[ET] At least 20 women who were victims of sex trafficking and sexual abuse at Jeffrey Epstein properties were paid through JPMorgan Chase accounts, according to a new court filing.
The women were allegedly abused and trafficked at properties in the U.S. Virgin Islands, New York, and elsewhere between 2003 and 2019.
The women received payments that totaled, collectively, more than $1 million, according to the U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Justice, which entered the filing on Feb. 15.
"Epstein also withdrew more than $775,000 in cash over that time frame from JP Morgan accounts, especially significant as Epstein was known to pay for ’massages,’ or sexual encounters, in cash," the filing states. "Financial information also reflects payments drawn from JP Morgan accounts of nearly $1.5 million to known recruiters, including to the MC2 modeling agency, and another $150,000 to a private investigative firm."
#2
...The wheels grind slow, but they grind exceedingly fine....
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
02/18/2023 6:57 Comments ||
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#3
JP Morgan could be in trouble in this case if they knew of illegal activity and did not report it, if Epstein was flagged on a Suspicious activity Report (SAR) and then not investigated or reported…
[FOX] Left-wing megadonor and billionaire George Soros argued in favor using an experimental weather control technology to mitigate global warming, during a speech in Germany on Thursday.
Soros — who has directed millions of dollars to climate groups through his nonprofit Open Society Foundations — said he discovered a process of creating white clouds to reflect sunlight away from warming areas in his quest to discover whether humans could prevent ice sheets from melting. Ice sheets melting in Greenland in particular, he explained, could doom human civilization.
"Our civilization is in danger of collapsing because of the inexorable advance of climate change," Soros said during the speech at the Munich Security Conference.
"The melting of the Greenland ice sheet would increase the level of the oceans by seven meters. That poses a threat to the survival of our civilization," he continued. "I wasn’t willing to accept that fate, so I tried to find out whether anything could be done to avoid it. I was directed to Sir David King, a climate scientist who had been chief scientific advisor to previous British governments."
[FoxNews] Family farm threatened by Biden’s out-of-control regulations
When I started managing our family’s farm in 2000, I had big plans to keep us going strong in the 21st Century. My dad, who started the farm in 1953, worked his tail off growing corn, soybeans, wheat, and raising hogs. I saw a chance to expand, and while it’s been a long slog, today we farm over 1,900 acres.
But now I’m worried we can’t keep expanding because of the heavy hand of the federal government. It’s the most infuriating thing I’ve ever encountered.
The Biden administration rolled out its long-awaited "Waters of the United States" rule just before the new year, the latest version of the regulation that won’t die. It follows the Obama administration’s attempt to claim enormous federal power over land like mine, simply because a small amount of water sometimes runs over it, as water is known to do.
The Trump administration went the other direction, giving my farm a break and me some hope. Yet in the name of "clean water," the Biden EPA is once again claiming control, the likes of which D.C. should never have over my property.
Don’t get me wrong: As a farmer, I’m deeply committed to keeping my region’s water clean and our environment healthy. It does me no good if northeast Indiana becomes so polluted that I can’t grow crops or raise hogs. Unclean water is bad for business. That’s why every neighbor I have and farmer I know supports the Clean Water Act. But what I don’t support is twisting the law to the point that my property and my future are no longer my own.
I’m no lawyer, but when I read that the Clean Water Act gives D.C. power to regulate "navigable waters" it seems clear that we’re talking about, you know, waters you can navigate. Of course, that includes the Eel River, which some of my farm backs up to. But there’s no world in which anything else on my property fits the bill.
I have some drainage ditches that occasionally fill up with runoff from the fields or rain from big storms, but they’re not navigable unless we’re talking toy boats that fit in the palm of my hand. Ditto the wetlands that dot the farm, remnants of when this region was called the "Great Black Swamp." There’s no way to navigate them, and they don’t have an outlet. The water just seeps into the ground.
I’m now forced to ask myself if the EPA mandate applies to these areas, and the honest answer is: I don’t know. The rule is so tough to understand that simply figuring out what I can do with my property is beyond my capability.
