US Virgin Islands sack attorney general over Epstein cases

San Juan, Puerto Rico — The governor of the US Virgin Islands has fired the US territory’s attorney general who pursued various cases against disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, including a lengthy legal battle that resulted in a $105 million settlement.

Denise George’s dismissal comes just days after she filed a lawsuit against JPMorgan Chase in New York and accused the company of helping Epstein fund the illegal exploitation of women and children in the US Virgin Islands and beyond.

Governor Albert Bryan Jr. did not provide a reason for removing George from office in a statement Sunday, saying only that she would be replaced by Assistant Attorney General Carol Thomas-Jacobs.

Governor spokesman Richard Motta did not return a message for comment, nor did executive assistant to the attorney general Jennifer Springette.

In the lawsuit filed against JPMorgan Chase on Dec. 27, the U.S. Virgin Islands government alleges that the company “knowingly facilitated, supported and concealed the human trafficking network operated by Jeffrey Epstein from his home and base in the Virgin Islands. , and financially benefited from this participation, directly or indirectly, by failing to comply with federal banking regulations.

He also alleges that the company concealed electronic and cash transactions.

“Human trafficking was the primary activity of the accounts Epstein maintained at JP Morgan,” the lawsuit states. “JP Morgan has turned a blind eye to evidence of human trafficking for more than a decade because of Epstein’s own financial footprint, and because of the deals and clients Epstein brought in and promised to support. ‘bring it to the bank.’

A spokeswoman for JPMorgan Chase declined to comment in a Tuesday message to The Associated Press.

On December 30, JPMorgan Chase requested that a federal judge dismiss lawsuits brought by two unidentified women alleging that major banks should have seen evidence of Epstein’s sex trafficking. The bank also said it had not committed any act of negligence.

The lawsuit George has filed against JPMorgan Chase comes after Epstein’s estate reached the $105million settlement with the US Virgin Islands government in late November.

The Virgin Islands Daily News, a local newspaper, reported that Epstein made various donations to schools and organizations across the United States, and that the island’s former first lady was the office manager of the one of his companies, Southern Trust. He also noted that Bryan, the governor, granted Epstein’s company various significant tax exemptions when he was chairman of the Economic Development Commission.

In the previous lawsuit, George, the former attorney general, alleged that Southern Trust Company was used as a cover for Epstein’s illegal activities.

Epstein committed suicide in a federal prison in New York in August 2019 while awaiting trial. He had pleaded not guilty to sexually abusing dozens of girls, some as young as 14.