Underage 'sex slave' ring a national security threat?

Could the conniving Epstein have sought future assurance against getting caught or jailed one day by filming the right people to help get him off the hook?

By AARON KLEIN
Girl sunbathes poolside [file] (photo credit: ING IMAGE/ASAP)
Girl sunbathes poolside [file]
(photo credit: ING IMAGE/ASAP)
TEL AVIV -- Until now, many of the news media articles documenting the lurid Jeffrey Epstein affair read like screaming tabloid fodder.  It's hard to fault the reporters. Such coverage is tempting when you have big-name politicians and celebrities pile in with a convicted sex offender and financier for the elite who is accused of maintaining a ring of underage “sex slaves” at his beck and call.  The allegation is that Epstein's slaves serviced not only him but also his high-flying colleagues - stunningly, allegedly including Britain’s Prince Andrew.
However, this is an not only an international sex scandal that may extend all the way to the Mideast.
Lost in the salacious headlines is the possibility politicians from around the world, including past and present heads of state, may have been photographed or videotaped in compromising positions with underage girls, and how such potential blackmail material could be used not only for corruption purposes but could signal national security threats to numerous countries.
Here are four glaring questions that warrant further investigation.  
1)    Are there any more present or former politicians involved?
As of this writing, Prince Andrew is the only currently serving political figure singled out for allegedly participating in Epstein’s underage activities.  In court filings, Jane Doe #3, identified as 31-year-old Virginia Roberts, says that when she was 17 years-of-age she was forced by Epstein to have repeated “sexual relations” with the Duke of York in London, New York and the US Virgin Islands.
In one of the encounters, the lawsuit depicts an orgy at Epstein’s private island involving other underage girls.  Official documents and news media reports describe the depraved activities that were said to have taken place routinely at Epstein’s various homes, especially within the corrupted confines of his perverted private island in the Virgin Islands.  Epstein’s long-time houseman, Alfredo Rodriguez, revealed in testimony that he had personally witnessed nude underage girls frolicking around the pool area of Epstein’s Caribbean compound and said he was aware during the time of his employment that the financier and his friends were engaging in relations with minors.
Roberts, one of scores of underage girls allegedly abused by Epstein, claimed in depositions that she had been sex-trafficked to “many other powerful men, including numerous prominent American politicians, powerful business executives, foreign presidents, a well-known prime minister, and other world leaders.”
Rodriguez reportedly kept a “black book” with a list of Epstein's high-level contacts, including among his personal, private contacts former President Bill Clinton, Mick Jagger, Donald Trump, Earl Spencer, Barbara Walters, Henry Kissinger, Olmert, the former Israeli leader Ehud Barak and at least three Kennedys.  Many of the A-listers were visitors to Epstein’s various residences and were flown on the flamboyant financier’s fleet of private jets.
Obviously, having an association with Epstein does not itself confirm any misbehavior.  A stay at his homes does not mean a guest disgraced himself among Epstein’s underage dalliances. However, it's legitimate to investigate further any of those ensnared in the Epstein dragnet, especially if the big names spent time on Epstein’s properties away from their spouses.   In context of this level of debasement, is there reason to suspect wrongdoing by any other politicians, particularly those currently serving?
2)    Are public figures compromised on video?
Along with the manner in which Epstein and his co-conspirators may have damaged the lives of countless girls, one of the most troubling aspects of the Epstein case centers on accusations that the teenagers were used to blackmail businessmen and political figures.  As the UK’s Mirror newspaper reported, original court documents filed in 2007 against Epstein “reveal that he recorded the sordid orgies he threw for VIPs at his luxury homes using cameras hidden in the walls of guest bedrooms.”   
