JPMorgan sues former executive over ties to Jeffrey Epstein

MISE À DAY

The American bank JPMorgan Chase, prosecuted for its links with the deceased financier accused of sex crimes against minors Jeffrey Epstein, has itself filed a complaint against one of its former executives, Jes Staley, believing that he bears all the responsibilities in this affair.

A woman, whose identity has not been revealed, and the government of the United States Virgin Islands attacked the establishment at the end of 2022, accusing it of having facilitated the actions of Jeffrey Epstein by allowing him to finance his activities.

The plaintiffs claim JPMorgan knew Jeffrey Epstein was breaking the law. They particularly accuse Jes Staley, 66, of having protected him and having ensured that he could pay his victims.

In court documents filed on Wednesday in a New York court, JPMorgan denies these accusations, the bank having asked that the complaints against him be dismissed.

But if the bank were to be ordered to pay compensation, Jes Staley would have to be responsible, says the establishment.

JPMorgan also accuses Jes Staley, an employee between 1979 and 2013, of having breached his fiduciary duties, in particular by not reporting certain facts that could damage “his finances or his reputation”.

“To the extent that Staley was aware of, participated in, or witnessed Epstein's sexual abuse, and did not report it to JPMorgan, actively cover it up, or did misrepresentations to JPMorgan, Staley, and not JPMorgan, is responsible for the harm that Epstein may have caused” to the plaintiff, is it written in the complaint.

After his departure from JPMorgan, Jes Staley worked for investment firm Blue Mountain Capital Management before being named head of British bank Barclays in 2015.

Under investigation for links to Jeffrey Epstein, Jes Staley left his post at the end of 2021. A lawyer for Jes Staley did not immediately respond to a request from AFP on Thursday.

Jeffrey Epstein was sentenced in 2008 to a modified sentence 13 months in prison for leading young girls into prostitution in Florida, according to a secret agreement reached with a prosecutor allowing him to t to escape federal prosecution.

Indicted and arrested in 2019 for having organized, for several years, a network made up of dozens of young girls under his control and with whom he had sex in his numerous properties, he committed suicide in prison a few weeks later, before being judged.