Tag: sex trafficking

Jeffrey Epstein’s secret friend list: Judge’s order to reveal nearly 200 names holds the clues – including a ‘widely publicized’ associate of the pedophile financier and Ghislaine Maxwell

Nearly 200 names that had previously been redacted from a long-settled sex trafficking suit against Jeffrey Epstein‘s accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell will soon be made public, a judge has ruled.

The 51-page order was issued on December 18, and will unmask 184 John and Jane Does who had some sort of ties to the late sex pest.

Its release has been highly anticipated, as many had alleged they were being withheld from the public eye after the lawsuit was settled out of court in 2017.

Republicans in Congress have since fought for its release – including the names of powerful friends and acquaintances of the financier who flew on his private jet.

Maxwell, 62, has since been sentenced to 20 years in prison for sex trafficking as part of a separate criminal case. In the settled filing, Virginia Giuffre accused her of helping Epstein traffic her as a minor, and named influential figures allegedly involved.

One of them was Prince Andrew, while others who had gone unnamed until now. A total of 15 were accused of ‘serious wrongdoing,’ while 90 are described as having been ‘affiliated’ with Epstein in some way.

While the fully unsealed document is still a few days away, many – including former President Bill Clinton – had been previously known through other means, according to ABC News.

Numerous others – including other well-known public figures and Hollywood stars – are now set to be unmasked, thanks US District Judge Loretta Preska’s ruling.

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Coco Berthmann says she’s a sex-trafficking survivor who was sold to paedophiles by her own mother – but after she admitted to faking cancer, is her story all it seems?

The lies of a cancer scammer who also claimed to be a survivor of human trafficking are unravelled in a gripping podcast exploring her manipulation of others.

Coco Berthmann, 29, originally from Germany but now living in the US, first began to gain fame and interest after sharing a horrific story about her ordeal as a trafficking victim in 2017.

During the height of her fame, the cancer faker hosted her own TEDX talk, appeared on podcasts speaking about the things that allegedly happened to her, and met survivors of human trafficking including Elizabeth Smart, whose case of being abducted, held hostage and repeatedly raped for nine months in 2002 made headlines around the world after she successfully escaped her captor.

But after Coco pleaded guilty to communications fraud in July 2022 after pretending she had cancer and raising almost $10,000 USD through a GoFundMe page for ‘alternative treatments’, a journalist from Florida began to look into other parts of her story on which people have cast doubt.

Believable: The Coco Berthmann Story, which was produced by Dear Media, charts the influencer’s rise to fame after moving to Salt Lake City, Utah, becoming a Mormon, and procuring a loyal following by sharing stories about being trafficked by her mother, sometimes in harrowing detail.

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Tennessee police took part in multiyear sex trafficking conspiracy to shield a serial rapist — whose victims included children — in exchange for ‘hundreds of thousands’ in cash, lawsuit claims

Multiple Tennessee police officers took large sums of money from an accused rapist — whose victims included children — in order to protect him from criminal prosecution, a lawsuit filed in federal court alleges.

The shocking allegations are the latest wrinkle in the often dramatic, yearslong, multi-chapter effort to bring Sean Williams, 52, to justice.

Women in Johnson City had complained to law enforcement about the wealthy man’s allegedly predatory behavior since at least November 2019, according to the 85-page filing obtained by Law&Crime.

The defendant was ultimately arrested in April on wholly unrelated drug charges. In September, he was indicted on myriad state and federal child sex offenses. The apparently slow pace of those concomitant investigations was due, at least in part, by a local law enforcement conspiracy of cash and silence, the lawsuit claims.

“For years, Sean Williams drugged and raped women and sexually exploited children in Johnson City, Tennessee, and for years, officers of the Johnson City Police Department (‘JCPD’) let him get away with it,” the second amended complaint begins.

Filed by nine unnamed Does in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, the lawsuit alleges that “at least eight” reports about Williams drugging and raping women in his downtown apartment were swept under the rug by numerous police officers, who, instead, treated the business owner and sports car collector like he was “untouchable.”

”In exchange for turning a blind eye, JCPD officers took hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash from Williams, all while refusing to take meaningful steps to protect women and children in Johnson City and to stop his known sexually predatory behavior,” the filing continues. “JCPD was not only turning a blind eye to Williams’ crimes, but also engaging in a pattern and practice of discriminatory conduct towards women who reported rape and sexual assault by Williams.”

The lawsuit claims that Johnson City police, at the highest level, were knowing participants in a sex trafficking operation.

