Epstein scandal expands to UK: Victims allegedly housed in elite London flats

Jeffrey Epstein’s nefarious criminal activities were not only confined to the US. As per new investigation conducted by the BBC, the disgraced sex offender also kept his abuse victims in one the most elitist areas of the UK.

These reports surfaced years after the Metropolitan Police initially declined to launch a full-scale investigation into his criminal activities.

Shocking evidence was found for four rental flats in the wealthy Kensington and Chelsea borough. These flats were used to house at least six women who have been identified as victims of Epstein’s sex trafficking.

According to a BBC investigation, women belonging to Russia, Europe and other parts of the world were brought to the UK through trafficking. Some women were pressured into recruiting others into the trafficking scheme as scouts for Epstein in the UK fashion and modelling scenes, according to emails in the files.

The late convicted sex offender acted as landlord paying rent, providing monthly allowances, and funding English courses to maintain pressure over abuse victims.

Trafficking routes and Eurostar connection

Besides keeping the victims in affluent neighbourhoods, Epstein also purchased at least 53 tickets for young women between London and Paris from 2011 to 2019.

Over 120 private and commercial flights linked to Epstein have now been identified arriving in or leaving the UK.

Moreover, the financier also leveraged his Eurostar connection to ensure smooth transfer of women in and out of the UK. The horrendous trafficking of women continued until his arrest by US authorities in July 2019.

UK police inaction

Despite the allegations of sex trafficking, the Met Police remained inactive and decided not to pursue the case even after the Viginia Giuffre's complaint that she had been trafficked and forced to have sex with Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor in 2001.

Former Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner Kevin Hyland, argued that police could have tracked credit card and IP address data for suspicious group travel bookings but failed to do so.

Tessa Gregory, a human rights lawyer with Leigh Day, said while talking to BBC, “Where there are credible allegations of human trafficking, the UK state, even if no victims come forward, has a positive legal obligation to conduct a prompt, effective and independent investigation.”