Disgraced millionaire financier and accused child trafficker Jeffrey Epstein is dead, although the details surrounding his apparent suicide are still pretty fuzzy. The Metropolitan Correctional Facility in New York City was supposed to have been monitoring the inmate every half an hour, but reports suggest they failed to check on him for several hours. As a result, Epstein's victims won't have their day in court to hold him accountable.
In a new letter, Sen. Ben Sasse (R-NE) is urging the Department of Justice to rip up the plea deal agreed to between Epstein and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida.
“Too many of Epstein’s secrets have gone to the grave with him, and the Department must not allow his death to be one last sweetheart deal for his co-conspirators,” Sasse writes.
“The victims of Epstein’s international sex trafficking ring deserve justice,” he continues. “In order to bring Epstein’s co-conspirators to justice, the Department of Justice should rip up the non-prosecution, non-investigation agreement entered into by Epstein and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida in 2008.”
Federal prosecutors had entered into an agreement with the prisoner and offered him immunity and several of his potential co-conspirators as long as he agreed to plead guilty to state charges.
What happened here, Sasse said, was that wealth and connections "bought injustice." There is no other plausible explanation for such “pathetically soft terms for a serial child rapist at the heart of a massive international criminal enterprise," he adds.
Barr had some choice words for the MCC on Monday, accusing the facility of inadequate surveillance and "serious irregularities." He said the DOJ plans to investigate Epstein's death and federal prosecutors will still pursue justice for his victims.