WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.080 --> 00:00:02.919 What's up, everyone, and welcome to another episode of the 2 00:00:02.960 --> 00:00:07.719 Epstein Chronicles. When it comes to Jeffrey Epstein, nobody was 3 00:00:07.719 --> 00:00:11.919 closer to him as far as assistants go than Leslie Groff. 4 00:00:13.320 --> 00:00:17.359 And she was somebody that Jeffrey Epstein said was indispensable 5 00:00:17.399 --> 00:00:22.120 to him. He even called her his brain. Now, for 6 00:00:22.199 --> 00:00:25.079 her part, Leslie Groff says she had no idea what 7 00:00:25.160 --> 00:00:28.239 Jeffrey Epstein was up to, and that she was only 8 00:00:28.239 --> 00:00:33.039 somebody that was involved in logistics, answering the phone set 9 00:00:33.079 --> 00:00:37.600 in the schedule, things like that. And look, she has 10 00:00:37.679 --> 00:00:42.119 not been accused of any kind of abuse. Leslie Groff 11 00:00:42.159 --> 00:00:45.840 has not been accused of any of that. But does 12 00:00:45.880 --> 00:00:48.359 that mean she had nothing to do with what Epstein 13 00:00:48.399 --> 00:00:51.799 was up to? Does that mean she's innocent? Not in 14 00:00:51.799 --> 00:00:55.560 my opinion. Now, remember I look at this case through 15 00:00:55.719 --> 00:00:58.920 Rico Lenz. I'm not looking at it as one person 16 00:00:58.960 --> 00:01:03.240 doing this or one that It's all connected. So if 17 00:01:03.240 --> 00:01:07.680 you're part of the criminal enterprise, you're liable for every 18 00:01:07.719 --> 00:01:11.560 single crime that the enterprise commits, even if you're somebody 19 00:01:11.640 --> 00:01:15.840 that's just involved in logistics. And in my opinion, the 20 00:01:15.879 --> 00:01:18.920 whole lot of these people from the pilots on down 21 00:01:19.359 --> 00:01:22.959 were part of a criminal enterprise. So today we have 22 00:01:23.000 --> 00:01:26.439 an article from The Guardian which is pretty long, so 23 00:01:26.560 --> 00:01:29.079 we're going to eat it up in a couple of pieces, 24 00:01:29.519 --> 00:01:33.319 but it digs deep into leslie Groff and her relationship 25 00:01:33.519 --> 00:01:37.359 with Jeffrey Epstein. So with that said, let's just dive 26 00:01:37.439 --> 00:01:40.840 right in. This article was published by The Guardian and 27 00:01:40.920 --> 00:01:44.480 the headline seriously the best boss Ever Inside the world 28 00:01:44.719 --> 00:01:49.120 of Jeffrey Epstein's assistant. This article was authored by Sophie Elmhurst. 29 00:01:49.719 --> 00:01:53.560 Leslie Groff, longtime executive assistant to Jeffrey Epstein, has always 30 00:01:53.560 --> 00:01:58.760 claimed that she knew nothing of his crimes. Simplicity requires knowledge. 31 00:01:59.200 --> 00:02:01.680 To be legally implicit in a crime, you have to 32 00:02:01.719 --> 00:02:04.439 know you're helping to commit it. To be morally complicit, 33 00:02:04.599 --> 00:02:06.719 the bar is lower. You don't even have to play 34 00:02:06.760 --> 00:02:09.639 an active part. To have knowledge of the crime and 35 00:02:09.759 --> 00:02:13.039 do nothing is enough. But how do we know what 36 00:02:13.199 --> 00:02:16.759 someone knows? And you see right away, miss Elmhurst is 37 00:02:16.800 --> 00:02:19.199 not looking at it through the right lens. This should 38 00:02:19.240 --> 00:02:22.000 be a Rico lens. And that's because all these crimes 39 00:02:22.039 --> 00:02:25.319 were committed at the behest of Jeffrey Epstein. He was 40 00:02:25.319 --> 00:02:28.199 the head of the organization. No different than Al Chopo, 41 00:02:28.520 --> 00:02:34.680 no different than John Gotti, same shit, different crimes. I 42 00:02:34.719 --> 00:02:36.719 think of all the times I've closed my eyes or 43 00:02:36.759 --> 00:02:40.080 shut down a thought, or turned away from something wrong, 44 00:02:40.360 --> 00:02:44.120 large or small, a planet level ecological harm, or a 45 00:02:44.120 --> 00:02:47.960 subfiver theft in the supermarket right in front of me. Surely, 46 00:02:48.000 --> 00:02:51.159 I say to myself, someone else will do something. It's 47 00:02:51.159 --> 00:02:54.919 not my fault or my responsibility. I'm too inconsequential to 48 00:02:54.960 --> 00:02:58.199 make a difference here. Somewhere in the course of those thoughts, 49 00:02:58.919 --> 00:03:01.120 I decide not to let my knowledge of what I've 50 00:03:01.159 --> 00:03:04.280 seen or heard or inferred take up residence in my mind. 51 00:03:04.879 --> 00:03:07.360 