A billionaire private equity executive has purchased two Caribbean islands originally owned by deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein with ambitions to transform them into a luxury resort.
SD Investments LLC, founded by Stephen Deckoff, announced the purchase of the islands of Great and Little St. James on its website on Wednesday.
The islands, which are part of the US Virgin Islands, have been on the market for more than a year. According to Forbes, they were sold for a total of $60 million, less than half of the initial asking price of $125 million. Epstein allegedly used the property, which includes a home, multiple guest villas, a helicopter, and numerous pools, for years to sexually assault young women and traffic children.
“Mr. Deckoff intends to build a cutting-edge, five-star, world-class luxury 25-room resort that will help boost tourism, create jobs, and spur economic development in the region, all while respecting and preserving the islands’ important environment.” SD Investments issued a comment.
In an apparent acknowledgement of the islands’ shady background, the statement adds that “a significant portion of the sale proceeds” were to be paid to the Virgin Islands government under a previous settlement agreement between the government and Epstein’s estate.
Deckoff, a US Virgin Islands resident, is worth $3 billion, according to Forbes. He is a co-founder of the $9 billion private equity firm Black Diamond Capital Management.
infamous financier Jeffrey Epstein died in a federal prison in Manhattan in 2019 while awaiting trial for sex trafficking. He had previously been convicted of soliciting prostitution from a minor, for which he was designated as a sex offender. The prosecution claims that among his victims were girls as young as 11 years old.