I’m now considering delaying the expansion of our hog farming – plans that have been years in the making. I can’t tell if the property I was planning to use is now under the federal government’s thumb. It was going to be a decent-sized expense, but it seemed like we’d make it back in a couple of years. Now I don’t want to waste a lot of that money hiring experts to tell us what we can and can’t do.
Did the Biden administration know it might be shutting down farmers’ plans to make food more abundant and less expensive? Would it rather import more food instead of raising and making it here?
I don’t know the answer to these questions, either, and neither does anyone else. I worked with the National Federation of Independent Business to make my concerns known to the EPA, yet the agency refused to analyze the economic impact of its mandate on small businesses before issuing it, which federal law requires.
#2
If the farmer’s last name was Gates he would probably have an exception. The GIVERnment under the disguise of doing good will destroy small, family owned farms. When the regulations become too costly a nice offer from Gates, China or big agriculture will show up. Think back to what happen to mom and pop gas stations when the EPA changed the rules on under ground storage tanks.
#3
Next up of course the government will buy up your land, for pennies on the dollar, and give it to some poor minority who took a 3-week course on farming back in the hood. For Equality and Diversity of course - too many white farmers.
See Zimbabwe.
[RFE/RL] THE KEY ISSUE
Key Taliban ...Arabic for students... officials have recently appeared to criticize the murderous Moslem group's supreme leader, Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada ...Former deputy to Taliban supremo Mullah Akhtar Mansour, now The Big Man Himself... , whose repressive policies have alienated Afghans and isolated the Taliban's unrecognized government internationally.
Sirajuddin Haqqani ...son of Pashtun warlord Jalaluddin Haqqani, still titular head of the Haqqani Network.... , the Taliban's powerful interior minister, gave a speech on February 11 in which he appeared to accuse Akhundzada of "monopolizing power" and "hurting the reputation" of the murderous Moslem group.
Another influential Taliban official, Defense Minister Mullah Mohammad Yaqoob, said in a February 15 speech in Kabul that the murderous Moslem group "should never be arrogant" and must "always respond to the legitimate demands of the nation."
Taliban front man Zabiullah Mujahid told RFE/RL's Radio Azadi on February 16 that "all members share the same thoughts, beliefs, and ideology," adding that Haqqani and Yaqoob were merely making suggestions.
Why It's Important: Haqqani and Yaqoob's public comments appear to have lifted the lid on the widening rifts within the Taliban, which has come under national and international condemnation for its severe restrictions on women's rights and human rights ...which are usually entirely different from personal liberty... abuses.
As the Taliban has attempted to transform from an insurgency into a functional government after seizing power in 2021, there have been mounting reports of infighting.
Akhundzada, who rarely travels outside his stronghold in the southern province of Kandahar, has consolidated power and empowered ultraconservative holy mans who share his turban views.
What's Next: It is unclear yet if growing internal and foreign criticism will force Akhundzada to moderate his policies.
Experts do not expect internal differences to lead to an open revolt. But the infighting suggests that a growing number of Taliban officials believe change is necessary.
THE WEEK'S BEST STORIES
A devastating humanitarian and economic crisis has forced some Afghans to turn to the booming methamphetamine industry to eke out a living and stave off starvation. Thousands of people are believed to be earning money by collecting ephedra, a wild herb that is used to make crystal meth. "For now, it is our only source of income," harvester Ahmad Wali told Radio Azadi. "We collect it from the mountains and sell it in the city."
After 30 years in business, Gul Rahman says he may have to close his Kabul butcher's shop. The economic collapse since the Taliban regained control in Afghanistan has seen demand for meat plummet. "I can say many people can't afford to buy meat once a month," Rahman told Radio Azadi in this video. "People have a lot of troubles. If it goes on like this, I guess I will leave this occupation because there's no business."
WHAT TO KEEP AN EYE ON
Taliban fighters stormed the offices of the private Tamadon TV station in Kabul on February 14, a witness told Radio Azadi on condition of anonymity.
The gunnies, who identified themselves as Taliban Interior Ministry personnel, seized three vehicles belonging to the TV station. It was unclear if any staff members were detained.