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Pornhub Admits To Profiting From Sex Trafficking, Agrees To $1.8 Million Settlement In Deal With Feds

Aylo Holdings, the owner of Pornhub – one of the largest adult content websites, has admitted to profiting from the sex trafficking, including minors, and has agreed to pay $1.8 million to the US government, as well as separate payments to women whose videos were posted without their consent, federal prosecutors in New York announced late Thursday.

The move comes months after the acquisition of Aylo (formerly MindGeek) by investor and Rabbi Solomon Friedman, who says he wants to turn the company’s image around following this and other scandals involving illegal content on the platform.

In addition to the $1.8 million and individual compensation to women harmed by trafficking, Pornhub must appoint an independent monitor for three years, after which the charges will be dismissed.

“It is our hope that this resolution, which includes certain agreed payments to the women whose images were posted on the company’s platforms and an independent monitorship brings some measure of closure to those negatively affected,” according to US Attorney Peace in a statement.

The company is estimated to have generated more than $200 million in 2022, with operating margins of nearly 30%. 

James Smith, head of the FBI’s New York office, said Aylo Holdings “knowingly enriched itself by turning a blind eye” to victims who told the company they had been deceived and coerced into the videos.

Prosecutors said Aylo has agreed to pay victims compensation, but details such as who is eligible and how they can apply will be forthcoming.

The charge stemmed from Aylo’s role in hosting videos and accepting payments from GirlsDoPorn. -CBS News

The operators of GirlsDoPorn, the now-defunct adult film production company, were charged with and eventually convicted of a range of sex trafficking crimes, including coercing young women into sexual acts on camera which were then posted on Pornhub and other adult websites.

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The Truth about the Jeffrey Epstein John Does

There is a certain level of difficulty in reporting on the Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell saga, much of it having to do with what the authorities haven’t revealed: the web of Epstein’s network (much of it still secret), the ties to intelligence (of which documentary evidence is still hidden from public view), the internal deliberations that went on at Main Justice in Washington, D.C. when Epstein got his sweetheart plea deal (again, not yet publicized).

Add to that the false media reports and blatantly inaccurate social media posts that spring up every time there’s any small development in any Epstein or Maxwell case.

Like today, for example.

The Daily Mail led the way, reporting that a federal judge “has ruled to unseal documents that would name 177 Does who are Epstein’s friends, recruiters and victims within the coming weeks.” This was followed by a flurry of social media takes – especially on Twitter – promising there will be serious revelations from these records or claims that “177 Jeffrey Epstein high profile associates will be revealed in the new year.”

There’s a problem with that sensationalism: it’s inaccurate.

To explain what’s really going on, allow us to provide some context. Back in February of 2023, the Federal District Court Judge overseeing Virginia Giuffre v. Ghislaine Maxwell (the civil case brought against Maxwell by one of her victims) considered whether to publicly disclose the names of certain “John Does” that came up during the course of that litigation. The attorneys for Giuffre and Maxwell put together a list of 167 John Does and provided descriptive references for each, which would allow the Judge to determine which John Does should be unsealed and which ones should remain sealed.

At that time, we reviewed the list of John Does and assigned them various categories, including whether they were employees of Epstein, witnesses, or perpetrators; and whether their names were already known to the public. We were able to identify the most important alleged perpetrators and discussed the still-redacted facts surrounding their involvement with Epstein.

We also made clear that the majority of the John Does (approximately 100) had already been identified, whether through the media or court proceedings. Some had been interviewed by the media; their stories were already well known. We observed that many of the John Does were identified as not being involved in the more serious allegations against Epstein or Maxwell and that there were no “salacious” allegations against these individuals, some of whom were doctors or acquaintances of the victims. In some instances, the John Does were actual potential victims of Epstein or Maxwell.

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Don’t Get Too Excited Over The Latest Epstein ‘John Doe’ List

According to the Daily Mail, a New York federal judge has ordered the release of a cache of documents related to convicted dead pedophile, Jeffrey Epstein.

Contained in the release of roughly 10,000 pages of documents scheduled for Jan. 1, 2024, is expected to be a list of 177 John Does who were Epstein’s friends, recruiters, and victims (an inaccurate number, as you will read below).

Curb your enthusiasm

In February of this year, Twitter Files journalist and attorney Techno Fog of The Reactionary (to whom you should consider subscribing), analyzed a proposed list of 167 John Does (not 177) assembled by lawyers for Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre and Ghislaine Maxwell.

Sadly, around 100 of the Does have already been identified via media or court proceedings. Many of these Does weren’t involved in anything serious – or “salacious,” and were often doctors or acquaintances of the victims. In other instances, the Does may have been actual or potential victims of Epstein’s sex trafficking operation.

Techno Fog also points out, the recent court order is a scatter-shot of names.

