DOJ-OGR-00023117.tif
Extracted Text (OCR)
I think Jay [Lefkowitz] will try to talk you out of a registrable
offense. Regardless of the merits of his argument, in order to get us
down in time they made us an offer that included pleading to an
offense against a minor (encouraging a minor into prostitution) and
touted that we should be happy because it was registrable. For that
reason alone, I don’t think we should consider allowing them to
come down from their own offer, either on this issue or on time of
incarceration.
Lefkowitz attempted to reach Acosta that night, but Acosta directed Villafafia to return the
call, and told Lourie that he did not want to open “a backchannel” with defense counsel. Lourie
instructed Villafafia, “U can tell [JJay that [A]lex will not agree to a nonregistration offense.”
On the morning of Friday, September 21, 2007, Villafafia emailed Acosta informing him
that “it looks like we will be [filing charges against] Mr. Epstein on Tuesday,” reporting that the
charging package was being reviewed by the West Palm Beach manager, and asking if anyone in
the Miami office needed to review it. Villafafia also alerted Lourie that she had spoken that
morning to Lefkowitz, who “was waffling” about Epstein pleading to a state charge that required
sexual offender registration, and she noted that she would confer with Krischer and Belohlavek
“to make sure the defense doesn’t try to do an end run.”
That same morning, Epstein attorney Sanchez, who had not been involved in negotiations
for several weeks, emailed Sloman, advising, “[I] want to finalize the plea deal and there is only
one issue outstanding and [I] do not believe that [A]lex has read all the defense submissions that
would assist in his determination on this point . . . [U]pon resolution, we will be prepared to sign
as soon as today.” From his out-of-town vacation, Sloman forwarded the email to Acosta, who
replied, “Enjo[y] vacation. Working with [MJarie on this.” Sloman also forwarded Sanchez’s
email to Lourie and asked, “Do you know what she’s talking about?” Lourie responded that
Sanchez “has not been in any negotiations. Don’t even engage with yet another cook.”
J. The USAO Agrees Not to Criminally Charge “Potential Co-Conspirators”
Lefkowitz, in the meantime, sent Villafafia a revised draft NPA that proposed an 18-month
sentence in the county jail, followed by 12 months of community control, and restored the
provision for a trust fund for disbursement to an agreed-upon list of individuals “who seek
reimbursement by filing suit pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 2255.” This defense draft retained the
provision promising not to criminally charge Epstein’s four female assistants and unnamed
employees of the specific Epstein-owned corporate entity, but also extended the provision to “any
potential co-conspirators” for any criminal charge arising from the ongoing federal investigation.
This language had evolved from similar language that Villafafia had included in the USAO’s
earlier proposed draft federal plea agreement.!?? Lefkowitz also again included the sentence
122 The language in the USAO’s draft federal plea agreement stated, “This agreement resolves the federal
criminal liability of the defendant and any co-conspirators in the Southern District of Florida growing out of any
criminal conduct by those persons known to the [USAO]... .”
79
DOJ-OGR-00023117
Extracted Information
Document Details
| Filename | DOJ-OGR-00023117.tif |
| File Size | 69.4 KB |
| OCR Confidence | 94.6% |
| Has Readable Text | Yes |
| Text Length | 3,348 characters |
| Indexed | 2026-02-03 20:33:20.967237 |