A front man for the Taliban later said that "our forces entered the television [station] by mistake." The Afghanistan Journalists Center, a local watchdog, accused the Taliban of "intimidation."
Broadcasting mainly religious content, Tamadon TV was established by Ayatollah Mohammad Asif Mohseni, a prominent Afghan Shi'ite holy man who died in 2019.
I thought it was important because they were going after a television station, not realizing it was Shiite.
Why It's Important: In the past, Afghanistan's Sunni Taliban rulers have suppressed the country's Shi'ite Hazara ...a grouping of Dari-speaking people of Sino-Tibetan descent inhabiting Afghanistan and Pakistain. They are predominantly Shia Moslems and not particularly warlike, which makes them favored targets... minority.
Since regaining power, the Taliban has tried to assuage Hazara fears of discrimination and persecution. But rights groups have documented the extrajudicial killings and forced evictions of Hazara by the Taliban in parts of the country.
The raid on Tamadon TV is also the latest attempt by the Taliban to suppress media freedom in Afghanistan. The murderous Moslems have waged a brutal crackdown on dissent that has targeted journalists, human rights defenders, and intellectuals.
The Afghanistan Journalists Center said it recorded 260 cases of press-freedom violations in 2022, including "detentions, threats, assaults, and restrictions on media outlets, journalists, and in particular women journalists."
#1
The Taliban’s internal divisions are becoming apparent. This is because the Taliban are students of the Koran not students of history. If they studied history like the Russian Revolution or other revolutions, they would know that internal discord in a startup totalitarian regime is eventually resolved by a process that produces a pile of dead bodies. Making speeches critical of anyone is accuarially detrimental unless you have the resources and a plan to off that person. We will likely see less discord and more obituaries as the process of power consolidation kicks off.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
02/18/2023 7:57 Comments ||
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Like the fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban, both the CIA and the US State Department missed the plots that led up to the current battle in Somaliland.
[WashingtonExaminer] It has been 18 months since the Taliban ...the Pashtun equivalent of men... rampaged across Afghanistan and seized Kabul.
While it is fair to blame both President Joe The Big Guy Biden
Continued on Page 49
#1
U.S. Ambassador Larry Andre Jr. is NOT in control of the US Embassy or events in Somaliland. As is the case in many regions, the Chief of Station (COS) is in control of the US Embassy and the locals know it. Andre is smart to stay the fok away. As in Libya, events have once again gone beyond diplomacy.
"Diplomats from other countries roam the capital Hargeisa without security." Yes, as long as they are not suspected of contact with US Embassy personnel. Intelligence sharing with other nations? Not so much.
Going near the Americans, very bad juju.
* Graphic is of the late John Christopher Stevens an American career diplomat who served as the U.S. Ambassador to Libya from May 22, 2012, until his assassination on September 11, 2012.
#5
Because it doesn't make sense to them to expect their clients to fail.
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
02/18/2023 9:20 Comments ||
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#6
The COS and his team live in an echo chamber. They believe their own intell and refuse to deal with outsiders.
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
02/18/2023 13:17 Comments ||
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#7
Here's an even better question:
Why does the CIA keep getting funded by Congress?
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
02/18/2023 13:56 Comments ||
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#8
The rot is deeper than most can even imagine! Hunter and the links to the Intel/DeepState in a long, insightful story of corruption and connections.
#9
/\ The rot is deeper than most can even imagine! Hunter and the links to the Intel/DeepState in a long, insightful story of corruption and connections.
Yes, "a long story" indeed. Washington is a Kabuki dance of greed, payoffs, and 'cover for action.'
[Foreign Affairs] Despite a series of blunders, miscalculations, and battlefield reversals that would have surely seen him thrown out of office in most normal countries, President Vladimir Putin is still at the pinnacle of power in Russia. He continues to define the contours of his country’s war against Ukraine. He is micromanaging the invasion even as generals beneath him appear to be in charge of the battlefield. (This deputizing is done to protect him from blowback if something goes badly wrong in the war.) Putin and those immediately around him directly work to mobilize Russians on the home front and manipulate public views of the invasion abroad. He has in some ways succeeded in this information warfare.
