Feds launch investigation into officials in charge of running Epstein’s estate and paying victims: report
Por Alex Woodward — – World RSS Feed
Feds launch investigation into officials in charge of running Epstein’s estate and paying victims: report
Alex Woodward in New York Wednesday 23 September 2026 17:35 BST
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Federal prosecutors in New York City have reportedly opened an investigation into Jeffrey Epstein’s longtime lawyer and accountant, the two men who now manage his estate.
Investigators have interviewed potential witnesses and sought emails and financial records related to Epstein’s former lawyer Darren Indyke and accountant Richard Kahn, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The Independent has requested comment from a legal representative for Epstein’s estate, which Indyke and Kahn have managed in the years after the wealthy and well-connected sex offender died in jail awaiting trial on trafficking charges in 2019.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of New York in Manhattan did not immediately respond to The Independent.
Indyke and Kahn have previously denied having any knowledge of Epstein’s crimes and have not been accused of wrongdoing. In March, they testified to members of Congress that federal investigators never interviewed them about their late client, raising questions about the depth and scope of Department of Justice probes into the disgraced financier.
open image in galleryIn his testimony to the House Oversight Committee, Indyke said he had “no knowledge whatsoever” of Epstein’s crimes and categorically denied facilitating the trafficking of women and girls. Asked whether he considered leaving Epstein after learning that he pleaded guilty in 2008 to soliciting a minor, Khan said he ultimately decided to continue working for him to support his family, and that he believed Epstein when he told Khan “this would never happen again.”
As executors of Epstein’s estate, Indyke and Khan have helped negotiate settlements in lawsuits brought by survivors of Epstein’s abuse.
His estate was valued as much as $650 million at the time of his death in July 2019. The estate established a compensation fund that has paid out more than $120 million to survivors, and his remaining assets were recently valued at roughly $127 million, according to an October 2025 court filing.
The scope of the alleged federal investigation and whether any charges are being considered is unclear, but investigators appear to be examining their handling of financial and legal matters involving young women that may have obscured Epstein’s crimes, according to people familiar with the interviews who spoke to The Wall Street Journal.
In February, Indyke and Kahn agreed to settle a proposed class-action lawsuit brought by survivors who accused them of the “facilitation, participation and concealment of Epstein’s illegal conduct” for their own financial gain.
According to the lawsuit, the men helped structure Epstein’s accounts to provide his associates with access to “large amounts of cash in furtherance of sex trafficking” and claimed that Indyke and Kahn were “essential” to the sex offender’s scheme.
They are also among the beneficiaries of the trust managing Epstein’s assets after all claims against his estate are resolved.
Indyke could receive $50 million and Kahn could receive $25 million, according to documents.
open image in galleryLauren Hersh, CEO of anti-trafficking organization World Without Exploitation, which has worked closely with Epstein survivors in the wake of the Justice Department’s release of millions of files connected to investigations, said that survivors “have always understood that what happened to them goes far beyond Jeffrey Epstein.”
“His decades of abuse were made possible by a network of people and institutions around him that enabled exploitation, protected powerful people and failed the women and girls who were harmed,” she said in a statement shared with The Independent.
“We welcome the news that federal prosecutors are investigating Darren Indyke and Richard Kahn and asking questions that should have been asked years ago,” she added. “Survivors deserve a full accounting of how Epstein and those in his orbit were able to operate for so long, and accountability for everyone who enabled or participated in their exploitation.”
open image in galleryThere have been no other arrests in the U.S. in connection with Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence after she was found guilty of recruiting and grooming young women and girls.
The protracted release of the so-called Epstein files during Donald Trump’s administration has accelerated demands for additional investigations and prosecutions, and members of Congress have issued subpoenas for interviews with high-profile figures, former employees and administration officials connected to Epstein.
The House Oversight Committee has also performed a series of interviews with survivors, whose testimony has led to criminal referrals to at least two people connected to Epstein.
Last week, the House agreed to hold billionaire Leon Black in contempt of Congress and referred the matter to the Justice Department after he defied the Oversight Committee’s subpoenas in its investigation.
Lawyers for Black, who co-founded the private equity firm Apollo Global Management and stepped down in 2021 during the fallout over his ties to Epstein, have stated that he “had no knowledge of any of Epstein’s heinous conduct” and denounced the committee’s efforts as politically motivated.
He has filed a lawsuit to block the subpoenas.
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Jeffrey EpsteinGhislaine MaxwellDepartment Of JusticeDonald TrumpHouse Oversight CommitteeNew York City
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