New Mexico Prepares to Seize Epstein Land

Reviews
There aren't many ways to spin this topic. You report the facts, and you move on. That was the approach here, and it worked well.
Common Facts
Content (6)
Ass. Pre.
The Dai.
Fox New.
"New Mexico officials are in the process of canceling state land leases for the Zorro Ranch owned by accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein."
"In a letter to Epstein’s company Cypress, Inc., the state’s commissioner of public lands said the leases would be canceled effective Oct. 4 for multiple reasons."
Epstein killed himself while in federal custody.
Epstein was awaiting trial on sex crimes charges.
Balderas said "The original leases to Epstein appear to have no beneficial use justification to the State, but rather appear to simply have been taken by him to increase privacy and the landmass surrounding his estate. This sweetheart deal must be canceled and reassigned to a New Mexico ranching family."
"Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia said Epstein’s ranch was also obstructing official access to state trust land, which set the cancelation in motion."
Review Info (3)
First Published: 09/09/2019 11:27:53 pm
Last Updated: 11/30/-0001 12:00:00 am
Original Front Page Link
Associated Press
Content (7)
"Included in the paperwork were accusations that former Epstein girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell made misrepresentations on lease application documents."
"A lawyer for Maxwell did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the matter."
"Maxwell has been accused by one victim of recruiting young women for Epstein’s sexual pleasure and taking part in the abuse."
Maxwell has denied the allegations.
"A portion of Epstein’s Zorro Ranch in central New Mexico extends across state trust land that was under a decades-old contract with Cypress for grazing livestock. The contract was renewed in 2017."
"Garcia Richard acknowledged there was a ranch manager and 'nominal cattle' at Zorro Ranch."
"A voicemail left for Karen Gordon, who has been identified as a Zorro Ranch manager, was not returned."
Opinion (1)
“ 'The fact that this particular individual was able to use the State Land Office and state trust land to create this veil of secrecy around his private property is something that disturbs me greatly,' Garcia Richard said at a news conference, in reference to Epstein."
Article Info (4)
Date Published: 11/30/-0001 12:00:00 am
Date Accessed: 11/30/-0001 12:00:00 am
Article Author: Morgan Lee and Mary Hudetz
Click here to see the article
The Daily Beast
Content (2)
"New Mexico's attorney general concluded that the leases may have been obtained through 'illegitimate means for purposes other than ranching or agriculture.' "
“Moving forward, we will determine the best use of this land for the future.” Richard said
Opinion (2)
“This land was no doubt used to protect the privacy of Epstein and his co-conspirators, and today we took steps to take back this public land,” Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard said in a press release.
"Richard said some possibilities included leasing the land to a New Mexico ranching family or working to build a memorial to 'survivors of trafficking, assault, and other sex crimes.' "
Article Info (4)
Date Published: 11/30/-0001 12:00:00 am
Date Accessed: 11/30/-0001 12:00:00 am
Article Author: Julia Arciga
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Fox News
Content (12)
"The ranch, which is nearly 10,000 acres, is a mix of private and state-owned lands."
"New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas found Epstein improperly leased the land from the state."
A cancelation on that sale is in the works.
Balderas said in a statement, "Having fully reviewed the referral from the State Land Commissioner in connection with my office’s investigation into criminal conduct related to Jeffrey Epstein in New Mexico, I am issuing a determination that the State Land Commissioner should immediately retake State trust lands and cancel leases that were improperly given to him."
"Taking back parcels of state-owned land could make it easier to search the estate – the only one of Epstein properties that has not yet been raided by authorities. "
"Some of Epstein’s accusers have said they were assaulted at the ranch."
The leases date back to 1993 and were officially granted to Epstein’s holding company, Cypress Inc., in 1997.
“The rising number of allegations from survivors saying they were trafficked to the Zorro Ranch is reason enough for us to rip these leases in half and seize back this public land,” Garcia said in a statement.
"Epstein's suicide created an instant controversy as to how such a high-profile prisoner was able to kill himself — especially in the wake of an alleged suicide attempt just a little more than two weeks before."
"The convicted sex offender — who entered a controversial plea deal in Florida in 2008 over charges of assault on a minor– was again arrested by the FBI on July 6 in New York on allegations of operating an underage child sex trafficking ring. He was remanded to the MCC and denied bail."
"According to a New York Times report in the wake of his death, Epstein intended to use the $17 million New Mexico property to impregnate scores of females, in a quest to “seed the human race with his DNA.” While registries have been set up to determine if he did indeed procreate, no evidence of any Epstein offspring has been discovered."
"Nonetheless, Epstein started spending more and more time at the stately New Mexico abode after his 2008 conviction — perhaps an easy choice given that it was the only state where he was not required to register as a sex offender."
Opinion (2)
“Our desire to cancel these leases is because we don't want to conduct business with Epstein or his companies,” a statement from the New Mexico State Land Office said. “The existence of these leases wouldn't prevent law enforcement agency from raiding the house.”
"But Cypress indicated the property would be used for livestock grazing, and since the ranch wasn’t used for that purpose, the NMSLO says Epstein’s company is in violation."
Article Info (4)
Date Published: 08/30/2019 12:00:00 pm
Date Accessed: 09/11/2019 10:42:00 pm
Article Author: Bryan Llenas
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