Jes Staley, the former boss of Barclays, will face a two-day deposition next week over allegations he knew about Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking operation.
JP Morgan, the US bank where Staley worked and had the convicted sex offender as a client, said it would depose him next Thursday and Friday as part of its lawsuit alleging he concealed crucial information about the late financier.
It has accused Staley of “intentional and outrageous conduct” in concealing key information and called for the former Barclays chief executive to be made liable for penalties the US bank may face as a result of two separate lawsuits accusing it of facilitating Epstein’s trafficking of women and girls by failing to spot red flags.
JP Morgan is being sued by prosecutors in the US Virgin Islands, where much of the abuse is said to have taken place at a home owned by Epstein on a private island, and also by a woman known only as Jane Doe 1.
Those lawsuits, while aimed at JP Morgan, have claimed Staley “observed victims personally”, including “visiting young girls at Epstein’s apartments” and exchanging 1,200 emails with the late financier that included photos of young women in seductive poses and referring to women by the names of Disney princesses.
Lawyers for JP Morgan told a federal judge in New York on Thursday that Staley was scheduled to be deposed over two days beginning on 23 March. The judge set the trial date for the US Virgin Islands’ and Jane Doe cases against JP Morgan for 23 October.
Staley has previously denied any involvement in Epstein’s alleged crimes.
Announcing its lawsuit against Staley last week, JP Morgan said: “While the conduct Epstein was accused of is despicable, the lawsuits against [JP Morgan] are misplaced and without merit. The plaintiffs have made troubling allegations concerning the conduct of our former employee Jes Staley, and if true he should be held responsible for his actions.
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“At the time, we could not have imagined any of our employees would engage in the type of conduct alleged. We expect all of our employees at every level of the firm to act with honesty and integrity. If these allegations against Staley are true, he violated this duty by putting his own personal interests ahead of the company’s.”
