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The Epstein Files
BREAKING: Mandelson Called Epstein 'My Best Pal.' He Was Also Leaking UK Government Secrets
00:18:59
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A
3 million pages of evidence. Thousands of unsealed flight logs. Millions of data points, names, themes and timelines connected. You are listening to the Epstein Files, the world's first AI native investigation into the case that traditional journalism simply could not handle.
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Welcome back to the Epstein Files. Last time we covered our last breaking news update. And today, breaking news has emerged about Mandelson. Called Epstein my best pal. He was also leaking UK government secrets. As always, every document we reference is at Epstein Files fm. So the place to start is the EFTA documents because the DOJ release contains hundreds of emails that show exactly how this relationship functioned.
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C
Right. We are conducting a forensic review of Peter Mandelson's documented relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. The scope here is very specific. We are analyzing the timeline of contact relative to Epstein's criminal history and Mandelson's tenure in public office. We need to strip away the political theater completely. We're looking strictly at the correspondence logs, the bank transfers and the timestamps.
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B
We need to answer the primary inquiry for you listening. What do the ECA documents and financial records actually prove about the depth of the Mandelson Epstein alliance? And crucially, how does the viral 2018 email align with his historical record?
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The narrative defense offered by Mandelson that he was tricked or didn't know must be tested against the documentary evidence of what he typed and sent. When you look at the dates, the content and the specific advice given, a different picture emerges from the files.
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We are opening the first section of evidence. We are strictly looking at the period between 2009 and 2010.
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Context is critical to understanding the gravity of the documents here in 2009 and 2010. Peter Mandelson is the Business Secretary under Prime Minister Gordon Brown. But he was more than that. He was often referred to as the first Secretary of State. He is effectively the second most powerful man in the British government during a time of global economic crisis.
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And Jeffrey Epstein's status during this exact window is a matter of public legal record.
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C
Right. In 2008, Epstein was convicted of soliciting a minor for prostitution. Throughout 2009, he is either serving his sentence in the Palm Beach County Stockade or is on work release. His status as a registered sex offender is fully documented.
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So we have a sitting UK Cabinet minister and a convicted sex offender. We need to examine the communication flow. I am pulling up the email dated May 9, 2010.
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This is the document cited in the report regarding Mandelson's emails to Epstein on Gordon Brown. The subject line references finally getting him to go today.
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The date is May 9, 2010. For those unfamiliar with the specific timeline of British politics, this is days after the UK general election. The result was a hung parliament.
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Correct. The government is in chaos. At this exact moment the incumbent Labor Party has lost its majority, but the Conservatives haven't won enough seats to govern alone. Negotiations are happening behind closed doors to form a coalition. This is highly sensitive real time political maneuvering. The future of the country's governance is being decided in private rooms.
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Mandelson writes to Epstein on this date, quote, GB now having secret talks with Clegg in Foreign Office.
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And GB refers to Gordon Brown, the Prime Minister. Clegg is Nick Clegg, the leader of the Liberal Democrats.
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The question is why? The Business Secretary is updating a convicted sex offender in Florida about secret coalition talks inside the UK Foreign Office.
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From a forensic standpoint, this establishes that the channel of communication was not just social, it was operational. Mandelson is providing a TikTok of government formation. This isn't a birthday greeting or a casual check in, it is intelligence.
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The word secret is in quotes in the email or used to describe the nature of the talks.
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Which implies Mandelson knew the sensitivity of the information. He is disclosing the location, the Foreign Office and the participants, Brown and Clegg.
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And it suggests Epstein had an interest in the stability or formation of the
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UK government or that Mandelson felt compelled to keep him in the loop. It demonstrates a complete lack of separation between Mandelsty's public duties and his private association with Epstein. A Minister of the Crown is typing updates to a felon regarding the formation of the sovereign's government.
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Moving back slightly in the timeline to August 2009, we have the Shriti Videra memo.
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This is referenced in the Tax Policy Associates report detailing Mandelson leaking number 10 documents to Epstein.
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We should explain the document itself before looking at the transmission.
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Shriti Vadera was a Minister and a key Advisor to number 10. She wrote a confidential memo regarding proposals to push banks to increase lending. This was August 2009, the absolute height of the financial crisis fallout. Banks were freezing credit and the government was looking for mechanisms to force liquidity into the market.
