Chapter Nine: Above Your Pay Grade

Police interviewed dozens of victims of Jeffrey Epstein and recommended a charge of at least four counts of unlawful sex with minors. But, in a scandalous miscarriage of justice, Epstein was allowed to plead guilty to soliciting prostitution – a plea deal that has been described as an example of a “defendant and government working together against the victims.” Sentenced to 18 months in prison, he was housed in his own wing, allowed out for 12 hours a day, and granted visitors, including women. Alexander Acosta, the State Attorney who brokered the deal, says he was told Epstein was “above [his] pay grade” and to “leave it alone”. Who was pulling the strings? Acosta was a member of Donald Trump’s Cabinet until after Epstein’s arrest, when he resigned. In this episode, attorneys and investigators who worked on that case at the time explain how Epstein got away with his sweetheart deal – and why it was a massive mistake.

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