Slavery in a Modern World: The Jeffrey Epstein Victims

In honor and to raise awareness of International Abolition of Slavery Day, today’s post is focused on just that – by highlighting one of the most well-known and horrific acts of modern slavery of our time: the Jeffrey Epstein victims. 

But first, some unsettling facts about modern slavery that are present today – in the 21st century –  150 years after slavery was abolished: 

• Over 50 million people are trapped in modern slavery 

• Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking criminals and criminal organizations profit over $150 billion each year in money that flows through our banks 

• Only 0.2% of victims are rescued, and only 0.8% of criminals are prosecuted annually 

Modern Slavery and human trafficking are one of the most tragic and covert crimes against humanity of our time – and they are on the rise, according to the United Nations, increasing dramatically over just the past five years. The International Labor Organization further reveals that, “10 million more people were in modern slavery in 2021 compared to 2016 global estimates, bringing the total to 50 million worldwide. Women and children remain disproportionately vulnerable.” 

And now, just last week some interesting and highly relevant news broke, describing how two anonymous Epstein’s victims of sexual abuse very recently filed lawsuits against Deutsche Bank and JPMorgan Chase, accusing these global banks of ignoring “red flags” about their client and benefiting from enabling the late financier’s alleged sex-trafficking operations. 

“According to claims in the lawsuit filed against JP Morgan Chase, one woman, described as a former ballet dancer, was abused by Epstein and his associates between 2006 and 2013. 

It alleges that JP Morgan knew that its accounts were being used for trafficking because of the identity of the individuals withdrawing large sums of cash, as well as “Epstein’s well-documented criminal history”. 

“In a separate lawsuit against Deutsche Bank, another woman claims she was trafficked for sex by Epstein for 15 years, starting in 2003 when she first moved to New York.”

This is a prime example of modern slavery and reveals that sex trafficking happens through our banks – and banks not being held accountable.  We at RedCompass Labs take a stand against human trafficking and modern slavery and, with our award-winning RedFlag Accelerator, have the toolkits available to enable banks to detect the signs of human trafficking (“red flags”) in their financial data, producing credible leads to pass on to law enforcement. 

Today, on International Abolition of Slavery Day, and every day, we recognize that human trafficking is all around us.  And we have the next-level knowledge and ability to disrupt it. It’s in the data – and we know how to find it.   

Follow the money – Find the criminals.