Epstein Accounts at FirstBank PR Hit in Lawsuit Now Bank Motion to Dimiss Largely Denied

Epstein Accounts at FirstBank PR Hit in Lawsuit Now Bank Motion to Dimiss Largely Denied by Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Book Substack SDNY COURTHOUSE, Sept 25 –Citing $1 billion that flowed in and out of Jeffrey Epstein's bank accounts, a lawsuit has been filed against FirstBank of Puerto Rico in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. Inner City Press is covering the case.   The anonymous plaintiffs note that "FirstBank provided banking services in connection with Jeffrey Epstein and his sex-trafficking organization from at least 1998 through 2020. They list 30 bank announced, with the numbers redacted.   Jurisdiction in SDNY is argued for by citing, among other things, the bank's communcations with the Epstein organization's NY-based principals and agents including Indyke and Kahn, Harry Beller, Lesley Groff, Bella Klein, Eric Gany and Erica Kellerhals.     FirstBank issues a press release that it "works cooperatively with its regulators and, where appropriate, with law enforcement authorities in support of the integrity and potential misuse of the banking system. The Corporation is reviewing the complaint and will respond through the appropriate legal channels. Given that litigation is pending, FirstBank will not be providing further comment at this time."    As of June 27, the case had yet to be assigned to a District Judge. On July 27, the assigned / related case judge Jed S. Rakoff held a conference, and Inner City Press live tweeted it. It was routine, including referring to a not yet docketed protective order as routine. On September 4, plaintiff filed that "Plaintiff, who is currently proceeding under Pseudonym based on the Court’s Order (Dkt. 20), wishes to proceed under her true name, Julia Molchonova, in all future pleadings and filings, and Defendants have no objection to her doing so." On September 14 Inner City Press was the only media - the only person - in the courtroom for this status conference: Judge Rakoff: This jurisdictional discovery is supposed to be fast. Plaintiff's lawyer: They've given only 65 documents for all their years with Epstein. There is a USVI subpoena. There is a deadline tomorrow. BankFirst PR's lawyer: We anticipate meeting it. Plaintiff's lawyer: They imposed a 2019 cut off. BankFirst PR's lawyer: It's 65 documents, but more than 1000 pages. There are wires... Our witnesses interviewed staff members. They asked for all NY visits related to Epstein. We say there were none [Note: FirstBnak Puerto Rico has five lawyers here; the plaintiff has three. There is no one here in the courtroom gallery beyond Inner City Press] Judge Rakoff: The bank seems to have an archaic document retention policy. Judge Rakoff: This is really a document *destruction* policy. That may make sense with paper - but why destroy emails?  Plaintiff's lawyer: In our Epstein litigation JPM Chase was made to go back to 1999. Their law firm WilmerHale said 1998 could not be found FirstBank Puerto Rico's lawyer: We are smaller than Chase, we are a bank in the Caribbean with some Florida presence. We may not have documents in a warehouse in Florida. We can only produce what we have Judge: How far back have you gone? FBPR: I'd have to go look FirstBank Puerto Rico's lawyer: There was a FBPR email with Indyke, who gave his address not as New York but as Florida. So we didn't turn it over. Judge Rakoff: I thought all New Yorkers were in Florida. FBPR lawyer: I live in New Jersey, as does Mr. Indyke  Judge: You could go confer On September 25 the claims mostly survived the bank's motion to dismiss: "ORDER granting in part and denying in part [42] Motion to Dismiss. Accordingly, defendants' motion to dismiss pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 12 (b) (2) and 12 (b) (3) is denied. The Court also denies defendants' 12(b) (6) motion to dismiss Counts I and III of the Complaint. As to Count I, the Court concludes that plaintiff has stated a claim for participation liability under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act ("TVPA"). See 18 U.S.C. งง 1591 (a) (2), 1595. As to Count III, the Court concludes that plaintiff has stated a claim for violation of the New York City Gender-Motivated Violence Protection Act. See N.Y.C. Admin. Code. งง 10-1101-10-1107. However, the Court grants defendants' motion to dismiss Count II of the Complaint for failure to state a claim for obstruction liability under the TVPA. See 18 u.s.c. ง 1591(d). An Opinion setting forth the reasons for this Order will issue in due course. Meanwhile, the Clerk of Court is respectfully directed to terminate the motion at docket entry 42. (Signed by Judge Jed S. Rakoff on 9/25/2026)" Inner City Press will stay on the case(s) More on that on X for Subscribers here and Substack here  The case is Doe v. FirstBank Puerto Rico, et al., 1:26-cv-5327 (Rakoff) *** Your support means a lot. As little as $5 a month helps keep us going and grants you access to exclusive bonus material on our Patreon page. Click here to become a patron. Feedback: Editorial [at] innercitypress.com Mail: Box 130222, Chinatown Station, NY NY 10013 Other, earlier Inner City Press are listed here, and some are available in the ProQuest service, and now on Lexis-Nexis.  Copyright 2006-2026 Inner City Press, Inc. To request reprint or other permission, e-contact Editorial [at] innercitypress.com