How Fashion Designer and Mom to a 2-Year-Old Mary Furtas Gets It Done, Im just much more adult, calmer, and more diplomatic with people. Verdict: Plausible, but the supporting testimony is inconsistent with the chronology of the building's construction. "When you say 'study' or 'retreat,' there is a different connotation. "The government prosecuted Ms. Maxwell as a proxy for Jeffrey Epstein" to After heightened allegations resurfaced against Epstein in 2019 concerning his involvement with underage girls, the state land commissioner ended the grazing deal with him. Theres also what appears to be a mysterious blue-striped temple. Send an email to the author: ktrotter@insider.com. But there was no ladder. Did it even matter what Epstein used the building for? "No one used to pay attention to it," Stewart told the Los Angeles Times. subscribe to our print edition, ad-free app or electronic newspaper replica here. Up until his arrest in July, it was believed to be his On top of being partners [sic] they are also best of friends, it said. A piano tuner who lives in the Virgin Islands told Insider that he visited the building twice in 2012 and described its interior in detail. But why would at least three people the boat captain, the contractor, and the YouTube user convey superficially plausible stories about the structure, sometimes in exacting detail, that didn't withstand basic scrutiny? Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right. They conceded their actions likely broke the law, but that they tried to "make sure we weren't doing too many illegal things all at once.". Investigators also found a taxidermied tiger and poodle in the house. No stairs, no elevator. The Post has obtained current aerial images of the vast properties where Epstein and Maxwell lived large, in addition to haunting interior photographs that were recently revealed in court. They are, contrary to what people think, rarely apart, I almost always see them together., The duo was described as thick as thieves, with the file noting, they compliment each other really well.. He drove Baron in a golf cart to the building where the piano was. On its website, the foundation says it was established to "support cutting edge science and science education around the world." Read more jeffrey epstein news, headlines, stories, photos, and videos from Inside Edition. In 2016, shortly before his arrest, he bought the larger Great St. James islands for $17.5 million. Sarah Ransome, who claims Epstein instructed her to have sex with lawyer Alan Dershowitz when she was in her 20, said she tried to swim off the island, only to be found by a search party that included Epstein and his alleged madame Ghislaine Maxwell. "The colors, design, and direction of the stripes are strikingly similar to the design in Tutankhamun's Nemes headdress. The two sides did get together after the letter was sent, according to an agency official. WebAs Business Insider previously reported, Jeffrey Epstein's private island in the Caribbean is becoming a tourist attraction. The living area Image source / Mega All times AEDT (GMT +11). The mansion has a distinctive turquoise roof. A representative for the facility, now called the IJ Morris at Star of David Cemetery, confirmed that Seymour and Pauline Epstein are interred in a mausoleum there. The island's southwestern corner features an unusual blue-and-white-striped building that resembles a temple or place of worship. It had previously been sold to a developer who had chose to demolish the existing house. In 1998, for $7.95 million, Epstein purchased Little St. James Island, which is situated between the larger St. Thomas and St. John islands. Password must be at least 8 characters and contain: As part of your account, youll receive occasional updates and offers from New York, which you can opt out of anytime. The permit issued to Epstein's company allowed for the building of an 1,800-square-foot music room, according to records viewed by NBC News. Not according to flight logs. This account, including the framed photo, is believable, except for one key detail. WebEpstein's seven-story mansion in Manhattan also hit the market in July for $88 million, according to the Journal. The reader supplied their friend's name, and I confirmed that a person by that name has worked as a professional piano tuner in South Carolina and Florida. "The other thing I remember," the reader later added, "was the Golden Owl on the roof pointed in a certain direction and that had [some kind of] meaning. A shocking video filmed on Jeffrey Epsteins infamous Paedo Island reveals secret underground lairs and a bizarre sex temple with fake doors. Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. In February, executors of Epsteins estate claimed they would not be able pay out money to the pervs victims if the US Virgin Islands attorney general is allowed to freeze his assets, new court papers show. A look inside Jeffrey Epstein's real-estate portfolio, from the Florida and NYC mansions where sex trafficking reportedly took place to the private island in the Caribbean that was raided by the FBI. Urban explorers captured rare footage of Jeffrey Epstein's private island after sneaking onto the sex offender's remote getaway location, they claim. It is on this 72-acre island that Epstein allegedly ferried in young women on a boat named the Lady Ghislaine. Epsteins friend and former partner, Ghislaine Maxwell, is a British socialite who has been accused of acting as Epsteins madam. On July 9, U.S. Virgin Islands Delegate to Congress Stacey Plaskett said she would be matching the donations she had received from Epstein over the years to give to organizations in her district that focus on women and children. When I emailed Baron