Epstein files latest: Epstein answers questions about being 'sexual predator' in newly-released video

By Rob Harris, sports correspondent

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has been fending off questions about references to leading Olympics officials in the Epstein files which have been published as the Winter games are about to begin in Italy. 

"Anything that is distracting from these games is sad," IOC president Kirsty Coventry said in Milan today.

There are flirtatious emails between Casey Wasserman, the chief organiser of the next Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028, and Epstein's one-time girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell, from 2003.

In one message, Mr Wasserman asked Maxwell: "What do I have to do to see you in a tight leather outfit?"

In a statement, Mr Wasserman insisted their dealings were "long before her horrific crimes came to light" in connection with Epstein's sex offences, adding: "I deeply regret my correspondence with Ghislaine Maxwell."

The sports and entertainment agency tycoon insisted he never had a "personal or business relationship" with Epstein, while acknowledging he went on Epstein's plane for a Clinton Foundation humanitarian trip in 2002.

He said: "I am terribly sorry for having any association with either of them."

The files also show a link between Epstein and Richard Carrion, one of the 106 IOC members and who also sits on the committee that is coordinating the organisation of the Milan-Cortina games, which open on Friday. 

There is no suggestion of wrongdoing by Carrion.

Paste BN asked him about any potential involvement in business dealings following Epstein's conviction in 2008, but did not receive a reply.

Epstein was informed in 2013 by property investor Andrew Farkas that it was "sad" Mr Carrion had missed out on being elected IOC president.

Also in 2013, Farkas sent a letter to Carrion, Epstein and others about a potential joint venture investment in cruise ship terminals in the British Virgin Islands.  

In the following year there were emails discussing meetings between Carrion and Epstein.

Carrion, who is from Puerto Rico, has been an IOC member since 1990 and is chairman of the Popular banking corporation, which did not reply to emails seeking comment.

If you are just joining us, and need a recap of today's developments, our correspondent Paul Kelso has been talking us through them.

Documents appear to show that Peter Mandelson, the former British ambassador to Washington, was paid $75,000 by Jeffrey Epstein. 

Mandelson has denied any record or recollection of the payments.

There is also video of Epstein in which he is asked if he thinks he's "the devil himself".

Watch below...

Peter Mandelson, the former British ambassador to Washington, was paid $75,000 by Jeffrey Epstein, documents appear to show.

Files released by the US Department of Justice suggest Lord Mandelson may have been sent money from the convicted sex offender in 2003 and 2004.

Mandelson was the Labour MP for Hartlepool at the time.

Three apparent bank statements record three payments of $25,000 each. 

The first, on 14 May 2003, was sent to a Barclays account held by Reinaldo Avila da Silva, Mandelson's partner, listing Mandelson as BEN — typically short for the beneficiary of the funds.

Another document in the DOJ release suggests a potential payment of $25,000 on 24 June 2004, and apparently sent to an account which names Peter Mandelson as the account holder.

A third payment is dated 30 June 2004.

It is unclear whether the three payments ever made it into any of the named accounts.

Peter Mandelson has questioned the authenticity of the documents, citing false claims he had a US social security number, questionable US-dollar cheque payments into UK banks, incorrect beneficiary details, and multiple basic errors in dates and spelling.

Lord Mandelson said: "There are also multiple formatting errors in the documents and I would like JP Morgan to confirm on the record that they are certain these documents are authentic and that the individual cheques are also authentic.

"Until this fact checking has been achieved I maintain my original position which is that I have no record and no recollection of ever receiving these sums and that these statements are false."

Our correspondent Paul Kelso has been giving his reaction to the video footage of Jeffrey Epstein.

"[A] remarkable interview there to hear from Jeffrey Epstein himself, acknowledging that he is a sex offender and discussing the morality of charitable donations he claims to have made to alleviate disease in Asia, and whether people should accept those payments. 

"Hearing from Epstein himself, we have been hearing effectively [from] beyond the grave."

Epstein was found dead in his Manhattan prison cell in August 2019, shortly after he was arrested on sex trafficking charges.

Paste BN has found footage of Jeffrey Epstein facing questions among the newly released tranche of files.

Epstein, wearing glasses and a black shirt, appears to be answering questions in a sit-down interview.

In one part of the footage, the interviewer asks Epstein if his money is "dirty money".

"No, it's not," Epstein replies.

Pressed on why not, Epstein says: "Because I earned it."

Put to him that his wealth was earned by "advising the worst people in the world that do enormous bad things", Epstein says that "ethics is always a complicated subject".

Epstein then claims he donated money to help try to eradicate polio in Pakistan and India.

"What are you, [a] class 3 sexual predator?" the interviewer asks.

"Tier 1. I'm the lowest," Epstein responds.

The interviewer asks if those receiving Epstein's donations knew where the money came from, leading to the following exchange:

Epstein: I think if you told them the devil himself said 'I'm going to exchange some dollars for your child's life'...

Interviewer: Do you think you're the devil himself?

Epstein: No, but I do have a good mirror.  

Interviewer: It's a serious question. Do you think you're the devil himself?

Epstein: I don't know. Why would you say that?

Interviewer: Because you have all the attributes -

Epstein: No, the devil scares me.  