In this way, over time, I found that it's much 52 00:03:07.360 --> 00:03:09.680 easier to live with what I know if I do 53 00:03:09.759 --> 00:03:14.120 not admit what I know, even to myself. Kind of 54 00:03:14.120 --> 00:03:17.159 a weird analogy. You know, you're talking about people that 55 00:03:17.240 --> 00:03:21.199 are stealing things from a store, a corporation and you're 56 00:03:21.240 --> 00:03:24.039 not getting involved, and comparing that to what was going 57 00:03:24.039 --> 00:03:29.639 on with Leslie Groff, that seems a bit weird. Leslie 58 00:03:29.639 --> 00:03:32.560 Groff never planned to be an assistant. After college at 59 00:03:32.560 --> 00:03:35.080 the University of Texas and Dallas, she moved to New 60 00:03:35.120 --> 00:03:38.199 Jersey with her first husband, worked for an office supply 61 00:03:38.280 --> 00:03:42.319 company for nine years. Divorced, worked as a salesperson at 62 00:03:42.319 --> 00:03:45.400 the department store in Nordstrom met her second husband at 63 00:03:45.439 --> 00:03:48.560 a triathlon and then decided she wanted to try to 64 00:03:48.599 --> 00:03:52.199 find work as an events planner on Wall Street. In 65 00:03:52.199 --> 00:03:55.199 two thousand and one, a headhunter found a resume on Monster, 66 00:03:55.599 --> 00:03:58.599 a job's listing site, and set up Groff, then in 67 00:03:58.639 --> 00:04:01.560 her mid thirties, with an interview to be an assistant 68 00:04:01.800 --> 00:04:05.479 to a wealthy financier. And by two thousand and one 69 00:04:05.759 --> 00:04:11.280 Epstein was already abusing people. Remember this man was already prolific. 70 00:04:13.039 --> 00:04:16.000 For the interview, Groff went to Epstein's house on the 71 00:04:16.519 --> 00:04:19.680 fourth floor of four point fifty seven Madison Avenue, part 72 00:04:19.720 --> 00:04:23.279 of the Villard Houses, a set of elegant nineteenth century 73 00:04:23.319 --> 00:04:27.560 brownstone residences built around the courtyard, also home to a 74 00:04:27.600 --> 00:04:32.000 luxury hotel. These people belong in the Gilded Age, not 75 00:04:32.120 --> 00:04:38.480 amongst us a bunch of weirdos. She met with Glenn 76 00:04:38.519 --> 00:04:41.800 Maxwell and Epstein, whose phone kept ringing during the interview. 77 00:04:42.000 --> 00:04:44.720 He would talk briefly, then hang up, and Graff came 78 00:04:44.720 --> 00:04:49.040 away with the impression of a vibrant, hectic workplace. And look, 79 00:04:49.079 --> 00:04:51.759 I'm sure the first interview she didn't know what Epstein was. 80 00:04:52.480 --> 00:04:55.120 But she was with Epstein for all those years, heard 81 00:04:55.160 --> 00:04:58.160 all the stories, saw all those girls coming in and out, 82 00:04:58.800 --> 00:05:01.319 had no idea. Okay, let's give her the benefit of 83 00:05:01.319 --> 00:05:04.439 the doubt. How does that explain all of the logistics 84 00:05:04.519 --> 00:05:06.240 that she set up though, for all the girls that 85 00:05:06.279 --> 00:05:08.680 were traffic I mean, if she was booking rooms, if 86 00:05:08.680 --> 00:05:12.040 she was setting up flights, doing any of that. Congratulations, 87 00:05:12.040 --> 00:05:16.000 you're a part of the investigation and you're culpable. Once 88 00:05:16.000 --> 00:05:18.279 she got the job, Groff was given her own office 89 00:05:18.319 --> 00:05:22.439 and worked alongside Epstein's team of assistants, lawyers, and a trader, 90 00:05:22.600 --> 00:05:26.399 who together managed his money and his life. Some years later, 91 00:05:26.600 --> 00:05:29.040 she moved to work from his home, a seven story 92 00:05:29.079 --> 00:05:32.600 townhouse on E seventy first Street near Fifth Avenue, where 93 00:05:32.600 --> 00:05:35.040 a life sized sculpture of a woman in a white 94 00:05:35.040 --> 00:05:39.279 wedding dress clutching a rope hung in the central hallway. Ah, 95 00:05:39.480 --> 00:05:43.680 nothing weird there, normal stuff, right, just normal rich people shit. 96 00:05:44.720 --> 00:05:47.839 Groff was in charge of Epstein's calendar, making his appointments 97 00:05:47.959 --> 00:05:50.639 and setting up his calls. When she started the job, 98 00:05:50.920 --> 00:05:53.920 Maxwell told her that Epstein had a massage every day. 99 00:05:54.519 --> 00:05:56.879 Epstein would call Groff in the morning or to her 100 00:05:56.879 --> 00:05:58.759 to call X and see if she can do a 101 00:05:58.759 --> 00:06:01.759 massage at four, and then continue to call her