1. United States
2. N.Y.
3. Letter

I am writing to urge you to launch a comprehensive investigation into how convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein was offered opportunities to invest in sensitive US government real estate, including properties tied to the Pentagon and Department of Defense. Newly released Department of Justice files reveal that in 2016, Epstein was offered a chance to purchase a stake in an 84,710-square-metre complex located approximately 1.6 kilometres from the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia. The property was described in investor materials as mission-critical and the only property in Arlington other than the Pentagon itself with the ability to meet the space and infrastructure needs of the DOD. The proposed purchase price was approximately $116 million, and the deal structure would have made Epstein a co-owner and effectively a landlord to the US government. This is not an isolated incident. Epstein was also offered a separate proposal in 2015 to invest in two FBI field offices in Richmond and Baltimore, along with courthouses. That deal required an initial $25 million investment followed by a further $80 million, with ownership routed through a Cayman Islands offshore entity. Real estate investor Jonathan D Fascitelli originated both property proposals, which were forwarded to Epstein by David Stern, a businessman who referred to himself as Epstein's soldier. The prospect of a convicted sex offender with documented ties to foreign intelligence services gaining ownership stakes in properties housing critical defense and law enforcement operations represents an extraordinary national security failure. FBI informant memos in the released files indicate Epstein was a Mossad agent working for Israel and was close to former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, who visited Epstein's New York townhouse more than 30 times between 2013 and 2017. I urge you to demand answers from the Department of Defense and FBI about how these proposals reached Epstein, what vetting processes failed, and whether any similar arrangements exist with other individuals who pose security risks.