several photographs of the building, taken from different angles and elevations, he called me a few minutes later: "That is definitely the building. The claim: Obama's Medal of Freedom recipients appear on Epstein's flight logs. The compound was supposed to include an amphitheater and an underwater office and pool, the Virgin Islands Daily News reported in 2019. He pleaded guilty to two state prostitution counts and served 13 months in jail in an arrangement that allowed him to leave for 12 hours a day, six days a week, on work release. Deals from Dermstore, NuFace, Tibi, and more. "I am very concerned that major development is occurring on Little St. James Island through the processing of a series of minor" permit applications," Jean-Pierre Oriol, the then-director of the Coastal Zone Management program, wrote in a March 2011 letter to Epstein's attorney. By clicking Sign up, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider I almost want to say it was the direction of where the parents lived." 2. The pair claimed to have made it to Little Saint James, in the US Virgin Islands - bought by Epstein 20 years ago and which became known as 'paedophile island' or 'orgy island'. That portion of the island already housed a gym, tiki hut, nature observation cabana and dive pavilion, according to the documents. A dermatologist weighs in on at-home devices. When I went back to the reader, they sent me a link to a YouTube video about Little St. James and claimed they had corresponded with the piano tuner via the comments underneath it. The clip taken by an anti-corruption organisation also shows the seedy outdoor massage room where underage girls would pamper the registered sex offender. The video opens with Berwick saying, Well hello from Jeffrey Epsteins island walking around the whole island. The two Virgin Islands properties, Little St. James and Great St. James, were at the center of Epstein's sexual abuse lawsuit: Days after Epstein's death, the FBI raided Little St. Jamesto search for evidence pertaining to the case against him. The bookcases went high enough to require a ladder. Epstein died by suicide in August, not long after being arrested and charged with sex trafficking of minors and conspiracy. New look at Jeffrey Epstein's private island. I didnt even think about it it was just, get me away.. A defiant gesture, like a raised middle finger, toward the rest of the world. A few months earlier, Epstein's lawyer, Maria Tankenson Hodge, had submitted a request to add a 3,000-square-foot spa to a permit application that included the music pavilion, a pool and a 2,000-square-foot cabana with a coral stone deck, living space and rest room. girls and young women to be forced into sexual servitude on Epstein's islands, Two private islands owned by the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein have been listed for $125 million, The Wall Street Journal first. Remember That Spray-on Dress? Still, the boat captains are mistaken. In other words, it seems as if Baron encountered the building before Epstein applied its distinctive striped exterior, including the realistic mural of a large wooden door. The Row and Balmain showed individual gestures on luxury. says the topless young man standing inside a bare electrical shed on Jeffrey Epsteins private island, more than a year after the disgraced billionaire The pair claimed to have made it to Little Saint James, in the US Virgin Islands - bought by Epstein 20 years ago and which became known as 'paedophile island' or 'orgy island'. Download the NBC News app for breaking news and politics. He didn't recall seeing any blue and white stripes on the exterior. He never met Epstein, and he didn't recall how his staff originally contacted him maybe through another client, or maybe through the online directory. Most notably, the men arrived at Epstein's temple, the purpose for which remains unclear, but has sparked a number of conspiracy theories. This was how I verified and contacted the first piano tuner, who said he never serviced Epstein's piano on Little St. James. But even if the building's motif alludes to the sexual culture of a society that ended more than 1,400 years ago, Greek pederasty was a male phenomenon. This year, he had begun construction on a compound there despite a stop-work order that had been in place since December. I wasn't able to reach Scully either. become of Epsteins sprawling properties. Something went wrong, please try again later. Stay up to date with what you want to know. Verdict: Initially believable, but provably false. According to permit records obtained by NBC News, while Epsteins legal team was busy negotiating a notoriously lenient plea deal for their client in the fall of 2007, Epstein was preoccupied with orchestrating major renovations on the island. Since Epsteins death in 2019, dozens of alleged victims have come forward with sexual assault claims, forcing the executors of his estate Darren Indyke and Richard Kahn to set up a victims compensation fund to dole out damages. Thank you for supporting our journalism. Right? Baron described the structure as a "relatively small building" near the island's coast, far away from the other structures on the island. Both also pointed out the temples questionable wooden door, which features a reinforcing lock bar. For this reason alone, it is unlikely that this person ever set foot inside Epstein's temple. Previously owned by Victorias Secret mogul and Epstein associate Les Wexner, the townhouse was built in 1930 for an heir to the Macys department store fortune. Epstein's victims were young women and girls. Search warrants reveal that police discovered a knife and a gun while investigating Bryan Kohbergers car and his family home. In March 2011, a top official sent a letter to Epstein's attorney expressing concern over development on the island. 