DOJ files show Epstein’s Savannah ties

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) - Millions of documents released by the U.S. Department of Justice about convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein show several ties to Savannah through the aviation industry.

The files highlight Savannah’s role in Epstein’s travels, centering around private jets, aircraft sales and flight logistics. The documents do not place Epstein in Savannah specifically.

None of the people mentioned in the files from Savannah have been implicated in any wrongdoing involving Jeffrey Epstein.

Aircraft sales and service connections

In hundreds of emails released by the Department of Justice, Savannah appears repeatedly as a hub for aircraft sales, service and flight logistics involving Epstein.

One email thread from January 2016 has the subject line “RE: Jeffrey Epstein.” In it, an Epstein associate, whose name is redacted, reaches out to Savannah-based jet broker James Hagerty of Hagerty Jet Group about a plane for sale.

Hagerty responded with pricing information. When reached by phone, Hagerty said that was the only interaction he ever had with Epstein’s associates, and that Epstein did not buy the plane.

Emails from December 2011 show another Savannah jet broker, Kenneth Hart of Welsch Aviation, conferring with Epstein’s pilot, Larry Visoski, about the sale of a plane Epstein said “few people beside me would want.”

Days after that exchange, Hart asked Visoski to confirm Epstein was the President of Jege, Inc., the same company that owned what is now known as Epstein’s “Lolita Express” plane.

A representative for Welsch Aviation said the company discovered Epstein’s criminal history and did not do further business with him. In 2008, Epstein had plead guilty to procuring a child for prosecution in Florida.

Gulfstream maintenance work

Other messages show Visoski discussing plane renovations with employees of Savannah’s Gulfstream.

In one March 2018 email, a Gulfstream employee from Savannah apologized for plane issues and said the company wanted to make “Mr. Epstein” happy with the decision to use Gulfstream.

Epstein’s last communication with Gulfstream in the released files was in April 2019, two months before his arrest on federal sex trafficking charges.

WTOC Investigates reached out to Gulfstream multiple times, asking about the company’s relationship with Epstein and whether it had any communications with Epstein or his associates following his 2019 arrest. The company did not respond to our questions.

Savannah as potential destination

Some documents show Savannah discussed as a destination beyond plane maintenance.

In a 2014 email to Epstein, the sender wrote “the other girl I thought she could come [sic] is in Savannah.” The record does not identify the sender or the person referenced, and does not show whether any plan was carried out.

In a November 2017 email, Epstein’s assistant Lesley Groff told a travel contact Epstein was “considering going to Savannah, GA” on his private plane. She also asked about commercial flights for a female traveler to fly into Savannah, writing that Epstein “would pick her up there with his own plane.”

Epstein died on August 10, 2019 at the Metropolitan Correctional Facility in New York City. His official cause of death is listed as suicide by hanging.