every 102 00:06:01.759 --> 00:06:05.319 fifteen minutes until it was fixed. If Groff was unable 103 00:06:05.319 --> 00:06:07.959 to get X, he'd tell her to call why. In 104 00:06:08.040 --> 00:06:11.399 response to the questions about these appointments, her lawyer Michael 105 00:06:11.439 --> 00:06:15.279 Backner wrote, during her employment, Leslie never witnessed or was 106 00:06:15.319 --> 00:06:19.399 told of anything illegal related to those massages. Maybe the 107 00:06:19.439 --> 00:06:22.439 next mob guy who gets Nell could say the same thing. Yo. 108 00:06:22.560 --> 00:06:25.079 I had no idea. I was just making phone calls 109 00:06:25.120 --> 00:06:30.800 and driving the car. Groff worked for Epstein for eighteen years, 110 00:06:30.920 --> 00:06:33.480 from two thousand and one until his arrest in July 111 00:06:33.519 --> 00:06:37.000 of twenty nineteen. But she had no idea, huh after 112 00:06:37.000 --> 00:06:40.480 the first arrest, after all the allegations, after what everybody 113 00:06:40.519 --> 00:06:43.839 was saying after Virginia came out, Leslie Groff was none 114 00:06:43.879 --> 00:06:46.800 the wiser, had no idea what Epstein was. If you 115 00:06:46.800 --> 00:06:49.759 want to believe that, you go right ahead, me. I 116 00:06:49.759 --> 00:06:55.319 don't believe that for a second. Since Epstein's death in 117 00:06:55.360 --> 00:06:59.680 August twenty nineteen, Grof has remained almost invisible and spoken 118 00:07:00.079 --> 00:07:03.439 only through her lawyers. Recent photographs have shown her going 119 00:07:03.439 --> 00:07:07.160 to plates or walking her dog near her home in Connecticut, 120 00:07:07.600 --> 00:07:12.759 off duty and low key. Compared to the royals, politicians, billionaires, 121 00:07:12.800 --> 00:07:16.000 and professors who have featured in the Epstein files, Groff 122 00:07:16.319 --> 00:07:20.720 is low status, a non celebrity with no public reputation 123 00:07:20.839 --> 00:07:23.720 to lose. But when you search for her name in 124 00:07:23.800 --> 00:07:26.399 the files, you received more than one hundred and sixty 125 00:07:26.439 --> 00:07:30.319 thousand results, more than anyone else. I've read perhaps ten 126 00:07:30.360 --> 00:07:34.199 thousand of these a fraction. No one was more regularly 127 00:07:34.199 --> 00:07:38.240 in contact with Epstein day to day, and that's true. 128 00:07:38.600 --> 00:07:42.399 Epstein was very clear, Groff is his brain. He said 129 00:07:42.399 --> 00:07:45.519 that how many times throughout the years, Well, he thought 130 00:07:45.519 --> 00:07:47.600 he was kidding. Dude had a melt down when she 131 00:07:47.639 --> 00:07:52.040 had to go out for a praternity leave. After the 132 00:07:52.079 --> 00:07:55.439 release of the Epstein files, the US Congress Committee on 133 00:07:55.480 --> 00:07:59.600 Oversight and Government Reform decided to review the possible mismanagement 134 00:08:00.079 --> 00:08:03.959 of the federal government's investigation int Abstein and Maxwell's crimes. 135 00:08:04.560 --> 00:08:07.160 On March third, twenty twenty six, they sent a letter 136 00:08:07.240 --> 00:08:10.600 to Grof asking her to attend an interview in Washington. 137 00:08:10.839 --> 00:08:15.120 On June ninth, the committee believes you have information that 138 00:08:15.160 --> 00:08:18.800 will assist in its investigation. They believe, in other words, 139 00:08:18.879 --> 00:08:21.519 that Graff knows more than she has ever said that 140 00:08:21.560 --> 00:08:24.319 she knows. Well. That's because, in my opinion, she does. 141 00:08:24.879 --> 00:08:26.720 And I think it's damning that she went back to 142 00:08:26.759 --> 00:08:30.639 work for the dude even after his first arrest. How 143 00:08:30.639 --> 00:08:32.320 can you say you have no idea what he was 144 00:08:32.440 --> 00:08:34.919 or what he was doing when he's already been arrested 145 00:08:35.159 --> 00:08:37.879 on similar charges. So the whole I had no idea 146 00:08:37.919 --> 00:08:42.919 thing really just doesn't hit. To be a good executive 147 00:08:42.919 --> 00:08:46.320 assistant is an act of immersion. The job requires the 148 00:08:46.399 --> 00:08:52.679 management of minutia, dates, times, appointments, travels, meals, gifts, emails, calls, 149 00:08:53.279 --> 00:08:57.000 but it also requires the anticipation of these things, to 150 00:08:57.080 --> 00:09:00.320 know what's desired before it's desired. To do this, the 151 00:09:00.360 --> 00:09:03.759 assistant must be familiar with the inside of their boss's mind. 152 00:09:04.120 --> 00:09:07.600 In a healthy arrangement, the relationship is close but boundaried. 