contain additional claims about Prince Andrew's alleged participation in an "underage orgy," both the royal and Buckingham Palace have repeatedly denied all allegations against him, the New York Post reported.
Clinton and Trump were mentioned in depositions by Maxwell and one of the girls she hired for Epstein but were not accused of any wrongdoing.
The name of Jean-Luc Brunel also appeared multiple times in the documents. The French modeling agent died by suicide in a Paris jail in 2022 while awaiting rape charges involving underage girls.
The unsealing of the documents was ordered by U.S. District Judge Loretta A. Preska, who cited the already public nature of much of the information.
The records include names of Epstein's accusers, staff members, witnesses at Maxwell's trial, individuals mentioned during depositions, and those who investigated Epstein. The judge kept some names blacked out to protect the identities of sexual abuse victims.
More documents are expected to be released in the coming days.
