{"id":379412,"date":"2026-10-22T07:07:08","date_gmt":"2026-10-22T07:07:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/379412\/"},"modified":"2026-10-22T07:07:08","modified_gmt":"2026-10-22T07:07:08","slug":"new-mexico-sues-jeffrey-epsteins-attorney-and-accountant-accusing-them-of-concealing-his-sex-trafficking-operation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/379412\/","title":{"rendered":"New Mexico sues Jeffrey Epstein\u2019s attorney and accountant, accusing them of concealing his sex trafficking operation"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"text | article-text\">ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) \u2014 New Mexico\u2019s attorney general filed a lawsuit Wednesday against Jeffrey Epstein\u2019s attorney and accountant, accusing them of concealing his sex trafficking operation at a sprawling Santa Fe-area ranch where the disgraced financier entertained guests.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">The lawsuit seeks to stop attorney Darren Indyke and accountant Richard Kahn from accepting any payments from Epstein\u2019s estate, estimated at more than $100 million. They serve as coexecutors, and New Mexico Attorney General Ra\u00fal Torrez said they \u201cstand to benefit substantially\u201d from the estate unless a federal judge intervenes.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">Indyke worked as Epstein\u2019s attorney for roughly two decades. Both he and Kahn have testified in Congress that they did not know about Epstein\u2019s abuse, though Torrez has a different view.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">___<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">EDITOR\u2019S NOTE \u2014 This story includes discussion of suicide. If you or someone you know needs help, the national suicide and crisis lifeline in the U.S. is available by calling or texting 988. There is also an online chat at <a href=\"https:\/\/988lifeline.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/988lifeline.org\/\">988lifeline.org<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">___<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">\u201cNone of this could be done by just one man,\u201d Torrez said at a news conference, where he stood with two of Epstein\u2019s accusers. \u201cThis was something that was facilitated, that was made possible by handlers, by lawyers, by accountants, by others who have yet to face real consequences.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">In response to the lawsuit, an attorney for the pair said they \u201cemphatically reject\u201d the allegations and note that New Mexico officials never sought to interview Indyke and Kahn before going to court. Dan Weiner said they would have cooperated.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">\u201cNot a single woman has ever accused Mr. Indyke or Mr. Kahn of committing sexual abuse or witnessing sexual abuse, nor claimed at any time that she or anyone else reported to them any allegation of Mr. Epstein\u2019s abuse,\u201d Weiner said in an email.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">The U.S. Justice Department declined to comment on any federal investigation of Indyke or Kahn.<\/p>\n<p>Epstein owned the Zorro Ranch for decades<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">Earlier this year, Indyke and Kahn agreed as executors of the estate to settle a class-action lawsuit brought against them by Epstein accusers for up to $35 million. They did not admit any wrongdoing as part of the deal.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">Torrez\u2019s lawsuit is an effort to possibly recover more money for victims, with New Mexico acting as the plaintiff.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">Epstein purchased the Zorro Ranch in Stanley, a sparsely populated ranching community about 30 miles (50 kilometers) south of Santa Fe, in 1993. He built a massive home on the property, which spanned thousands of acres, and constructed several guest homes, a private airstrip and a helipad.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">___<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">EDITOR\u2019S NOTE \u2014 This story includes discussion of suicide. If you or someone you know needs help, the national suicide and crisis lifeline in the U.S. is available by calling or texting 988. There is also an online chat at <a href=\"https:\/\/988lifeline.org\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/988lifeline.org\" target=\"_blank\">988lifeline.org<\/a> <\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">___<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">Epstein died by suicide in a New York jail cell in August 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">His former girlfriend and close associate, Ghislaine Maxwell, is serving a 20-year prison sentence after her 2021 conviction on sex trafficking charges in New York. Witness testimony at Maxwell\u2019s trial alleged she and Epstein had sexually abused women at the ranch.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">\u201cWe cannot undo what happened or return what was taken from us, but we can demand answers,\u201d said Epstein accuser Anouska De Georgiou. \u201cWe can pursue justice and we can insist that wealth, power and influence never place anyone beyond accountability.