Essex Police have confirmed they are assessing claims that convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein used private flights from Stansted Airport to traffic women into the UK. The move follows allegations by former Prime Minister Gordon Brown that documents released in the US show Epstein flew girls from Latvia, Lithuania, and Russia into the Essex airport.
Brown wrote in the New Statesman that Epstein's jet made 90 flights to or from UK airports, 15 of which occurred after his 2008 conviction for soliciting prostitution from a child. He claimed Epstein boasted about Stansted's low charges compared to Paris, and that women arriving on private planes did not require British visas.
An Essex Police spokesperson said: 'We are assessing the information that has emerged in relation to private flights into and out of Stansted airport following the publication of the US DoJ Epstein files.' The force had previously declined to comment on the matter.
Stansted Airport stated that all private aircraft operate through independent fixed base operators, and that Border Force handles all immigration and customs checks for private jet passengers, who do not enter the main terminal. The airport said it has no visibility of passenger arrangements on privately operated aircraft.
Four British police forces are now assessing claims linked to Epstein. Thames Valley Police is evaluating two allegations against Prince Andrew, while Surrey Police is assessing another. The Metropolitan Police is criminally investigating Peter Mandelson for allegedly passing information to Epstein. Bedfordshire Police has not confirmed if it is assessing claims regarding Luton Airport.
The National Police Chiefs' Council has set up a national coordination group to support forces assessing allegations from the Epstein files. A spokesperson said: 'We continue to work collaboratively to assess the details being made public to allow us to understand any potential impact arising from the millions of documents that have been published.'
