Redacted documents are seen after the US Justice Department began releasing the long-awaited records from the investigation into the politically explosive case of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. As journalists, researchers and content creators continue to examine newly released US court documents linked to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, questions have emerged regarding the ‘who, why and when’ of the documents. We look into why South Africa appears in some of the files and how frequently the country is referenced compared to others.
South Africa’s footprint in the files appears to be limited when compared with other countries. Ireland, for example, appears more than 1,600 times in one analysed tranche of documents. This is largely due to legal, corporate and correspondence records.
The United States and United Kingdom also appear many times by volume, and this reflects Epstein’s residence, legal proceedings and primary social networks. South Africa appears only sporadically, with no evidence so far of sustained correspondence or repeated operational activity linked to the country. Reporting based on document excerpts shows that South Africa appears in the Epstein files for three primary, non-overlapping reasons.
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It is worth noting that none of these constitutes allegations of criminal activity in South Africa itself. One set of emails contained in the released files refers to travel to South Africa, including Cape Town, in the context of international model scouting. The exchanges form part of broader communications around modelling agencies and talent placement, which appear frequently in Epstein-related records due to his long-documented involvement in elite social and modelling circles.
These references describe intended or past travel, not confirmed activities, and do not allege illegal conduct in South Africa. A social event involving former President Jacob Zuma
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