Everything You Need to Know About the 'Pedo' Island Owned by Jeffrey Epstein

Here's the Lowdown on Little St. James, AKA Jeffrey Epstein's 'Pedo' Island

Several celebrities, scientists, and members of royal families were alleged to be among the exclusive group of people who visited Jeffrey Epstein's islands. After his first sentence for child prostitution in 2008, Epstein registered as a sex offender in the Virgin Islands in 2010. He allegedly paid just under $8 million (£6 million) to venture investor Arch Cummin in 1998 for Little St. James, which he purchased via a shell company. The many 'guests' arrived by private plane and used a helicopter to reach the island. Little St. James Island was also central to Ghislaine Maxwell's December sex trafficking trial. On June 28, she was found guilty of five counts of sex trafficking and given a sentence of twenty years in prison and a $750,000 fine. So, here's what you need to know about the same.

1. The Location of Jeffrey Epstein's Island

Little St. James, Epstein's 72-acre island in the Caribbean, has many homes and is situated around 2 miles off the coast of St. Thomas, one of the U.S. Virgin Islands. Epstein had interests in companies operating out of the U.S. Virgin Islands, such as Hyperion Air. A harbor employee told CBS News in 2020 that a boat with the initials LSJ was used to transport employees and supplies to Little St. James. Even when Epstein donated to US Virgin Islands government leaders and educational institutions, some said his standing in the region remained low.

2. Epstein's Life On The Island

Epstein used to go to Little St. James two or three times a month, staying for several days at a time. It was characterized as 'a zen-like retreat' by a former employee, where the financier would wander about in flip-flops as 'meditative music' played on speakers, and the ladies would often sunbathe nude. Ladies were always there; they were often gorgeous, sometimes suspiciously young, and either carried in groups on a 38-foot boat named the Lady Ghislaine, which was supposedly named after Epstein's lifelong friend Ghislaine Maxwell, or they were in the arms of one of his many visitors, as per The Independent.

3. The Guests on Little St. James

According to public papers accessible at the time, various outlets released a comprehensive list of all of Epstein's purported high-society connections in 2019. According to reports, Epstein hosted several well-known people, including actor Kevin Spacey, comedian Chris Tucker, Nobel laureate Lawrence Krauss, Victoria's Secret tycoon Les Wexner, model Naomi Campbell, former Tony Blair aide Lord Peter Mandelson, and British Prince Andrew. Uncertainty surrounds whether Donald Trump visited the island, despite reports that he traveled on one of Epstein's private planes and used to visit the now-deceased billionaire at his Florida house, according to CNBC.

4. Citizens of the Island Murmured Ominously About Epstein's Actions

Locals on St. Thomas began discussing Epstein's actions in murmurs right once, referring to his private aircraft as 'the Lolita Express.' Security personnel were said to monitor the water's edge as scuba divers approached the island. Epstein used to transport over 200 laborers back and forth each day to complete his projects. One of them told the AP News, "When he was there, it was keep to yourself and do your thing." The mogul sometimes gave them leftover or obsolete material as well. Several Epstein employees told the Associated Press that they had signed lengthy non-disclosure agreements and would not speak with the media. Epstein's need for seclusion started to seem more ominous when he entered a guilty plea in 2008 to the charges of soliciting and procuring a child for prostitution.

5. Financier Stephen Deckoff  Bought The Islands

Little St. James and Great St. James' future remained uncertain for over two years after Epstein's death since the US Virgin Islands government had requested a court grant them ownership of Epstein's former holdings. As per the New York Post, the billionaire's executor objected, stating that they intended to use his assets to establish a fund for victims of sexual assault and requesting that the government unfreeze the two islands so they could be sold. The US Virgin Islands and the Epstein estate came to an agreement in November 2022, wherein the latter agreed to provide the government with $105 million, half the proceeds from the islands' ultimate sale, and $450,000 to repair environmental harm. Later, Investor Stephen Deckoff said on May 3, 2023, that he would purchase both islands for $60 million, hoping to create a 25-room luxury resort by the end of 2025, now that the transaction was imminent.