153 00:09:08.159 --> 00:09:11.159 She almost always she can tell her boss what she 154 00:09:11.279 --> 00:09:16.200 thinks or say no. Victoria Robin, the founder of the 155 00:09:16.279 --> 00:09:20.480 Executive Assistants Organization, described it as kind of a work marriage, 156 00:09:20.840 --> 00:09:24.159 no other professional relationship. She told me requires the same 157 00:09:24.200 --> 00:09:27.559 degree of trust or intimacy. Her old boss used to 158 00:09:27.600 --> 00:09:29.639 tell her that she knew more about him than his 159 00:09:29.720 --> 00:09:33.120 wife and can run him in five minutes. And that 160 00:09:33.320 --> 00:09:38.240 is pretty true and pretty common. These executive assistants, they 161 00:09:38.240 --> 00:09:40.759 know a lot. They're the ones that are there day 162 00:09:40.799 --> 00:09:43.320 to day. They see the people coming in, they see 163 00:09:43.320 --> 00:09:45.919 the people leaving. They know the phone calls, the emails, 164 00:09:46.320 --> 00:09:49.879 the meetings, they know all of it. While an assistant 165 00:09:49.960 --> 00:09:52.480 might have the power that comes from knowledge, it's not 166 00:09:52.559 --> 00:09:55.399 a marriage of equals. If you're committed, you sell your 167 00:09:55.399 --> 00:09:59.159 soul to that person, said Robin in a less professional dynamic. 168 00:09:59.399 --> 00:10:02.759 The assistant so crucial to her boss daily existence and 169 00:10:02.840 --> 00:10:06.360 so completely in his power that she becomes a voiceless functionary. 170 00:10:07.200 --> 00:10:11.320 Rowena Cheu, briefly an assistant to Harvey Weinstein, compared her 171 00:10:11.399 --> 00:10:14.720 role to that of a butler in downtown abbey, where 172 00:10:14.759 --> 00:10:17.600 the chief requirement were it to do as you were 173 00:10:17.639 --> 00:10:21.600 told and remain invisible. Chu, who says she was sexually 174 00:10:21.600 --> 00:10:25.000 assaulted by Weinstein, was often told she could be replaced 175 00:10:25.159 --> 00:10:28.279 in an hour. She would hear Weinstein on the phone 176 00:10:28.559 --> 00:10:31.200 bawling out an a list director and think if he 177 00:10:31.240 --> 00:10:33.120 can do that to them, what can he do to me? 178 00:10:34.399 --> 00:10:38.879 She was, she said, anat on an elephant. And look, 179 00:10:38.919 --> 00:10:42.200 there's no doubt about that a lot of these people, 180 00:10:42.240 --> 00:10:45.759 like Harvey Weinstein are abusive. But that wasn't the case 181 00:10:45.759 --> 00:10:48.759 with Leslie Groff. She wasn't being abused by Jeffrey Epstein. 182 00:10:50.080 --> 00:10:53.159 There is zero reports of him sexually assaulting her or 183 00:10:53.159 --> 00:10:56.320 anything close to that. She was there because she was 184 00:10:56.360 --> 00:10:59.679 getting paid and she was willing to look the other way, 185 00:10:59.799 --> 00:11:02.279 and my opinion, because she was making a bunch of dough. 186 00:11:02.600 --> 00:11:06.799 That's what it really boils down to. Over the years, 187 00:11:06.840 --> 00:11:09.919 Epstein had several assistants, but Groff was the most senior 188 00:11:10.120 --> 00:11:12.960 and longest serving. As I read her emails, I was 189 00:11:13.000 --> 00:11:15.960 initially struck by the extent to which he marshaled his 190 00:11:16.080 --> 00:11:19.440 time and his movements, or acted as his gatekeeper, But 191 00:11:19.519 --> 00:11:21.919 in reality she was more like a well trained avatar. 192 00:11:22.440 --> 00:11:24.519 In a two thousand and five New York Times article 193 00:11:24.919 --> 00:11:29.240 about executive assistants on Wall Street, in which both Groff 194 00:11:29.240 --> 00:11:32.720 and Epstein were interviewed, Epstein described as assistant as an 195 00:11:32.799 --> 00:11:36.679 extension of my brain and a social prosthesis, not as 196 00:11:36.679 --> 00:11:39.919 separate individuals, but as part of his mind and his body, 197 00:11:40.320 --> 00:11:43.279 and that's how he looked at her. She was indispensable 198 00:11:43.320 --> 00:11:46.840 to Jeffrey Epstein. Groff's task was to ensure that Epstein's 199 00:11:46.879 --> 00:11:51.279 life ran according to his precise preference. Jeffrey's requested that 200 00:11:51.360 --> 00:11:54.240 he pleased not be disturbed while in the gym working out, 201 00:11:54.519 --> 00:11:57.200 even if a guest is here waiting. She emailed her 202 00:11:57.240 --> 00:12:00.919 colleagues in twenty twelve, when Jeffrey is waiting for something, 203 00:12:01.159 --> 00:12:03.559 and you know the urgency with a package, you should 204 00:12:03.559 --> 00:12:05.960 give it to him right away, if at all possible. 