The person interviewing Epstein doesn't appear on screen, but he is believed to be Donald Trump's former chief strategist Steve Bannon.

Bannon served in the White House role for the first seven months of Trump's first presidential term.

It is unclear when or where the interview was filmed, who filmed the footage or why Bannon in particular was speaking to Epstein.

It's the issue that's dogged Donald Trump's second presidency. 

Paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein was found dead in his Manhattan prison cell in August 2019, shortly after he was arrested on sex trafficking charges.

Rumours have long circulated about his death, and there has also been speculation about who may have visited his private island.

Some of those rumours quickly spiralled into conspiracy theories.

And at the heart of it all are these Epstein files.

What are they?

In short, these are tens of thousands of pages of documents that the US Department of Justice holds on the investigation into the sex offender.

He was awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges when he was found dead in his cell aged 66.

The indictment alleged he sought out minors - some as young as 14 - from at least 2002 to 2005.

He was accused of paying them hundreds of dollars in cash for sexual acts at either his New York City townhouse or his estate in Palm Beach, Florida.

He was under investigation in Florida over allegations he preyed on a number of young victims in the mid-2000s.

Ultimately, he cut a deal to plead guilty to state charges involving just one minor. 

The justice department said this year he had 1,000 victims.

Haven't we seen files already?

Tens of thousands of pages of "Epstein files" have become public over the past 20 years, many originating from victims' lawsuits against Epstein and previous criminal investigations.

But the releases we've seen over the past month and a half or so have been the biggest yet, with thousands of files published.

This culminated in what the US Department of Justice said was more than three million documents being released on Friday.

It had fallen short, however, of what a bipartisan law in Congress demanded - the full release of the files at once.

Legal row over latest release

Critics say, therefore, that the latest "document dump" before this one broke the law.

Trump administration officials suggested then that thousands more documents will follow in the next two weeks.

Again, sceptics suggested this is for political purposes.

Our US correspondent James Matthews said releasing files which feature Trump more prominently over the Christmas period could have given the president a "softer" landing in the news - at a time when people tend to be paying less attention.

Trump was a friend of Epstein's for years, but has said they fell out in about 2004, years before Epstein was first arrested. 

The US president has consistently denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein.

An email sent by Sarah Ferguson in February 2010 sheds more light on her relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.

She said she was introduced to US lawyer and businessman David Stern by Epstein, and that he came to the Royal Lodge in Windsor for dinner.

"He has been helping me a great deal with an ear and advice to my way ahead," Ferguson wrote.

The recipient's name is 'A', with their email address redacted. It is unclear who this person is.

Stern, whose email is also redacted, and Epstein are both copied into the message.

The email is signed off with an 'S'.

Being mentioned in these documents is not a sign of wrongdoing. Stern died in 2020.

Another chain of emails shows Stern was sent details of Ferguson's business settlement in October 2009 by her former Duchess of York office (see 11:00 post).

In an interview with the Evening Standard on 7 March 2011, Ferguson apologised for accepting £15,000 from Epstein.

"I would never have anything to do with Jeffrey Epstein ever again. I abhor paedophilia and any sexual abuse of children. It was a gigantic error of judgment."

The latest release of files relating to Jeffrey Epstein is another chapter in a the saga that's lasted more than two decades.

Here's how we got to this point...

By Rhiannon Mills, royal correspondent

It was inevitable that the Prime Minister would be asked about Andrew and the latest Epstein files, and that it would end up as a front page splash, but I couldn't help think we've heard this before.

In November, as he joined Prince William in Brazil, Keir Starmer was pushed to comment after the US Congress oversight committee wrote to Andrew asking him to talk about Epstein.

The phrasing so similar to what we've heard in his latest comments. On both occasions he was clear - he believes individuals should talk and share what they know and in the end it’s up to Andrew to decide his next move, whether that's opening up or an apology. 

The use of the word "anybody" both times is telling. Commenting on the royals is something Prime Ministers avoid like the plague, especially when it strays into the personal. 

The apparent careful repetition of his line when asked about the King's brother feels like a deliberate choice, and one designed to cause minimum upset between him and the monarch. 

You wonder just how much this has been a topic of discussion in their weekly audiences, and Starmer will have felt emboldened to speak by the King's dramatic actions against Andrew last year.

But in a case like this, where the court of public opinion wants more answers, it was in many ways unavoidable that the Prime Minister would have to join the growing calls for more openness from all involved.

A second woman has made allegations of having a sexual encounter with Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor after being sent to the UK by Jeffrey Epstein.

The encounter allegedly took place at the Royal Lodge in Windsor in 2010, the former duke's residence at the time, when the woman was in her 20s, her lawyer told the BBC.

It is alleged the woman was given a tour of Buckingham Palace and tea after spending the night with Andrew, the BBC reported.

Buckingham Palace routinely records the names of tour guests. It is understood the palace cannot corroborate the claims without breaching her anonymity.

Andrew previously faced serious accusations of sexual misconduct from Virginia Giuffre.

 He made a financial payment to her in an out-of-court settlement in 2022 after Ms Giuffre had launched a civil case against him.

Andrew has denied any wrongdoing related to Epstein and vehemently rejected the allegations involving Ms Giuffre, who took her own life in April last year.

Paste BN has approached Andrew for comment on the latest reported accusations.