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=D-350 (Rev. 5-8-81) @ @ Ex-Epstein worker faces™” awspaper, city and state.) ate: t}aulsoro Edition: MOL} nN FALL? Bae} Posy Title: Ex . Epste.y En nes tT TOM Cl Chi : aracter WCE Classification; 3) c Submitting Office: ~AApA- n 8Ole> sent ir to make the buy from Rodriguez. Rodriguez, born obstruction charges cover agent and produced a ts affidavit, Alfredo Rod- agents affidav‘t fltredo Ro small bound book and several riguez offered to later sell | Epstein Papers listed Palm Beach sex offender's victims By SUSAN. SPENCER-WENDEL Palm Beach Post Staff Writer WEST PALM BEACH — A former employee of sex- scandal-plagued Jeffrey Ep- stein has been charged with obstruction of justice after the employee atovedly withheld The FBI says he tried to sell information to an agent. critical information from fed- eral agents — an expansive list of Epstein victims and . witnesses — as investigators probed the Palm Beach finan- cier for sexual exploitation of minors. According {o ar. FEL the information for $50,000 — Rodriguez calling it the “Holy Grail” or “Golden Nug- get” — to a government wit- ness, who is not named in the affidavit. The affidavit does not refer to Epstein by name, either In early November, an undercover FBI agent was in 195°, had told police that he worked for Epstein as a butler’ chauffeur, chef and house:,an* sometimes pick ing ug and cleaning sex toys left bchind after Epstein fin- ished his encounters with the underage girls. According to the affidavit, Rodriruez met the under Information could have altered case, b> EPSTEIN fom 1B affidavit. Rodriguez told agents of witness- ing nude girls whom he believed to be underage at Epstein’s pool area, of knowing that his former employ- er was having sex with underage girls, and of viewing underage por nography on computers in Epstein’s home. - ’ Special Agent Christina Pryor wrote that later review of the papers and book Rodriguez handed over revealed information “that would have been extremely useful in investigating and prosecuting the case, including names and contact information of material witnesses and additional victims.” “Had those items been produced in response to inquiries of state law enforcement officers or the Special ents, their contents would have ‘heen presented to the federal grand —— jury,” Pryor wrote. The information allegedly with- held by Rodriguez may have been a tipping point in the controversial probe of Epstein, Federal prosecu- tors ended up striking an extraor dinary deal with Epstein and his top-flight lawyers: agreeing to recall grand jury subpoenas if Epstein pleaded guilty td prostitution- related felonies in state court, which he ultimately did, Epstein received an 18-month jail sentence. He served 13 months and was allowed to leave the jail most waking hours of the day. An attorney for Rodriguez, Assis- tant Federal Public Defender Dave Brannon, declined to comment on his behalf. An unnamed government witness mentioned in the affidavit is likely one of the attorneys representing women in a gagple of current civil lawauits against Epstein, s The affidavit outlines how the unnamed witness had deposed Rodriguez, who denied having docu- ments, then received a call from Rodriguez later offering to sell for $50,000 the “Holy Grail,” “Rodriguez explained that the information contained hundreds of additional victims and their phone numbers from diverse geographic locations including New York, New Mexico and Paris,” according to the affidavit. Rodriguez is scheduled to be ar raigned in federal court Monday. Also in the affidavit are the reasons Rodriguez cited to the un- named witness for why he withheld the lists from investigators: He con- sidered it his property and should be compensated for it, and he feared the target of the federal investiga- tion, Epstein, would make him dis- appear or otherwise harm him. O susan_spencet wondey “peaect cont Z/E-MYt-1 09 tbedixra sheets of legal paper, which he told the agent he had tak en from Epstein’s home while employed there in 2004 and 2005. Rodriguez then began counting his $50,000 payoff. He was stopped, detained on the spot and questioned by agents, according to the . See EPSTEIN, 5B >