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- President Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein, the 66-year-old hedge fund manager charged this week with sex trafficking and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, were the only other participants in a party that consisted of roughly two dozen women at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, according to a New York Times report.
- The women were reportedly flown in for a "calendar girl" competition that was requested by Trump, The Times said.
- "I said, ‘Donald, this is supposed to be a party with VIPs. You’re telling me it’s you and Epstein,’" a former Trump associate recalled having asked.
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President Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein, the 66-year-old hedge fund manager charged this week with sex trafficking and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking, were the only other attendees to a party that consisted of roughly two dozen women at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, according to a New York Times report.
In 1992, the women were reportedly flown in for a "calendar girl" competition that was requested by Trump, The Times said.
"At the very first party, I said, ‘Who’s coming tonight? I have 28 girls coming,’" former Trump associate George Houraney reportedly said. "It was him and Epstein."
"I said, ‘Donald, this is supposed to be a party with VIPs. You’re telling me it’s you and Epstein," he recalled saying.
Houraney claimed to have warned Trump about Epstein’s behavior and said the real estate tycoon did not heed his notice. Houraney, a businessman, reportedly said Trump "didn’t care" about how he had to ban Epstein from his events.
"Look, Donald, I know Jeff really well, I can’t have him going after younger girls," Houraney recalled of his conversation to The Times. "He said, ‘Look I’m putting my name on this. I wouldn’t put my name on it and have a scandal.’"
Houraney had a falling out with Trump after his girlfriend accused him of making unwanted sexual advances in the early 1990s.
Trump previously said he knew Epstein for 15 years and suggested he was well-acquainted with the financier.
"He’s a lot of fun to be with," Trump said to New York Magazine in 2002. "It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side. No doubt about it — Jeffrey enjoys his social life."
Trump has since distanced himself from Epstein, who faces sex-trafficking charges from the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, where he faces a maximum sentence of 45 years in prison. The charging document alleges Epstein "sexually exploited and abused dozens of minor girls at his homes in Manhattan, New York, and Palm Beach, Florida, among other locations."
On Monday, Epstein appeared in court and pleaded not guilty.
White House counselor Kellyanne Conway said Trump has not had contact with Epstein "in years and years and years."
"And he, like everyone else, sees these charges, the description of these charges against Epstein, as completely unconscionable and obviously criminal," Conway added. "Disgusting, really."
Trump on Tuesday said Epstein was unavoidable as a prominent figure in the Palm Beach community: "I was not a fan of his, that I can tell you."
See Also:
- Trump’s labor secretary who previously cut a plea deal with Jeffrey Epstein says his alleged crimes ‘are horrific’ amid calls for him to resign
- Bill Clinton said he ‘knows nothing’ about charges against Jeffrey Epstein
- A new poll shows Trump has a major shot at being reelected in 2020
SEE ALSO: Jeffrey Epstein reportedly had a mural of him in a prison scene at his New York mansion
Source: Business Insider – dchoi@businessinsider.com (David Choi)