205 00:12:06.320 --> 00:12:08.879 She wrote about a two hour delay in the delivery 206 00:12:08.879 --> 00:12:12.399 of some pastries. In twenty fifteen, he called me asking 207 00:12:12.559 --> 00:12:16.639 where's Canoli's are? On any given day, Groff would move 208 00:12:16.679 --> 00:12:19.600 from having a towelrell fixed. Can we please get someone 209 00:12:19.639 --> 00:12:22.080 on top of this? To working out how to respond 210 00:12:22.240 --> 00:12:25.720 to Epstein's allergic reaction it's apparent that his face is 211 00:12:25.720 --> 00:12:29.559 not right to ensuring Steve Bannon how to receive Depstein's 212 00:12:29.600 --> 00:12:33.559 gift of an Apple Watch? Can you confirm Steve has 213 00:12:33.559 --> 00:12:36.320 his watch? I need to get back to Jeffrey. Sorry 214 00:12:36.360 --> 00:12:38.480 for being such a pain, and look. A lot of 215 00:12:38.519 --> 00:12:41.120 her tasks were mundane. There is zero doubt about it, 216 00:12:41.600 --> 00:12:45.080 and I don't put as much responsibility on her as 217 00:12:45.120 --> 00:12:48.320 someone like Sarah Kellen Vickers. But just because you answered 218 00:12:48.320 --> 00:12:51.799 the phone and did logistics doesn't mean that you're not culpable. 219 00:12:52.639 --> 00:12:55.840 You are. She was good at her job, quick, polite, 220 00:12:56.120 --> 00:13:00.000 and relentlessly positive, even when her task tended towards the obsurdes, 221 00:13:00.679 --> 00:13:03.440 as when she had to deal with two monster vacuum 222 00:13:03.519 --> 00:13:06.720 pack stakes left beyond on Epstein's plane, or when she 223 00:13:07.039 --> 00:13:09.919 was trying to figure out how to transport three tubs 224 00:13:10.120 --> 00:13:13.919 of Oreo ice cream, Jaye's favorite, from New York to 225 00:13:14.000 --> 00:13:18.080 another of his properties without it melting. She wrote emails 226 00:13:18.120 --> 00:13:23.679 bursting with exclamation marks, emoticons, particularly the smiling wink, and 227 00:13:23.799 --> 00:13:29.480 expressions of elation, tremendous, super terrific. When Jonathan Farkas, a 228 00:13:29.519 --> 00:13:32.559 New York businessman, told her that her efficiency was the 229 00:13:32.759 --> 00:13:36.279 envy of the German army, Groff sent the email to 230 00:13:36.360 --> 00:13:40.759 her husband like think I should forward to Jae Ike 231 00:13:40.879 --> 00:13:44.000 replied that she should save it in her files in 232 00:13:44.039 --> 00:13:49.120 case she ever needed another job. Epstein knew Groff was competent, 233 00:13:49.159 --> 00:13:52.720 but his emails rarely recognized her efforts. Beyond an occasional 234 00:13:52.799 --> 00:13:57.559 Kurt thanks. Instead, he showed his appreciation with money. In 235 00:13:57.600 --> 00:13:59.960 the New York Times interview, he revealed that when Groff 236 00:14:00.279 --> 00:14:02.960 announced she was pregnant in two thousand and four, he 237 00:14:03.000 --> 00:14:05.120 offered to pay for a nanny and bought her a 238 00:14:05.159 --> 00:14:08.679 car to ease her commute from Connecticut. There's no way 239 00:14:09.039 --> 00:14:11.879 I could lose Leslie to motherhood, he said. According to 240 00:14:11.879 --> 00:14:15.399 a payroll document, she also doubled her salary from sixty 241 00:14:15.480 --> 00:14:18.120 thousand in two thousand and four to one hundred and 242 00:14:18.200 --> 00:14:22.240 twenty thousand in twenty twenty five. There were perks. In 243 00:14:22.279 --> 00:14:27.799 twenty fourteen, Epstein email Groth offering a Florida holiday, My Style, please, 244 00:14:28.120 --> 00:14:32.360 five star hotel. The whole works. Groff's husband, Ike, forwarded 245 00:14:32.399 --> 00:14:35.720 the email to someone else. Seriously, the best boss ever? 246 00:14:36.120 --> 00:14:39.720 Oh yeah, asked those girls that were getting abused how 247 00:14:39.720 --> 00:14:47.399 great he was. On Valentine's Day in twenty eighteen, Epstein 248 00:14:47.679 --> 00:14:50.879 bought her and some other assistants glam squad appointments, where 249 00:14:50.919 --> 00:14:53.840 stylists would come to their home to do their hair 250 00:14:53.879 --> 00:14:57.879 and makeup. Too sweet, wrote Groth. Once in twenty fifteen, 251 00:14:58.200 --> 00:15:00.799 she got to tour his private plane ride on his 252 00:15:00.799 --> 00:15:03.600 helicopter and take a boat to his private Caribbean island, 253 00:15:03.759 --> 00:15:07.639 Little Saint James, before staying at a luxury hotel. The 254 00:15:07.679 --> 00:15:10.200 helly was one of the best parts, she wrote in 255 00:15:10.200 --> 00:15:13.039 a group email to her family, who were duly impressed. 