captain_spalding said:

In 2011, Epstein was viewed by ‘the top people’ as being just a somewhat naughty boy. It’s OK, the peasantry will never know, there’ll be no evidence.

In 2008, Epstein was convicted of procuring children for prostitution. At the time, as now, it was widely thought that he was given a very lenient plea deal given the great number of victims and their ages, as young as 14. He was sentenced to 18 months in prison.