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The document is highly technical. It deals with banking strategy, government assets and lending protocols.
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The chain of custody is the crucial evidence here. Videra sends this to number 10 advisors and Mandelson. The EFTA documents show Mandelson forwarding this internal government email to Jeffrey Epstein while
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Epstein is serving his sentence.
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The timeline perfectly aligns with his incarceration or work release. Period. The content banking policy is of immediate financial interest to Epstein and his circle. Epstein is a financier. Knowing how the UK government intends to pressure banks is material information.
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It is market sensitive.
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Potentially, yes. If you know the government is about to squeeze the banks on lending or sell off assets, that is actionable intelligence for an investor. It gives you an edge over the market.
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It raises the question of why Epstein needed to see a memo from Shridi Vadera.
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There is no legitimate reason for a US based sex offender to be reading internal UK government memos on banking regulation. The only forensic conclusion is that Mandelson was providing access.
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There is another exchange from this period regarding mild threats. This seems to escalate from sharing information to actively influencing policy.
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This comes from the Transparency International UK Reports and police investigation files.
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Mandelson discusses lobbying other members of the government to reduce attacks on bankers bonuses.
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The specific phrasing is notable. The evidence indicates Mandelson advised Epstein and Associates at J.P. morgan to mildly threaten the then Chancellor of the Exchequer, Alastair Darling.
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Mildly threaten?
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The Chancellor abandoned specific policies regarding the taxation of bonuses.
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Alistair Darling was Mandelson's colleague. They sat in the exact same cabinet.
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This puts Mandelson, a serving government Minister, in a position where he is strategizing with private financier and a convicted criminal against the policy interests of his own treasury colleague. He is conspiring with external financial actors to pressure the UK Chancellor.
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This connects to the Dispatch's investigation and the JP Morgan internal report. There is a claim that Mandelson set up a meeting between Epstein and Jamie Dimon, the CEO of J.P. morgan, or Jess Staley.
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The J.P. morgan report notes that Epstein appeared to maintain a particularly close relationship with Mandelson. The Dispatch's claim reinforces the idea that Mandelson was acting as a bridge between Epstein and the highest levels of global banking, even while serving in government.
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And Epstein's view of Mandelson's power is documented as well.
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We have an email from Epstein to send lane Maxwell in June 2009. Epstein writes that Mandelson was, for all intents and purposes, Deputy Prime Minister.
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So Epstein knew exactly the level of access he had.
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Precisely. This wasn't a friendship with a retired politician. It was a conduit to the absolute center of British power. Epstein understood the asset he had in Mandelson.
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Moving to the next sequence of evidence, we are jumping forward to 2012 and 2013. Mandelson has left government at this point. He has established his consultancy firm, Global Council.
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The relationship transitions here. It becomes a mix of commercial consultation and social intimacy. The government clearance is gone, but the strategic insight remains.
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I'm Looking at document Efta 01766-6891 PDF and Eft Alure 17672 20s PDF. The date is July 15, 2012.
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This is the height of the Libor scandal. Banks were being investigated for rigging interest rates. It was a massive compliance failure that implicated major institutions including Barclays.
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Epstein emails Mandelson quote, what do you know of the Libor scandal? Do you know the other Sat Barclay, let's talk tomorrow.
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Epstein is fishing for information. Sat Barclay likely refers to the situation at Barclays Bank. Note the tone, let's talk tomorrow. It is directive.
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Mandelson replies. On July 16, 2012, he asks, and how close are you an agius referring to Marcus Hagius, the Barclays chairman.
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And then we look at the attachment.
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Mandelson pastes a global Council insight note. The title is the British Banking Debate after Bob Diamond.
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Bob diamond had just resigned as CEO of Barclays. Mandelson is taking his firm's proprietary strategic analysis, what they likely sell to corporate clients and providing it directly to Epstein.
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It shows the ongoing utility of Mandelson to Epstein. Epstein asks, what do you know? And Mandelson provides a dossier.
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It confirms that even after the government years, Epstein relied on Mandelson for interpretation of UK financial scandals. Mandelson was providing the context and the analysis Epstein needed to understand the shifting terrain in London.
