Allegations of Concealed Plea Deal in Jeffrey Epstein Case Involving DOJ Official Acosta and Prosecutor Villafafia

“T will include all our standard language regarding resolving all criminal liability and I will mention co-conspirators, but I would prefer not to highlight for the judge all of the other crimes and all the other persons we could charge,” Villafafia wrote. At Epstein’s sentencing, assistant Palm Beach prosecutor Lanna Belohlavek was questioned by the judge about whether all of Epstein’s victims were told about the deal, as required by law. “Are there more than one victim?” Circuit Court Judge Deborah Dale Pucillo asked Belohlavek at the June 30, 2008 sentencing. “There’s several,” Belohlavek replied. “Are all the victims in both these cases in agreement with the terms of the plea?” the judge asked. “Yes,” Belohlavek said. Coincidentally, the lawyer representing one of the victims was in the courtroom that day. He told the Herald that neither he, nor his client, was told about the agreement. Acosta has not responded to the Herald’s repeated requests for comment. A spokesman at the Labor Department told the Washington Post last month: “The office’s decisions were approved by departmental leadership and followed departmental procedures.” In the past, Acosta has said that he believed the deal was the best chance prosecutors had of ensuring that Epstein spent some time behind bars and was required to register as a sex offender. Epstein served 13 months in the Palm Beach County jail — but he was allowed to leave for up to 12 hours a day as part of a work release program not normally offered to convicted sex offenders. Epstein’s victims, now in their late 20s and 30s, are fighting to have his deal overturned and Epstein sent to prison. Bradley Edwards, who represents several of Epstein’s victims, defended Villafana, saying he believed that she was directed to settle the case and not inform Epstein’s victims about the deal. “In my conversations with her, I came to believe that she was in a difficult position. She never came out and said this, but I suspected that someone above her directed her to do what she did,” Edwards said. DARREN K. INDYKE 5300 W. Atlantic Avenue, Suite 602 Delray Beach, Florida 33484 Telephone: Telecopier: Mobile: email: HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_021756