256 00:15:13.440 --> 00:15:16.120 I didn't know he had a helicopter too, wow, said 257 00:15:16.159 --> 00:15:20.399 one Not a boring job, wrote Groff's mother, Yeah, I 258 00:15:20.440 --> 00:15:24.240 would say so. Now let me ask you, is all 259 00:15:24.279 --> 00:15:27.960 of that worth what she's dealing with now? Not my opinion. 260 00:15:28.960 --> 00:15:31.159 All right, folks, we're gonna wrap this one up right here, 261 00:15:31.279 --> 00:15:33.720 and in the next episode we're gonna pick up where 262 00:15:33.720 --> 00:15:36.559 we left off. All the information that goes with this 263 00:15:36.679 --> 00:15:40.240 episode can be found in the description box. What's up, everyone, 264 00:15:40.279 --> 00:15:44.600 and welcome to another episode of the Epstein Chronicles. In 265 00:15:44.679 --> 00:15:47.120 this episode, we're going to pick up where we left off, 266 00:15:47.519 --> 00:15:52.200 talking about Leslie Groff once again. This article was published 267 00:15:52.559 --> 00:15:57.799 by the Guardian and the author is Sophie Elmhurst. By 268 00:15:57.840 --> 00:16:00.960 twenty fifteen, Groff was earning one hundred and forty thousand 269 00:16:01.000 --> 00:16:05.039 dollars a year and had been given several bonuses, the 270 00:16:05.159 --> 00:16:08.360 Florida trip and approval to buy a new car worth 271 00:16:08.440 --> 00:16:11.840 up to forty five thousand dollars. She was able to buy, rebuild, 272 00:16:12.080 --> 00:16:15.240 and decorate a white clap board house in the town 273 00:16:15.240 --> 00:16:18.759 of New Canaan, Connecticut, now estimated to be worth around 274 00:16:18.759 --> 00:16:21.440 five million dollars. Yeah, she had nothing to do with 275 00:16:21.440 --> 00:16:25.480 Epstein though, right, she didn't enrich herself from ill gotten 276 00:16:25.519 --> 00:16:28.000 gains or anything like that. Everything's on the up and up. Right, 277 00:16:28.440 --> 00:16:30.960 she made all that money on her own, though her 278 00:16:31.000 --> 00:16:33.759 emails also revealed she and Ike had to take out 279 00:16:33.759 --> 00:16:36.440 a large construction loan from the bank to do the work. 280 00:16:37.080 --> 00:16:40.039 In twenty sixteen, she emailed Ike to tell him her 281 00:16:40.039 --> 00:16:42.879 salary had gone up to one hundred and fifty thousand 282 00:16:43.200 --> 00:16:46.480 plus a seventy five hundred dollars bonus check not bad, 283 00:16:47.279 --> 00:16:49.480 and mentioned the loan she was going to take out 284 00:16:49.480 --> 00:16:53.159 with Epstein makes me happy. So really, what it comes 285 00:16:53.200 --> 00:16:55.639 down to is she's willing to turn a blind eye 286 00:16:55.799 --> 00:16:59.240 because she's benefiting so greatly. Now, of course, the problem 287 00:16:59.360 --> 00:17:01.840 is proving that legally, and the way to do that 288 00:17:01.879 --> 00:17:04.119 would have been rico. But since they didn't do that, 289 00:17:04.720 --> 00:17:08.400 it's going to be rough. And that, my friends, has 290 00:17:08.480 --> 00:17:13.279 always been part of the bigger problem them controlling this 291 00:17:13.359 --> 00:17:19.680 story and controlling the blast radius, Graff seemed to sense 292 00:17:19.720 --> 00:17:22.680 limits to Epstein's generosity. He was not a cash cow, 293 00:17:23.039 --> 00:17:25.839 or at least the money he gave was on his terms. 294 00:17:26.359 --> 00:17:28.799 Ahead of a family mini break in New York, Ike 295 00:17:28.839 --> 00:17:31.640 suggested she asked Epstein to get them tickets for a show. 296 00:17:32.400 --> 00:17:35.240 The cost would mean nothing to Epstein, but Groff felt 297 00:17:35.240 --> 00:17:38.799 she couldn't justify asking for five hundred dollars Hamilton seats 298 00:17:39.119 --> 00:17:42.039 and wondered if she could swing Dear Evan Hanson instead. 