#sex-trafficking
4 entries with this tag
Called Before the Senate Judiciary Committee, FBI Director Kash Patel Defended Dropping Bestiality as an Automatic Disqualifier for Agents by Claiming It Was Meant to Protect Trafficking Victims "Forced" Into Such Acts — an Explanation That Drew Bipartisan Disbelief, Turned an FBI Oversight Hearing Into an Extended Exchange About Bestiality, and That a Republican Senator Couldn't Follow: "Why Would You Even Get Into Bestiality?"
At a Senate Judiciary Committee oversight hearing on September 15, 2026, FBI Director Kash Patel was pressed on the bureau's spring guidance that removed bestiality and prostitution as automatic disqualifiers for job applicants — a change this archive documented as part of a broader loosening of FBI hiring standards amid a self-inflicted staffing crisis. Patel's defense was that the change existed to protect victims: "We did not want to punish victims of bestiality, victims who were trafficked," he said, arguing the FBI should not automatically bar someone from consideration "if you are a victim of these awful heinous acts," and claiming some former trafficking victims had been disqualified because they were forced into bestiality. The explanation satisfied almost no one. Senators of both parties zeroed in on the strange framing of "victims of bestiality," and Republican Sen. John Kennedy asked the obvious question — why the FBI would "even get into bestiality" at all. Patel conceded that skepticism had been his own initial reaction when subordinates proposed the policy. There is a narrow, legitimate point buried in his answer: a person coerced by traffickers into a sexual act is a victim, not a criminal, and should not be treated as one. But that narrow point does not explain a policy that broadly removed bestiality, prostitution, and theft as automatic disqualifiers for everyone "depending on circumstances." A sympathetic-sounding rationale was retrofitted onto a recruitment-driven rollback of the FBI's integrity standards — and defended so clumsily that it turned a hearing about the nation's premier law-enforcement agency into a spectacle about bestiality.
Leon Black Testifies He Paid Epstein $158 Million, Refuses to Answer NDA Questions, Gets Subpoenaed Mid-Interview — Judge Finds Trump's Acting AG "Conceded" He's Violating Epstein Files Law, Orders Unredaction of Trump Sexual Assault Allegation and "Torture Video" Emails
Billionaire Leon Black, co-founder of Apollo Global Management, testified before the House Oversight Committee and admitted paying Jeffrey Epstein $158 million — 30 to 60 times more than he paid other advisors for similar work. He claimed he "knew Jekyll, didn't know Hyde," said Epstein told him the fees were tax-deductible "60-cent dollars" (they weren't), and acknowledged continuing the relationship five years after Epstein's 2008 guilty plea to sex crimes involving a minor. When pressed on nondisclosure agreements — including one involving a six-year affair with a Russian model where Epstein advised Black on silencing her — Black refused to answer and was described by Democrats as having "stormed out." Chairman Comer issued two subpoenas on the spot: one for Black's NDAs, another for a videotaped deposition under oath on July 16. "Please call Leon Black" appears over 300 times in Epstein's files. Black's name appears 8,000+ times. He paid $62.5 million to the U.S. Virgin Islands to avoid prosecution and explicitly acknowledged his money funded Epstein's sex trafficking operation. Three women have accused him of rape on Epstein properties — one was 16 with a rare form of Down syndrome. Meanwhile, federal judge Emmet Sullivan found that acting AG Todd Blanche "has conceded that he is in violation" of the Epstein Files Transparency Act and ordered the DOJ to unredact files by July 2 — including an FBI interview with a woman who alleged Trump sexually assaulted her as a teenager after Epstein introduced them (the FBI found her credible and interviewed her four times), and emails about a "torture video" involving sexual activity with minors. A New York Times report revealed VP Vance held Situation Room meetings to coordinate the White House's Epstein cover-up strategy, appearing "panicked" about the MAGA base's reaction. The Situation Room — designed for national security emergencies — became the nerve center for managing the Epstein crisis all summer, with Trump himself refusing to attend because he "snapped at anyone who mentioned it."
Epstein's Assistant of 18 Years Testifies She Arranged Regular Calls Between Trump and Epstein — Claims She "Never Saw Anything Improper"
Lesley Groff, Jeffrey Epstein's executive assistant for 18 years, testified behind closed doors before the House Oversight Committee. She told lawmakers she arranged phone calls between Trump and Epstein "about once a quarter" before their alleged falling out. She claimed she "never saw anything improper" despite scheduling massages with young women and girls — the very mechanism Epstein used to recruit victims. Her name appears 164,000 times in DOJ records. She was listed as a potential co-conspirator in the 2008 non-prosecution deal. One survivor said Groff called her so often she dropped out of high school. Rep. Lynch called her denials "highly inconsistent." Rep. Ansari said the transcript is full of "I don't recall, I don't know." The committee referred two names to DOJ. Bill Gates testifies Wednesday. The House chaplain attended the interview for unexplained "pastoral care."
Trump's 15-Year Friendship with Jeffrey Epstein: "He Likes Them on the Younger Side"
Trump maintained a 15-year friendship with Epstein, flew on his plane 7+ times, hosted a Mar-a-Lago party where only Trump and Epstein were the male guests with 28 women, and praised him publicly — noting Epstein likes women "on the younger side."