BBC: Epstein housed victims of apartment abuse in London

According to documents from American investigations, at least four apartments in the wealthy Kensington and Chelsea area were used to house the victims. Six women who lived there have later gone out in public as victims of abuse. Many of them were from Russia and Eastern Europe and were brought to the United Kingdom after authorities decided not to follow up on an international trafficking complaint.

The files show that some of the women were forced to recruit other victims and were often transported to Paris to see Epstein. The BBC investigation shows that its network in the United Kingdom was more organised and wider than previously known, including structured housing and cross-border movement of victims, until its death in 2019.

The report also notes that British police had other opportunities to open the investigation, including new complaints by 2020, but it is not clear whether they were addressed. Legal experts have criticised the lack of a full investigation, stressing that authorities are obliged to act on trafficking and abuse claims.

Trafficking Through Eurostar

Epstein used the Eurostar train to transport some of these and other women inside and outside the United Kingdom without obstacles until his arrest by the American authorities in July 2019. The number of tickets he bought for young women had steadily increased in the last years of his life.

The BBC reports that Epstein had bought at least 53 tickets to transport women between France and England from 2011 to 2019, sometimes benefiting from reduced rates for young people under 25.

In the last six months of his life, Epstein transported women in and out of London with Eurostar 10 times with a woman who was sent to London just 16 days before his arrest.

Some of the women transported with Eurostar later emerged as victims of Epstein, their lawyers confirmed.

In February, the Paris prosecution opened two investigations into Epstein's activities in France, focused on human trafficking and money laundering. Officials said three women have filed complaints against persons in his district.

In addition to shipping by train, the BBC has discovered private and commercial flights linked to Epsthei coming in and out of the United Kingdom, with a total of 120 exceeding. About 90 flights reported last year, some of which had British victims of abuse on board.

Who worked for Epstein in the United Kingdom?

The BBC has identified several people in the United Kingdom who worked for Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence in the United States for trafficking.

Among them is a man believed to be their driver and a woman who worked as Maxwell's assistant.

Another woman, described as part of Epstein's staff during the 2000s, moved to the United Kingdom and remained in close contact with him. It appeared in various documents and sent e-mails with heartfelt tones, writing in 2016: “I always think of you. With all my love”