299 00:17:42.440 --> 00:17:44.880 When Groff got her raised to one hundred and forty 300 00:17:44.920 --> 00:17:49.440 thousand dollars in twenty fourteen, Ike, who worked for Tourmaline Partners, 301 00:17:49.680 --> 00:17:52.839 a trading firm, joked that he could retire. Ah, please, 302 00:17:52.880 --> 00:17:56.440 don't do that, Groff replied she was well paid, but 303 00:17:56.559 --> 00:17:59.599 always aware that she lived in a different economic reality 304 00:17:59.720 --> 00:18:03.519 to Boss. In her FBI interview, Groff recalled seeing an 305 00:18:03.519 --> 00:18:06.599 invoice of a carpet for his aeroplane that amounted to 306 00:18:06.680 --> 00:18:09.279 more than she earned in a year. Well, yeah, you're 307 00:18:09.319 --> 00:18:12.160 working for a guy that has billions. Oh, I know, 308 00:18:12.200 --> 00:18:15.960 they'll say he only had five hundred million. Yeah, that 309 00:18:16.039 --> 00:18:18.559 you could track. Do you really think a guy like 310 00:18:18.640 --> 00:18:22.759 Jeffrey Epstein didn't have any kind of secret backup accounts 311 00:18:23.279 --> 00:18:26.920 all over the damn world. My opinion, he most certainly did. 312 00:18:27.240 --> 00:18:30.119 Graff's emails were a full of celebrities and their staff. 313 00:18:30.720 --> 00:18:33.920 There was Amanda, who assisted the then Duchess of York, 314 00:18:34.119 --> 00:18:38.599 Bill Gates, Lauren Larry Summers, Julie, Woody, Allen's Catherine and Ginny. 315 00:18:39.480 --> 00:18:41.559 She had to check the timing of a meeting with 316 00:18:41.680 --> 00:18:44.359 Naomi Campbell, who signed off her emails love and Light. 317 00:18:44.920 --> 00:18:47.440 And it was Groff's job to figure out which car 318 00:18:47.519 --> 00:18:50.079 the duke should be picked up in and what Woody, 319 00:18:50.119 --> 00:18:53.599 Allen and sun Ye would like for dinner. Woody would 320 00:18:53.640 --> 00:18:58.440 like chicken dumplings with cilantro peery peerie chicken wings. I 321 00:18:58.480 --> 00:19:02.400 would love grilled asparagus, gome whatever the fuck that is, 322 00:19:02.880 --> 00:19:06.920 egg planch a, shestow miso, honey and shrimp, tempora and 323 00:19:06.960 --> 00:19:11.039 seasoned vegetables, confirmed sun Ye, whose emails from her phone 324 00:19:11.200 --> 00:19:14.119 were accompanied by the red balloon emoji, given each an 325 00:19:14.240 --> 00:19:16.960 error of minor celebration, and it kind of gives you 326 00:19:17.000 --> 00:19:19.960 an inside look right at just how connected Epstein was 327 00:19:20.359 --> 00:19:22.519 and all these people that previously told us that they 328 00:19:22.519 --> 00:19:28.000 didn't know them intimately have been outed by the emails 329 00:19:29.400 --> 00:19:32.039 privy to so much detail. The terms of Grov's job 330 00:19:32.240 --> 00:19:34.880 were strict. She told the FBI that when she was 331 00:19:34.960 --> 00:19:38.000 hired by Epstein, she had to sign a non disclosure agreement. 332 00:19:38.519 --> 00:19:41.160 If she ever spoke about anything she learned from people 333 00:19:41.359 --> 00:19:43.480 he had worked with, she would have to pay one 334 00:19:43.559 --> 00:19:47.240 hundred thousand dollars. Early on, Maxwella told her she was 335 00:19:47.279 --> 00:19:49.880 here to work, not to chat or frat nize with 336 00:19:49.920 --> 00:19:53.799 anyone she met through her job, including Epstein. If, for example, 337 00:19:54.000 --> 00:19:56.200 she bought tickets for Epstein to see a movie, she 338 00:19:56.279 --> 00:19:58.519 knew not to ask them if he enjoyed the movie 339 00:19:58.640 --> 00:20:00.799 the next day. YE know, I cannot work for somebody 340 00:20:00.839 --> 00:20:05.319 like that. I'm sorry. The money is not enough. Imagine 341 00:20:05.359 --> 00:20:07.359 having a boss where you can't even ask him if 342 00:20:07.400 --> 00:20:12.519 he enjoyed his movie. Fucking absurd. Groff was expected to 343 00:20:12.559 --> 00:20:15.440 maintain the facade that she knew nothing to no one. 344 00:20:15.839 --> 00:20:17.759 In her first month on the job, she told the 345 00:20:17.799 --> 00:20:20.400 FBI she was invited to a party through work and 346 00:20:20.440 --> 00:20:24.079 went along with her husband, disobeying the non fratnizing rule. 347 00:20:24.599 --> 00:20:28.119 Epstein found out and torched her the following Monday, he 348 00:20:28.160 --> 00:20:30.279 told her he was going to fire her put her 349 00:20:30.319 --> 00:20:33.640 on a probation. Groff never did anything like it again. 