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This is a tricky theory to parse. They confirmed earlier reports that the exterior of the building is comprised of flat walls but painted in such a way to give the appearance of dimension. Baron is almost certainly not the only person who stepped inside the blue-and-white building. So I sent him an email and left a voicemail asking if he had ever tuned a piano for Epstein. But Vox reported in 2020 that a source close to the contribution said the donation sum was actually much smaller $6.5 million. From the report: "A colorful building that some news reports have called the 'temple' was actually a gym when Epstein worked out when he was on the island, Scully said, noting in an interview with ABC News that the gym had a memorable feature a massive framed photo of a topless woman.". Below, everything to know about Epsteins ties to the island. Jeffrey Epstein's Island Temple Had a Piano and a Picture of the A Feb. 21 Instagram video (direct link, archive link) shows a series of clips of former President Barack Obama awarding the Presidential Medal of Freedom to different celebrities. It was Baron, and yes, he had tuned Epstein's piano. But it's not quite the same color scheme, and it would be difficult to prove, in the absence of Epstein's own admission, whether the resemblance is intentional. The island remains in contention between the courts and Epsteins estate today but it is expected to go on sale in the coming year, sources told The Post. Epstein also had an interest in pirate treasure, one of his former employees told Bloomberg. Speculation about the building, resembling a religious temple, has questioned if it was used for the child sex abuse Epstein was accused of. Splash News; Backgrid; James Messerschmidt for NY Post, HANDOUT/US District Court for the Southe/AFP via Getty Images, Sotheby's International Realty Santa Fe, 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved, Ghislaine Maxwell appeals sex-trafficking conviction over fatal errors, Ghislaine Maxwell to use divorce settlement to pay for appeal: report, Salacious allegations against Epstein associates to be unsealed: report, Ghislaine Maxwells claim that Prince Andrew-Virginia Giuffre pic is fake is ridiculous: report. I know this because my friend has been in that room several times to tune the piano.". But the actual structure bears little resemblance to the plans that were submitted to agency officials. Hes not spoken to Epstein in well over a decade, and has never been to Little St. James Island, Epsteins ranch in New Mexico, or his residence in Florida., Statement on Jeffrey Epstein. Shocking new vision from the private island of suspected sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein has shown fake doors and frightening statues. ", I asked if he was sure. Baron recounted his experience visiting Little St. James over several interviews with Insider. An "urban explorer" has shared clips on TikTok from when he infiltrated Jeffrey Epstein 's abandoned island in August 2020. It's no surprise that Epstein would have wanted a grand music room on his private island. Explosive end to case thats rocked America, insight into the lifestyle of the perverted billionaire, claims under-age girls were used as sex slaves, being raped multiple times on Little St James. The Best Street Style From Paris Fashion Week. Verdict: Certainly possible, but still unproven. I only got involved in the sale of Jeffrey Epsteins residence to ensure it would be wiped off the map of Palm Beach, Lawrence Moens, who represented the listing, told the Palm Beach Daily News at the time. At the start of her trial two weeks ago, her lawyers argued that she was a scapegoat who wasnt indicted until nearly a year after Epstein died in a federal jail while awaiting his own sex-trafficking trial. Most notorious is Epsteins island, commonly referred to as pedo island, where victims have described in detail trying to swim off the shore in shark-infested water, almost drowning to escape the abuse they faced at the hands of Epstein and his colleagues. It was Shackleford who captured the jaw-dropping scene of FBI agents executing a search warrant throughout the island: But my doubts stemmed from two earlier, less-noticed videos that featured close-ups of the blue-and-white building. The piano-tuning industry is quite small, and while the piano tuner has a somewhat common name, I was unable to find a second piano tuner with the same name. A shocking video filmed on Jeffrey Epsteins infamous Paedo Island reveals secret underground lairs and a bizarre sex temple with fake doors. But seriously, what's up with this weird temple thing on Jeffrey Epstein's private island? Jeffrey and Ghislaine share many mutual interests and they have a lot of fun together, it continued. Berwick and Rudkowski didn't enter the temple its windows appeared to be boarded up but they got a close-up look at the medieval-looking door that has inspired endless speculation. WebJeffrey had purchased Little St. James which was a roughly 75-acre private island in the Virgin Islands in 1998 for $7.95 million dollars. Known as Zorro Ranch, it went up for sale in July for $27.5 million, two years after Epsteins death. In March 2021, the Manhattan townhouse sold for $51 million, far below its listing price of $88 million, The Wall Street Journal reported. They said they wanted to visit the island to determine what exactly was on there, and if by chance former President Bill Clinton or Epstein himself (who is dead) were there. One of the more remarkable features of the building is its exterior treatment: Wide, horizontal stripes, alternating between