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Then we have the social coordination document EFTA 01752 202. PDF. New Year's Eve, December 31, 2013.
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This is five years after Epstein's conviction. The freshness of the scandal has worn off, but the criminal record obviously remains.
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Epstein writes, okay, are you coming?
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Mandelson's response is quite specific regarding logistics. Carr is a two seater. He and I both agreed. We really want him to drive us both to PB to see you all, but I don't think R will wear it. PB stands for Palm Beach.
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R is identified in the context of other documents as Reynaldo Avila da Silva, Mandison's partner.
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Epstein replies, you can bring Boris. He is in Miami. What do you hear?
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This sounds like a standard holiday arrangement among close friends.
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That is the forensic takeaway. There is no hesitation, no distance. They are coordinating a drive to Palm beach for New Year's. This contradicts any narrative of estrangement or distance following the 2008 conviction. You do not spend New Year's Eve with someone you are ethically repulsed by
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it brings us to the financial entanglement.
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We have to follow the money. The relationship had financial components that flowed toward Mandelson.
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The first item is the osteopathy payments. Source is Tax Policy Associates and CBS News reports.
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The record shows Epstein sent approximately $12,000 to Reynaldo Avila da Silva.
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This was for osteopathy course.
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Correct. The timeline is around the 2009 and 2010 era. Coinciding with the email leaks we discussed earlier.
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Mandelson's defense has been that he thought this was a bursary from Epstein's foundation.
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C
We don't have documentation for that. We must note that the source files contain absolutely no documentation supporting a bursary application or award. There is paperwork indicative of a charitable grant. The emails regarding the transaction suggest a personal arrangement. It appears as a direct payment for a personal expense of Mandelson's partner.
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If it were a bursary, one would expect an application form, a vetting process and a formal notification from the foundation.
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None of that appears in the evidence we have reviewed. This is inconsistent with standard foundation practices.
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Then there are the direct payments to Mandelson himself. This goes back to 2003 and 2004,
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cited in the Financial Times and House Oversight documents. Bank statements Show Mandelson accepting $75,000 from Epstein.
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This was in three separate transactions of $25,000 each.
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At this specific time, Mandelson was a private citizen. He was not in the cabinet. However, this establishes the financial baseline. The dependency or patronage started early.
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There is a link to Ghislaine Maxwell here as well.
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Yes. An email from Maxwell to Mandelson asks for his bank account number to discuss the act for the money. Act, Likely meaning account.
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So Maxwell facilitates the transaction.
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The documents show the triangle. Epstein, Maxwell, Mandelson. Maxwell is the operational link for the
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transfer of funds and the travel. We hear about the private planes constantly. What do the documents actually show regarding Mandelson?
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The House oversight documents and flight logs confirm Epstein paid for Mandelson's travel as early as 2003. We have $7,400 for two commercial flights
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and the private jet.
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Valtzin Vieira Cotran, a former Epstein employee, has provided testimony recalling Mandelson flying from St. Thomas to New York on the private jet.
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So we have commercial flights paid for and presence on the private aircraft.
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It establishes a pattern of subsidized lifestyle. When you combine the direct cash, the tuition for the partner and the travel, you see a financial ecosystem where Mandison is a direct beneficiary.
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Which leads us to the nature of the friendship. The best pal narrative.
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This is the psychological evidence. How did Mandelson define the relationship in his own words?
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The birthday book. This surfaced in the Guardian and House Oversight Committee releases.
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This was a book compiled by Ghislaine Maxwell. For Epstein's 50th birthday in 2003, Mandelson wrote an inscription.
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I want to read this into the record because the tone is significant. Once upon a time, an intelligent, sharp witted man they call mysteriouses parachuted into my life. But wherever he is in the world, he remains my best pal. He also refers to Epstein's homes, quote, glorious homes he likes to share with his friends.
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Yum, yum, yum, yum.
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The visual evidence in the book includes photos of Mandelson in a white dressing gown laughing with Epstein.
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This indicates a high level of comfort. You don't wear a dressing gown with a casual business acquaintance. It implies staying over, sharing personal space and a lack of formality.
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But 2003 was before the conviction. The defense is always that they didn't know.