350 00:20:34.200 --> 00:20:38.680 Mistakes she learned were not tolerated. And look, I understand 351 00:20:38.720 --> 00:20:41.839 that people have bills, they have responsibilities, families, kids, the 352 00:20:41.839 --> 00:20:44.839 whole thing. But at what point do you say enough 353 00:20:44.880 --> 00:20:48.079 is enough? And at what point do you realize that 354 00:20:48.119 --> 00:20:51.480 the person you're working for is an absolute piece of shit? 355 00:20:51.839 --> 00:20:54.559 Not once Groff told the FBI did she have normal 356 00:20:54.599 --> 00:20:59.160 conversations with Epstein. Instead, he would issue one line decisions yes, no, 357 00:20:59.519 --> 00:21:03.119 pay it burgers, and Graff would reply with a quick, 358 00:21:03.200 --> 00:21:06.920 chirpy confirmation, we'll do. Epstein knew that he could rely 359 00:21:07.000 --> 00:21:09.839 on her to do anything fast and well. When an 360 00:21:09.839 --> 00:21:12.759 employee offered a litany of excuses as to why they'd 361 00:21:12.759 --> 00:21:15.400 fail to ship a painting from Paris to New York, 362 00:21:15.640 --> 00:21:20.160 Epstein replied with a single line, give the job to Leslie. Thanks. 363 00:21:20.559 --> 00:21:23.920 When Leslie when on holiday, she reassured Epstein that she 364 00:21:23.920 --> 00:21:27.480 would have her BlackBerry with her, Well, that's pretty common. Honestly. 365 00:21:28.079 --> 00:21:30.799 When I was in the corporate rat race, when I 366 00:21:30.839 --> 00:21:34.400 got a vacation, which was very rare, I had three 367 00:21:34.400 --> 00:21:37.119 phones with me. I had two work phones, and then 368 00:21:37.160 --> 00:21:39.799 I had my personal cell phone, and I hated every 369 00:21:39.839 --> 00:21:42.000 minute of it. And now that I'm not behold into 370 00:21:42.000 --> 00:21:45.200 that stupid ass phone, I very rarely ever answer it, 371 00:21:46.079 --> 00:21:49.359 So I understand that part of it. I hated it 372 00:21:49.440 --> 00:21:53.000 so much. It was like attached to me. And if 373 00:21:53.039 --> 00:21:54.960 you didn't answer a call or you missed a call, 374 00:21:55.039 --> 00:21:58.319 forget it. He replied by instructing her where she needed 375 00:21:58.319 --> 00:22:01.079 to be on the date of her return seventy first 376 00:22:01.119 --> 00:22:04.599 on the twentieth, meaning his house Groth. Of course, I 377 00:22:04.640 --> 00:22:08.400 can't wait. Over time, I began to recognize the tone 378 00:22:08.599 --> 00:22:11.799 of Graff's emails. Epstein there reminded me of the kinds 379 00:22:11.799 --> 00:22:14.400 of messages I sent in my first jobs at the 380 00:22:14.440 --> 00:22:18.160 lowest level of institutions, where I still naively thought the 381 00:22:18.160 --> 00:22:22.279 good behavior would be noticed and rewarded. It's the tone 382 00:22:22.279 --> 00:22:25.359 of service, of knowing your place and being eager to please, 383 00:22:25.880 --> 00:22:29.680 often used by junior women to senior men. It's also 384 00:22:29.759 --> 00:22:33.119 the tone of a perfectionist, of someone trying to create 385 00:22:33.319 --> 00:22:37.680 an impression of flawlessness, where everything is possible and nothing 386 00:22:37.720 --> 00:22:40.640 is too much. You'll do all that is asked of you, 387 00:22:40.880 --> 00:22:45.759 and more, running as consistently and indefeatingly as a machine. 388 00:22:45.920 --> 00:22:49.839 And crucially you will never say no. Well, yeah, that's 389 00:22:49.880 --> 00:22:53.599 pretty much the job, right. I mean, I don't understand 390 00:22:53.599 --> 00:22:57.400 what she means. If you're a junior manager of any sort, 391 00:22:58.119 --> 00:23:00.960 you're going to be jumping through hoops. And I think 392 00:23:01.000 --> 00:23:04.079 the most thankless job in the whole entire world is 393 00:23:04.119 --> 00:23:07.960 middle management. You get all the blame, all the responsibility, 394 00:23:08.359 --> 00:23:14.359 half the pay, and all the stress. The colleague who 395 00:23:14.359 --> 00:23:17.240 failed to ship the painting confide it in Groff about Epstein. 396 00:23:17.839 --> 00:23:21.319 It's been tough with them, I'll bet, replied Groff sympathetically. 397 00:23:21.640 --> 00:23:25.359 In twenty fourteen, Groff exchanged emails with a colleague who 398 00:23:25.400 --> 00:23:27.599 had just been on the receiving end of an Epstein 399 00:23:27.720 --> 00:23:31.359 email which was worse than ever swearing and telling me 400 00:23:31.599 --> 00:23:34.920 on a disgrace. He literally has never been this bad, 401 00:23:35.240 --> 00:23:38.599