American tycoon Jeffrey Epstein
A Portuguese neuroscientist confirmed two meetings with the pedophile, after the emails he exchanged with him were released. In none of the cases of mention of the Portuguese or Portugal is there any evidence of crime.
A complaint sent to US authorities in July 2019, with the subject “Jeffrey Epstein”, was sent weeks before he died in prison, while awaiting trial.
The email, now included in the files released by the US Department of Justice (DOJ), does not present new evidence or additional documentation, but asks that a possible connection be investigated between Epstein and allegations mentioned in a documentary about .
The sender justified the warning with an excerpt from the documentary in which he is remembering the abuse scandal at Casa Pia. According to the message, in the aforementioned episode it is stated that “American millionaires” traveled to Portugal on private jets “with the purpose” of sexually abusing institutionalized children.
The email does not identify names, specific dates or describe primary sources: it only suggests that the information could be of interest to the authorities.
The documentary segment is based on statements by Felicia Cabritaa Portuguese journalist who reports having found evidence of connections to North American citizens who, since the 1960s, would travel to Portugal with the alleged connivance of those responsible for the institution, abusing the victims.
The email, which is dated July 23, 2019, reads:
Dear Sirs,
A 2019 documentary, currently airing on Netflix Canada, titled The Disappearance of
Madeleine McCann, treats the four-year-old English girl who disappeared in Portugal in 2007
while on vacation with his parents and siblings. She was never found.In season 1, episode 3, Portuguese journalists refer to a scandal that occurred years earlier related to
child abuse in a Portuguese orphanage. The case is called Pact of Silence. Regarding the
Casa Pia orphanage, a journalist claims that it is a known fact that American millionaires
they flew to Portugal on private jets with the purpose of sexually abusing these children.This may be a line of investigation you want to follow.
Yours sincerely,
In the material now released, this will be the only direct reference to the Casa Pia process.
Emails with António Damásio
António Damásio, Portuguese-American neuroscientist and professor at the University of Southern California, confirmed to having met Jeffrey Epstein twice in New York, in contexts related to scientific research.
According to documents released by the Department of Justice, one of these meetings took place February 28, 2013in the millionaire’s house, and was linked to a financing request for a project in the area of neuroscience.
Damásio guarantees, however, that he was unaware of Epstein’s crimes and emphasizes that he never received any financial support from the businessman, who would commit suicide in prison six years after the meeting between the two.
According to the correspondence in the files released, Damásio’s approach to Epstein intensified at the end of February 2013. In one, the scientist recalled previous conversations to the millionaire and presented “exciting ideas” to investigate the cellular basis of feelings. The objective would be to start experiments without resorting to institutional loans that could compromise control of the project. Hence the direct question: would Epstein be willing to finance the work?
Thanks, Jeff. I am sending the email that was not delivered. I’m in New York now and will stay until Sunday. If there’s any chance I could see you for a few minutes, that would be great. Please let me know.
António
…
Dear Jeff: You may recall that I told you about some interesting new ideas for investigating the cellular basis of feelings. We’ve reached the point where we need to proceed experimentally, but I don’t want to do it through conventional funding requests, as we would obviously lose control of the ideas. Can we talk about the possibility of you financing this project? I will be in New York on Thursday and Friday and, if I am there, I can come to your house and give details about the project. Kind regards, Antonio
Damásio had difficulty reaching Epstein and Richard Saul Wurman, architect and founder of the TED Talks conferences:
Caro Richard:
I’m glad you saw Jeff Epstein yesterday, but I haven’t found a viable way to contact him yet. Can you help?Yours sincerely,
António…
Caro Richard:
I’m trying to contact Jeff Epstein about a very important matter, but his emails bounce back and his phone number
does not answer. Could you help me? Maybe my numbers are out of date and I can
provide me with the correct ones.Thank you very much in advance.
Yours sincerely,
Antonio Damasio
This intervention allowed him to speak to Lesley Groff, Epstein’s personal assistant, who confirmed the meeting for 6pm on the 28th, with the location proposed by Epstein: his residence in downtown Manhattan. “He said he had a dinner to go to, but he would have plenty of time to spend with you,” it reads.
After the meeting, an assistant at the University of Southern California sent Epstein documentation on the topic of the investigation.
The following day, March 1, Damásio wrote to the millionaire again, in a message that mixes informal language and references to robotics and attached files associated with the project. However, the request did not progress: Damasio claims that Epstein “politely” refused and suggested that the scientist look for “local” donors in California instead of financiers in New York.
The documents suggest previous contacts. In 2009, there are references to a dinner at Epstein’s house and invitations to academic events and round tables, including initiatives associated with psychologist Dan Ariely. Damásio confirms that, before 2013, he and his wife, Hanna Damásio, accepted an invitation to dinner at the same houseaccompanied by other academics from top institutions.
“My wife and I accepted an invitation to dinner at her home in New York, where we were accompanied by other scientists and professors from various elite institutions”, says the Portuguese scientist.
The neuroscientist’s name also appears in email exchanges involving biologist Marc Hauser, who mentioned Damásio as the centerpiece of a virtual reality project and, later, as a potential participant in a discussion about mechanisms of criminal behavior. In 2019, Damásio appears in a PBS documentary financed by Epstein, through the program Closer To Truth.
Still, António and Hanna Damásio insist: after 2013, they did not meet Epstein again They didn’t even keep in touch. And if they had known about the crimes, they would “never” have sought their support.
Other mentions of Portugal
The Epstein Files contain other mentions of Portugal, mainly related to flight records and technical stops in the Azoresnamely on the island of Santa Maria.
Among the elements mentioned is the private plane associated with Epstein, known as “Lolita Express” — a nickname that refers to the controversial novel by Vladimir Nabokov, frequently invoked in public references to the case. Aboard this plane, in addition to Epstein and his currently imprisoned girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell, several public figures traveled.
A second reference to Portugal in the documents involves the former Minister of Foreign Affairs Luís Amado. The name appears as part of a list of 15 personalities that an unidentified sender suggested as potential contacts of Epstein. Contacted by about a month ago, the former government official considered the matter “ridiculous” and assured that he had never seen Epstein.
It is important to emphasize that the 2019 complaint does not allow us to conclude whether there was an investigation, nor does it establish any proven link between Epstein and the allegations about Portugal.
Former Prime Minister of Portugal Antonio Costa it is also mentioned four times in emails addressed to Epstein, although no direct contact, meeting or exchange of information is established between Costa and the pedophile.
“Sorry, I’m in the conference room listening to the Prime Minister of Portugal… Nothing revolutionary, really“, reads one of the emails, written by Ariane de Rothschild.
