Investigations

How many investigators worked on the Epstein case?

The Original Investigation Team

The Palm Beach Police Department assigned detectives primarily Joe Reiter to the original investigation. When the case was referred to federal level, FBI agents from the Miami field office became involved.

The 2008 Federal Team

The Southern District of Florida prosecution was handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys including A. Marie Villafaña (the lead SDFL prosecutor). The team was appropriate for a significant criminal case but was substantially outmatched by Epstein’s defense team.

The 2019 SDNY Team

The 2019 SDNY prosecution involved a dedicated team including Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alison Moe and others, with FBI agents from the New York field office and Homeland Security Investigations support.

The Scale

The investigations were resource-intensive but not unusually large by federal trafficking standards. Critics have argued the original SDFL investigation was under-resourced relative to the Epstein defense team’s resources.

The Maxwell Investigation Team

The Maxwell prosecution involved a parallel team, some of whom had worked on the 2019 Epstein case and retained expertise from that investigation. The overlap of personnel between the Epstein 2019 and Maxwell 2021 investigations aided the prosecution.

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