The X-rated, Big Brother-like secret recordings most likely were not produced merely for Epstein’s twisted private enjoyment.  Roberts claimed that Epstein forced her to detail her alleged sexual encounters with Andrew so the financier could use the information to “blackmail” the royal. Clearly, any videos could also have been used as documentary evidence to further pressure political figures caught on camera with underage females. The question needs to be asked which former, and if any current, politicians have been compromised by such videos? Which political favors, if any, were granted in exchange for the withholding of any such material?
3)    Is there a national security threat?
Epstein's company, J. Epstein & Co, was said to have managed the individual and family fortunes of clients who invested $1 billion or more each. These are some of the richest individuals in the world. While Epstein’s client list has not been made public, we can assume the one-percenter roster included individuals with close ties to foreign governments, perhaps some royal families from the Persian Gulf.  Did Epstein at any time share his treasure trove of extortion materials with any of these persons? Did anyone in Epstein's employ obtain and sell any of these videos to any foreign country or entity? 
The Palm Beach pervert’s servant, Rodriguez, clearly was not an upstanding citizen. Beyond colluding in illegal activities, he reportedly stole Epstein’s “black book” and tried to sell it to defense lawyers for $50,000. Eventually, Rodriguez was jailed for 18 months for failing to inform prosecutors he possessed the contact book and, later, for refusing to forfeit the material to the court.  Was Rodriguez, who passed away from mesothelioma last week, in possession of videos or photos of politicians?
Even if we presume Epstein or those close to him did not themselves transfer any material to third parties, the potential existence of underage sex videos of politicians, including world leaders, constitutes a clear national security threat to each country involved. What nation’s intelligence agencies wouldn't salivate at the prospect of obtaining videos of politicians romping with schoolgirls? What about a domestic political party obtaining some of these materials and using them to compromise politicians, judges, or anyone else caught in Epstein’s dragnet of debauchery?
Another largely ignored element: Six-year-old court documents detail the Palm Beach County police confiscating hidden cameras from Epstein’s Florida mansion. “Some of the photographs in the defendant’s possession were taken with hidden cameras set up in [Epstein’s] home in Palm Beach,” states one court filing. “On the day of his arrest, police found two hidden cameras and photographs of underage girls on a computer in the defendant’s home … [He] may have taken lewd photographs of Jane Doe 102 with his hidden cameras and transported [them] to his other residences and elsewhere.”
Is it possible that a corrupt police employee with access to videos potentially featuring the world’s elite with underage girls sold these images to an outside party? There's no end to the fantastic scenarios we can dream up.
4)    Did Epstein bribe/blackmail Florida politicians, judges?
Another glaring red flag here is Epstein’s sentencing and subsequent early release from prison. The prosecution, which says it identified at least 40 young women who claimed to have been procured by Epstein while  they were underage, seemingly had a pretty tight case. It possessed damning documentary proof of Epstein’s alleged crimes. Yet the financier was let off easy. A federal inquiry was halted when Epstein negotiated a deal with prosecutors where he agreed to  plead guilty to one relatively minor state charge – having soliciting paid sex with a minor. Epstein served only 13 months of an 18-month sentence.  Some victims said they were not even notified before the government accepted the plea deal.
Newspapers report that Epstein settled out of court with more than a dozen victims, and there are tales that some victims were intimidated against testifying. Also, some have attributed Epstein’s light sentence to the legal acrobatics thrown at the court by his highly experienced, top-tier attorneys.
However, apparently overlooked is the possibility that Epstein possessed blackmail material on Florida politicians or judges. After all, a portion of the alleged activities took place in his Palm Beach compound. Could the conniving Epstein have sought future assurance against getting caught or jailed one day by filming the right people to help get him off the hook? Are any such characters still being compromised?
Aaron Klein is a radio host, reporter and New York Times bestselling author. He hosts the popular weekend talk show “Aaron Klein Investigative Radio” on New York’s AM 970 The Answer (http://am970theanswer.com/Shows/L3567) and serves as senior reporter and Jerusalem bureau chief for WND.com. Klein is the author of seven books. His most recent book is entitled, “The REAL Benghazi Story.”