azure and white, that bend toward the tops of the windows and door. Why would Epstein, who had access to seemingly unlimited amounts of capital, choose a mural of an elaborate door over the real thing? The site further says the foundation gave $35 million to Harvard, kick-starting the university's Program for Evolutionary Dynamics. Rick Friedman Photography via Getty; Marco Bello/Reuters, Rick Friedman/Rick Friedman Photography/Corbis via Getty, where he was being held on charges of sex trafficking and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, valued the home closer to $56 million earlier at another point that year, Virgin Islands Attorney General Denise George. Behind the desk were several columns of floor-to-ceiling bookcases. It suddenly occurred to me that he could have tuned a piano in one of the other buildings on Little St. James. Epstein'sseven-story mansion on East 71st Street was valued at $77 million in a 2019 court document. Why did Jeffrey Epstein's private jet fly to Riyadh on the eve of the 2016 election? As you can see in the clip below, the arched, medieval-looking "door" the one facing the island's interior is in fact painted to give the illusion of depth. Bill Gates is the only person in the video whose name appears on Jeffrey Epstein's flight logs, which show he flew once in 2013 with the late disgraced financier and convicted sex offender. Oriol also requested a meeting to discuss development on Little St. James. But he denied tuning pianos outside of Florida and South Carolina, or ever visiting the US Virgin Islands. After the golf-cart driver dropped him off, Baron entered the building. Top editors give you the stories you want delivered right to your inbox each weekday. Workers told each other it was a music room fitted with a grand piano and acoustic walls. Plans for Jeffrey Epstein's private island, Little St. James. The comedian and Chase Sui Wonders are kissing in Hawaii again. Top editors give you the stories you want delivered right to your inbox each weekday. The building is surrounded by an expansive terrace painted bright white with red shapes. Sign up for notifications from Insider! That would explain your question about the door lock," which curiously appears designed to prevent people inside from leaving. They shared footage from the island to their YouTube and TikTok accounts - appearing to visit some of the more famous landmarks on the 70-acre tropical paradise. A shocking video of Jeffrey Epstein's notorious "Paedophile Island" has revealed a secret underground lair and an unusual "sex temple" with fake doors. This article originally appeared on The Sun and was reproduced with permission. Follow us on Facebook! I found myself ashamed to discuss my progress with my editor and colleagues, as each additional clue turned out to be a false start. Insider explored the most prominent and tantalizing theories about the building, including that it is a monument to an evil Canaanite god and that it is a crypt. The estate of Jeffrey Epstein the convicted sex offender who died in 2019 awaiting trial for sex trafficking charges still owns Epsteins islands, at last report. But the ownership of the two U.S. Virgin Island properties, the islands of Little St. James and Great St, James, could change soon. Indeed, someone had left several comments about entering the temple, using the piano tuner's name. But neither Hibbert nor his fellow top officials responded to subsequent requests asking if the agency approved the building as it now appears. The outlandish temple, with no clear history or purpose, provided the perfect detail: an otherwise minor plot element that promised to illuminate the whole story. Security guards lined the beaches. Oddly, oddly quiet., However his friend then shouts, Theyre on golf carts get the f**k out of here.. And his property grew, in fact by 2008 A medieval-style lock on the front became a curious point of conversation for those working there, who suggested it could have been used to lock people inside with no escape. Jeffrey Epstein: Explorers sneak onto private island in 2020, The explorers managed to film some of the island's main landmarks, The US Virgin Island was where Epstein carried out many of his sick crimes, Epstein's island became known as 'paedo' or 'orgy' island, The island has been dormant since Epstein's death in 2019. The statues in front of and on top of the building, including Poseidon and the birdlike ones on the roof, appear to have vanished around the same time.). ", "I went in there knowing absolutely nothing about [Epstein], except that he was wealthy," he said. One Department of Planning and Natural Resources official acknowledged that there were differences. That's the right location. took girls and young women to Little St. James and forced them into sexual servitude and forced labor. The piano tuner's denial is one reason to question this account. As always you can unsubscribe at any time. The others are Ellen DeGeneres, Robert De Niro, Tom Hanks, Meryl Streep, Barbra Streisand, Steven Spielberg and Oprah Winfrey. But when I called that piano tuner, he told me: "I've never been to Jeffrey Epstein's private island. Both said that funeral services would be held at Menorah Chapels, later known as Menorah Gardens & Funeral Chapel, in West Palm Beach, Florida. is quite dangerous technology, but Bill Gates says theres no threat, Police: Body found in rental vehicle at Hertz rental facility in Gates. The bizarre blue-striped building on Jeffrey Epstein's private Caribbean island was supposed to be a music pavilion with a strikingly different design, according to permit records viewed by NBC News. "In the link you provided the building looks rectangular and in the drawings it looked octagonal," he wrote.