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">The Associated Press does not name people who say they were sexually abused unless they have come forward publicly.<\/p>\n<p>Indyke and Kahn played key roles, lawsuit says<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">The lawsuit accuses Indyke and Kahn of conspiracy and racketeering in supporting the \u201cEpstein Enterprise.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">\u201cThey arranged payments to survivors to purchase their silence and leave them indebted to Epstein, handled costs for expenses connected to the abuse, monitored survivors\u2019 spending, and prepared tax returns for some survivors,\u201d the lawsuit states.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">The lawsuit points to financial records indicating over $3 million in payments were made \u2014 with no discernible business purpose \u2014 from Epstein-related accounts directly to girls or women from 2003 to 2013.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">Between 2013 and 2019, the lawsuit states, Indyke and Kahn authorized and signed off on payments totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars to \u201cthe enterprise\u2019s sex trafficking survivors, including those who also acted as recruiters, and other expenses including legal fees, apartment rent and tuition.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">According to the suit, some payments were funneled through a nonprofit that was overseen by Indyke and Kahn. The complaint states that more than $30,000 was paid out by the C.O.U.Q. Foundation in 2012 to girls or women for purposes apparently unrelated to the charity.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">The lawsuit also notes a 2017 email from Kahn to Epstein regarding payment of \u201cthe latest batch of medical expenses for girls.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">\u201cAt the end of the day this is not about the past. It is about the truth. It\u2019s about justice, and it\u2019s about making sure that accountability does not end with Epstein,\u201d said Julia Molchanova, another Epstein accuser.<\/p>\n<p>No crimes were pursued in New Mexico<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">Epstein never faced charges in New Mexico, though the state attorney general\u2019s office in 2019 confirmed that it was investigating and planned to forward its findings to federal authorities in New York. Hector Balderas, who was attorney general at the time, said New Mexico\u2019s outdated laws failed to protect children from abuse.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">Epstein was not required to register as a sex offender in New Mexico, despite a 2008 guilty plea in Florida.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">Torrez reopened the state\u2019s investigation this year. In August, he sued the Justice Department, accusing it of blocking the state from investigating alleged sex crimes. The government said it was not releasing some information to the state because disclosing victim-identifying information would violate court orders in New York.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">Also in August, a commission established by state lawmakers to investigate whether local authorities looked the other way, released a 119-page report that said authorities repeatedly deferred to investigations in New York, Palm Beach, Florida, and the Virgin Islands, while leaving Epstein\u2019s offenses in New Mexico unexamined and unpunished.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">Epstein\u2019s estate sold the ranch in 2023 to the family of Don Huffines, a Republican who is the Texas state comptroller. The money was set aside for creditors.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">Probate proceedings related to Epstein\u2019s will and assets are being handled in the U.S. Virgin Islands.<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">___<\/p>\n<p class=\"text | article-text\">White reported from Detroit. AP reporter Mead Gruver in Fort Collins, Colorado, contributed to this story.<\/p>\n<p>Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) \u2014 New Mexico\u2019s attorney general filed a lawsuit Wednesday against Jeffrey Epstein\u2019s attorney and accountant,&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":379413,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[34520,139257,139256,139255,6769,139254,3100,21996,9,11,10,49,51,50,7485],"class_list":["post-379412","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-york","tag-epstein-files","tag-epstein-sex-trafficking","tag-epsteins-accountant","tag-epsteins-attorney","tag-jeffrey-epstein","tag-jeffrey-epstein-files","tag-lawsuit","tag-new-mexico","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-headlines","tag-new-york-news","tag-new-york-state","tag-new-york-state-headlines","tag-new-york-state-news","tag-sex-trafficking"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/379412","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=379412"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/379412\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/379413"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=379412"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=379412"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=379412"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}