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Over 170 of Jeffrey Epstein’s high-profile associates will be NAMED in court documents set to be unsealed in the first days of 2024

Dozens of Jeffrey Epstein‘s high profile associates are in for a New Year’s surprise as they will be named in court documents set to be released in the first days of 2024.

The pedophile’s powerful friends are set to be exposed as part of a vast unsealing that a judge ordered on Monday will take place in 14 days.

That will take the release day to January 1 – but as that is a holiday it is likely the files will be made public the following day.

Some 177 people will be identified across hundreds of files which will shed new light on the late financier’s sex trafficking operation and his network of influence.

Judge Loretta Preska wrote ‘unsealed in full’ next to the names of 177 Does who are Epstein’s friends, recruiters, victims and others whose names will be revealed when the material is released within the coming weeks.

The material is related to a defamation case brought by Prince Andrew’s accuser Virginia Roberts in New York against Epstein’s madam Ghislaine Maxwell.

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Sound of Freedom Tim Ballard’s wife, Katherine, is added to lawsuit as victims claim she conspired with her husband to abuse victims on overseas trips where they were forced to pose as his wife ‘for financial gain’

Sound of Freedom Tim Ballard’s wife has been added to a lawsuit accusing her husband of sexual misconduct, including alleged grooming and abuse within the anti-sex trafficking organization. 

The lawsuit – which is one of several filed against Tim Ballard – now claims Katherine Ballard conspired with her husband for their financial gain and she promoted a ‘Couples Ruse’ that was used for alleged sexual grooming.

One lawsuit said the Couple’s Ruse involved women pretending to be in a relationship with Tim Ballard to go on missions to fool sex traffickers. However, a lawsuit claims Tim used the ruse to abuse the woman including requiring the women to give Tim lap dances and participate in tantric yoga. 

During a recent interview on the Rob Arquette Podcast, Katherine said she was aware of the ‘Couple’s Ruse’ that was mentioned in the lawsuit and claimed it was done with training. 

She also said the lawsuit has been difficult on her family. 

‘For some reason, when you decide to go against sex trafficking, people come out to attack you on that,’ Katherine said on the podcast and quoted in the lawsuit.

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The Backpage Defendants Never Stood a Chance

Eighty-six counts of criminal activity—that’s what veteran journalist and publisher Michael Lacey faced in the federal case against him, a saga kicked off by federal agents raiding his house and shutting down a website he co-founded in 2004, Backpage. A saga that has stretched on for more than five years, through multiple judges, one mistrial, and the death of Lacey’s longtime business partner James Larkin. A case premised on a moral panic that previewed tactics threatening to all sorts of speech.

One count of international concealment money laundering—that’s the only charge of which a jury found Lacey guilty. Lacey’s offense? Moving money from a U.S. bank to a Hungarian bank in 2017.

Transferring money between bank accounts doesn’t seem like it should be a crime. Then again, neither does most of the underlying activity in this case—consensual hookups between adults; providing a platform for sex-worker speech; letting people pay for services with Bitcoin, and so on.

The Department of Justice claimed this was about “keeping women and children across America safe” from sex trafficking. But behind that bravado, the government’s actual case was clearly something less noble. A performance of protection. A publicity stunt. A massive scapegoating set against the backdrop of a moral panic. And a politicized prosecution against people who engaged in and defended the most dangerous thing to any government: free speech.

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Stacey Abrams’ brother-in-law arrested in Tampa for human trafficking, attacking teen: police

Jimmie Gardner, the brother-in-law of former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, was arrested on allegations of human trafficking, according to Tampa authorities.

Tampa police said they arrested the 57-year-old Friday for allegedly attempting to engage in sexual acts with a 16-year-old girl.

A release from the Tampa Police Department stated Gardner met the minor at 1:43 a.m. and invited her to his room at the Renaissance Hotel at International Plaza.

The girl accepted his invitation, and when she got there, he allegedly offered her money for sex, police said.

“The victim initially agreed but later told Gardner that she no longer wanted to engage and he became angry,” the release said. “Gardner advised the victim that she needed to leave his hotel room. The two got involved in a verbal altercation that escalated to a physical dispute after Gardner placed his hands around the victim’s neck, impeding her breathing. After the dispute, Gardner left the hotel room, and the victim called 911.”

When officers arrived, Gardner had already left the hotel, but they found the victim at the scene, according to police.

Meanwhile, police said Gardner reported to the Tampa Police District 1 Office. He was arrested on charges of human trafficking for commercial sexual activity (victim less than 18), lewd or lascivious touching of minor 16 or 17 years of age by person 24 years of age or older, and a misdemeanor count of battery.

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