The war has revealed the full extent of Putin’s personalized political system. After what is now 23 years at the helm of the Russian state, there are no obvious checks on his power. Institutions beyond the Kremlin count for little. "I would never have imagined that I would miss the Politburo," said Rene Nyberg, the former Finnish ambassador to Moscow. "There is no political organization in Russia that has the power to hold the president and commander in chief accountable." Diplomats, policymakers, and analysts are stuck in a doom loop—an endless back-and-forth argument among themselves—to figure out what Putin wants and how the West can shape his behavior.
#2
The KGB never died. Viz, The "Mitrokhin Archive" a collection of handwritten notes, primary sources and official documents secretly made, smuggled & hid by the KGB archivist Vasili Mitrokhin during the thirty years in which he served as a KGB archivist in the foreign intelligence service and the First Chief Directorate. When he defected to the United Kingdom in 1992, he brought the archive with him, in six full trunks. His defection was not officially announced until 1999. ... In July 2014, the Churchill Archives Centre at Churchill College released Mitrokhin's edited Russian-language notes for public research. Original handwritten notes by Vasili Mitrokhin are still classified. [I wonder why? Rather like the Kennedy assassination.]
#5
Yet the rumors of Putin’s imminent downfall and terminal health issues will continue to be manufactured and marketed like Disney figurines in a gift shop. We spent a decade digesting the stories of Bin Laden’s need for constant dialysis only to have him die of lead poisoning.
Putin is here to stay. If he were to be replaced,it would likely be by a Slavic version of John Bolton.
I think we have had enough destruction; there ought to be a negotiated settlement. We can cease enriching the arms portion of our military industrial complex. It is time to progress to the next stage of the shakedown where our rebuilding contractors steal what remains our wealth. Cue Lindsey Graham.
Posted by: Super Hose ||
02/18/2023 8:17 Comments ||
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#6
Putin is here now. He was hear last year. He was here five years ago. He was here 20 years ago.
- Blinken will step down as Sec. of State
- He will be replaced by Burns (imho the source for Sy Hersh)
- Burns as new Sec. of State will fire Victoria Nuland (UnderSec. of State) she will be assassinated by an Ukrainian few months later.
- Ukrainian aid will be grossly dimished
- Talks will start between Burns and Patrushev.
You heard it here first.
Posted by: ACA JOE ||
02/18/2023 19:47 Comments ||
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#8
*Drugs*
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/18/2023 20:48 Comments ||
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#9
@#3-4 John "Maverick" McCain died, but his legacy continues.
I suppose the other half are illegals getting free care.
[JustTheNews] Medical bills and out-of-pocket costs were a concern for 65% of Californians, further demonstrating a gap between affordable health care and state subsidized care.
#1
Any honest media visit to the Emergency Rooms would shock anyone not inured to the disaster that is California emergency healthcare. Our last 2020 visit to the UCDavis hospital in Sacramento had us waiting nine hours, in the hallways full of non-English speaking fmily groupings, and placed next to a Sacramento County Deputy Sheriff with a prisoner handcuffed to a gurney. After nine hours we asked the nurse to cut off the wristband and she commented it was no problem since it was after 2:30am and thus records would reflect an overnight stay for billing. I kid you not.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
/\ I am growing increasingly certain both Epstein and Hunter Biden were linked to clandestine US Intelligence activities. 
...Former deputy to Taliban supremo Mullah Akhtar Mansour, now The Big Man Himself...
...son of Pashtun warlord Jalaluddin Haqqani, still titular head of the Haqqani Network....
U.S. Ambassador Larry Andre Jr. is NOT in control of the US Embassy or events in Somaliland. As is the case in many regions, the Chief of Station (COS) is in control of the US Embassy and the locals know it. Andre is smart to stay the fok away. As in Libya, events have once again gone beyond diplomacy.
/\ Hoover died, but his insidious work continues. 
Bill Casey died, but his legacy of secret budgets, White House and Congressional obfuscation and regime change continues. 
