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Jeffrey Epstein’s 2nd ‘black book’ of contacts heads to secret auction

A second "black book" belonging to disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein is set to hit the auction block, revealing the names of 221 previously undisclosed people. Alexander Historical Auctions / Florida Department of Law Enforcement via AP

A second “black book” belonging to disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein is set to hit the auction block, revealing the names of 221 previously undisclosed people.

The auctioneers, Alexander Historical Auctions, have announced there are previously unknown contacts among the book’s 400 entries — but it’s important to note that the book up for auction is not the same as the infamous 2004 book currently in the hands of the FBI.

According to the Daily Beast, which first broke the story, the second black book is believed to be from 1997 and was reportedly found on Fifth Avenue in New York City’s East Village by a female musician in the 1990s.

Financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s book of contacts, including names, addresses, and telephone numbers, is being offered for sale by auctioneers Alexander Historical Auctions. Alexander Historical Auctions

She put the book in storage, but it took until 2020 for her to realize it might have links to Epstein.

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It will go up for sale May 15 and include a forensic examiner’s report verifying its authenticity. Bidders are being assured that their identities will be kept secret.

“There are no comparables for the sale of this kind of relic. But, based on my experience, if I’m pressed to offer a price I would think it would be US$100,000 to $200,000, and up,” Bill Panagopulos, owner of the auction house, told Daily Beast.

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“This criminal relic undoubtedly still has many stories to tell for those who want to do the digging,” he continued in an interview with The Sunday Times.

“Jeffrey Epstein was the epitome of evil and this book should be forever kept as evidence of his awful crimes.”

Among the famous names reportedly in the book are former U.S. president Donald Trump, billionaire New York businessman John Catsimatidis, and Suzanne Ircha, co-owner of the New York Jets.

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“Other notables within include current presidential candidate Robert Kennedy, Jr., attorney Alan Dershowitz, Frederic Fekkai, Christy Hefner, Sen. Edward Kennedy, and many dozens of other giants in the fields of finance, manufacturing, real estate, politics, film, television, law, fashion design, and so on,” writes the auction house in a press release, adding that 94 of the names bear black, hand-applied checkmarks, and five have been highlighted in yellow.

Detail of a page from financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein's book of contacts including names, addresses, and telephone numbers.
Detail of a page from financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s book of contacts including names, addresses, and telephone numbers. Alexander Historical Auctions

“The auction house stresses that the fact that an individual’s name appears within the book in no way implies any connection with Epstein’s criminal activities, nor does it imply any relationship with Epstein whatsoever.”

The book was the subject of an in-depth investigation by Business Insider in 2021. The publication, however, found no connections between people listed in the black book and Epstein’s crimes.

Epstein was found dead in a New York jail cell of an apparent suicide in 2019 while awaiting trial for sex trafficking charges.

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Last December, more than 1,000 pages of bombshell court documents were ordered unsealed by New York District Court Judge Loretta Preska, stemming from a 2015 defamation case against Ghislaine Maxwell, a close associate and former girlfriend of Epstein.

The documents implicated notable people, like former president Bill Clinton, Prince Andrew, Alan Dershowitz, former New Mexico governor Bill Richardson and French fashion model scout Jean Luc Brunel.

It was during Maxwell’s criminal trial two years ago that Epstein’s victims, some of whom aspired to be models or artists, described how he dropped the names of his famous and influential friends to suggest that he was the victims’ ticket to reaching their dreams. Maxwell was convicted of sex-trafficking charges and is serving a 20-year prison sentence.

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