Jeffrey Epstein

Jeffrey Edward Epstein (January 20, 1953 – August 10, 2019) was an American financier and convicted sex offender whose estimated $600 million fortune was derived largely from providing tax and estate planning services and asset management for a small number of billionaire clients, including Leon Black and Leslie Wexner, according to public reporting and court filings, though the full basis of his fortune has not been publicly documented.

Beginning without a college degree, Epstein entered finance at Bear Stearns in the 1970s, later founding his own firm catering to ultra-wealthy clients while cultivating ties to politicians, scientists, and celebrities.

Jeffrey Epstein's parents, Seymour and Pauline Epstein, with extended family and relatives in a group portrait Jeffrey Epstein was born on January 20, 1953, in Brooklyn, New York City, to Ashkenazi Jewish parents Seymour George Epstein and Pauline "Paula" Stolofsky Epstein, the surname Epstein originating as an Ashkenazi Jewish name derived from the German town of Eppstein.

Epstein's childhood was unremarkable and solidly middle-class. The family observed Jewish traditions, including his bar mitzvah. In the summer of 1967, at age 14, Epstein attended the National Music Camp at the Interlochen Center for the Arts in Michigan as a bassoon student. This was a high-school-age program, and archival photos from the camp confirm his participation in a cabin group that year. Epstein graduated from Lafayette High School in Brooklyn in 1969 at age 16, having skipped two grades during his public school education, reflecting his mathematical giftedness. There is no credible evidence from reliable sources that he had dyslexia or any learning disability.

U.S. Department of Justice emails from early 2026 show Epstein using "goyim" and "goy" (Yiddish/Hebrew for non-Jews). He used them in jokes about group differences. Examples include: In an October 23, 2009 email to cognitive psychologist Roger Schank discussing shorting shipping futures, Epstein wrote: “This is the way the jew make money.. and made a fortune in the past ten years, selling short the shipping futures, let the goyim deal in the real world.” Another example notes an event had "goyim in abundance – jpmorgan execs brilliant WASPs" in response to a query about a "100% Jew night" party guest list in a 2010 email to publicist Peggy Siegal. These reflect casual, in-group usage distinguishing or demeaning non-Jews in financial and social contexts.