Del. Stacey Plaskett received texts from Epstein during 2019 congressional hearing
By Annie Grayer, Kaanita Iyer, CNN
(CNN) — Stacey Plaskett, a Democrat who represents the US Virgin Islands in Congress as a non-voting delegate, received texts from convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein during a 2019 congressional hearing, the delegate’s office confirmed to CNN.
“During the hearing, Congresswoman Plaskett received texts from staff, constituents and the public at large offering advice, support and in some cases partisan vitriol, including from Epstein,” Plaskett’s spokesperson, Angeline Jabbar, said in a statement to CNN. “As a former prosecutor she welcomes information that helps her get at the truth and took on the GOP that was trying to bury the truth. The congresswoman has previously made clear her long record combating sexual assault and human trafficking, her disgust over Epstein’s deviant behavior and her support for his victims.”
The texts, first reported by the Washington Post, were released Wednesday as part of roughly 20,000 pages of documents made public by the House Oversight Committee.
The released text messages redact the name of the person Epstein was texting with on February 27, 2019 — the day former Trump personal attorney Michael Cohen testified to the House Oversight Committee about the president’s conflicts of interests, business practices and payments to Trump’s alleged mistresses to silence their stories before the 2016 elections.
The Washington Post analyzed the text messages and compared them to footage of the hearing to report Plaskett was texting Epstein.
At the time, Epstein had already been convicted of two state prostitution charges, which he served 13 months for. A few months after the text exchange took place, he would be charged with sex trafficking minors.
Epstein had ties to the US territory because he maintained a home on Little St. James in the Virgin Islands, which he acquired in 1998, and purchased nearby Great St. James in 2016, according to a lawsuit filed in 2020.
According to the Post, Epstein seemed to have been watching the hearing and his texts to Plaskett appeared to influence what the delegate asked Cohen.
The Post reported that in one exchange, Epstein texted Plaskett: “Cohen brought up RONA – keeper of the secrets,” referring to — and misspelling the first name of — Rhona Graff, a longtime Trump assistant.
Plaskett responded: “RONA??” She added at 2:25 p.m, “Quick I’m up next is that an acronym,” suggesting that she would be questioning Cohen soon.
Epstein responded: “Thats his assistant.”
At 2:28 p.m., Plaskett began questioning Cohen and asked about Graff, along with other Trump associates he had mentioned, according to the Post.
In another text, Epstein told Plaskett “Good work” at 2:34 p.m. — a minute after Plaskett wrapped up her questioning, the Post reported.
The trove of documents released earlier this week show that Epstein mentioned President Donald Trump multiple times in private emails. The release came amid renewed pressure on Congress and the Trump administration to release more documents related to Epstein.
The House is expected to vote on a bill next week compelling the release of all of the Justice Department’s Epstein case files.
Meanwhile, Trump directed the Justice Department on Friday to investigate Epstein’s ties to a slew of high-profile figures, including former President Bill Clinton.
This story has been updated with additional details.
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