Deutsche Bank agrees to pay $75 million to settle Jeffrey Epstein’s case

Deutsche Bank has agreed to pay $75 million to settle a proposed class-action lawsuit alleging that the German bank facilitated the late Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking ring, attorneys for the plaintiffs said.

The lawsuit was filed last year in New York by a woman listed in court documents as Jane Doe 1 on behalf of herself and other accusers, alleging that Deutsche Bank did business with Epstein for five years despite knowing he engaged in sex trafficking .

Deutsche Bank admitted no wrongdoing as part of the settlement, a person familiar with the matter told DailyMail.com late Wednesday.

Plaintiffs’ attorneys, from the law firms Boies Schiller Flexner and Edwards Pottinger, said they believed the $75 million settlement was the largest sex trafficking settlement involving a banking institution.

Deutsche Bank admitted no wrongdoing as part of the settlement, a person familiar with the matter told DailyMail.com late Wednesday

“This landmark settlement is the culmination of two law firms that have spent more than a decade investigating to hold one of Epstein’s financial banking partners accountable for the role it played in facilitating his human trafficking operation,” the law firms said in a joint statement. to the Wall Street Journalwho first reported the settlement.

A Deutsche Bank spokesperson declined to discuss the settlement or comment on specific details when reached by DailyMail.com.

However, the bank pointed to an earlier statement acknowledging that it was a mistake to make Epstein a client.

“We acknowledge our mistake in onboarding Epstein in 2013 and the weaknesses in our processes. We have learned from our mistakes and deeply regret our association with Epstein,” the bank said in a July 2020 public statement.

Deutsche Bank also says it has invested more than $4.3 billion to strengthen its controls, processes and training, and hired more people to fight financial crime.

The settlement resolves claims in the proposed class action filed by Epstein’s plaintiffs in Manhattan federal court and upheld by their attorneys. Court approval for the deal is still required.

Little St. James Island, one of financier Jeffrey Epstein’s properties, is seen in an aerial photo. The island was known to the locals as ‘pedophile island’ and the ‘island of sin’

The New York City Mansion that belonged to Jeffrey Epstein can be seen in an archive photo

Epstein was a client of Deutsche Bank from 2013 to 2018, a period following his guilty plea in Florida to procure a minor for prostitution.

David Boies, one of the plaintiffs’ attorneys, told Reuters that Epstein’s abuses “could not have happened without the cooperation and support of many powerful individuals and institutions.”

“We appreciate Deutsche Bank’s willingness to take responsibility for its role,” he added.

A trial in the case was scheduled for September 5.

It wasn’t immediately clear how the settlement might affect JPMorgan Chase, which faces similar but even larger lawsuits filed by Epstein’s plaintiffs and by the U.S. Virgin Islands, where the financier had a private island.

Epstein was a client of JPMorgan from 1998 to 2013, a period during which prosecutors say he trafficked many women and underage girls.

Court documents in that case contained many allegations of the bank’s alleged ignoring or turning a blind eye to Epstein’s activities.

Epstein’s longtime associate, British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, was sentenced last year to 20 years in prison for helping him recruit and groom underage girls

The Deutsche Bank case was led by an unidentified plaintiff, known as Jane Doe 1, who said Epstein sexually assaulted her from 2003 to 2018.

Another Jane Doe 1, a former ballet dancer who said Epstein trafficked her from 2006 to 2013, is leading the prosecutors’ case against JPMorgan.

Epstein died behind bars in August 2019 awaiting trial for the sex trafficking of dozens of girls as young as 14. The New York City medical examiner ruled his death a suicide.

Epstein’s longtime associate, British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, was sentenced last year to 20 years in prison for helping him recruit and care for underage girls over the course of at least a decade.

Maxwell, 61, is currently serving her sentence at FCI Tallahassee Prison in Florida. She has appealed against her conviction.