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Which is why the 2008 emails are the pivot point cited by Bloomberg and ITV News.
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June 2008, Epstein is facing charges for soliciting a minor. He is about to go to jail.
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Mandelson writes to him he does not cut ties. He does not express horror. He writes, your friends stay with you and love you. He tells Epstein he thought the world of him.
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And then he gives advice.
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This is the key. Mandelson advises Epstein to fight for early release. He writes, reminder, you are fighting back, so you need strategy, strategy, strategy. Remember the art of war.
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He is coaching him. A senior British politician is quoting Sun Tzu to a sex offender to help him navigate his legal fallout.
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And he adds a commentary on the justice system. Mandelson wrote that the prosecution was, quote, just could not happen in Britain.
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That implies he viewed the charges as illegitimate or merely a quirk of the American system.
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It suggests he bought into Epstein's narrative of victimhood. Or he chose to ignore the reality of the crimes to preserve the relationship. He is framing the legal consequence as a battle to be won, not a justice to be served.
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Does the contact stop after prison?
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We have the 2012 and 2013 emails we discussed, but we also have a 2016 exchange cited by the Guardian.
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November 6, 2016.
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Epstein emails. 63 years old. You made it.
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Mandelson replies, just, I have decided to extend my life by spending more of it in the us.
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This confirms active contact eight years after the conviction. It contradicts any attempt to distance or claim the friendship ended when the crimes were revealed.
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Now we are looking at the viral evidence versus the historical record.
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The primary evidence item here is the email from December 28, 2018. The sender is gvacationmail.com that is Epstein.
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He is writing to Masha Drukova. He is replying to an introduction of female contacts. Katya, a corporate lawyer Alazaiyah, a film director on a human rights VR project and Alexandra, an actress.
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The quote from Epstein is she almost fainted when I told her that person is me. In reference to someone researching a bad guy who gets children for sex sent to his island.
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Epstein refers to himself as the bad guy who gets children for sex sent to his island.
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He is self aware. He knows his reputation. He absolutely owns it.
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In this email, compare this self awareness to Mandelson's behavior.
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Mandelson claimed he fell for Epstein's lies. He claimed he believed the 2008 conviction was a miscarriage of justice. However, the 2009 and 2010 emails regarding government secrets and the 2012 emails regarding Libor show Mandelson engaging with Epstein as a strategic partner after the bad guy reputation was legally established.
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That doesn't add up. The secret Talks email was 2010. The library email was 2012. The strategy strategy strategy email was 2008.
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Mandelson wasn't just observing, he was actively participating.
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And the nature of the participation strategy aligns with Epstein's own operational mode seen in the 2018 email. Epstein manipulated perception. Mandelson advised him on exactly how to do it.
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The result of these documented revelations has been significant. In February 2026, Peter Mandelson was arrested for misconduct in public office and fired
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as US Ambassador by Keir Starmer.
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The documents we have reviewed, the leaking of the VA DARA memo, the coalition talks, these are the basis for that misconduct investigation. It is not just about associating with a criminal, it is about compromising the integrity of the British government to service that criminal.
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We should also note the fallout for
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Global Counsel, Mandelson's firm. It went into administration following these revelations
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and Whig Prosser's role.
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He acted as a secretary, passing quotes to Epstein to help play down the relationship. In press statements, it shows an organized effort to conceal the depth of the tie.
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To recap the proven facts, Mandelson accepted
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financial support, $75,000 plus tuition. He maintained a best pal friendship through Epstein's incarceration, he shared sensitive UK government information regarding banking and political coalitions with a convicted sex offender and he offered
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strategic counsel on how to fight the
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charges the timeline is unbroken from 2003 to at least 2016. The alliance held firm Mandelson is currently
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under arrest and the investigation is ongoing.
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We will see if the police uncover more regarding the mild threats to the Chancellor. That is a specific area of documented legal exposure.
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We'll be watching this closely. If more documents surface, we'll be back with an update.
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You have just heard an analysis of the official record. Every claim, name and date mentioned in this episode is backed by primary source documents. You can view the original files for yourself at Epsteinfiles fm. If you value this data first approach to journalism, please leave a five star review wherever you're listening right now. It helps keep this investigation visible. We'll see you in the next file.