Rome Prosecutor's Office investigates Italians in Epstein Files: request for assistance sent to USA
Rome's Prosecutor's Office has opened a file on the Epstein Files for alleged sexual violence and sent a formal request for legal assistance to the US Department of Justice. Lapo Elkann rejects any association with his name.
Investigation opened in Rome on Epstein Files: request for assistance sent to Washington
Rome's Prosecutor's Office has formally opened an investigation into the Epstein Files on suspicion of sexual violence, as reported by ANSA Cronaca. In recent days, it has submitted a formal request for legal assistance to the United States Department of Justice to obtain documentation related to the matter, including documents not yet made public.
The objective, reported on the front page of La Repubblica, is to establish whether Italian citizens abroad or persons who acted within Italian territory are involved in episodes of a sexual nature that can be prosecuted by the Roman magistracy.
Origins of the investigation: the complaint filed by Differenza Donna
The investigation, coordinated by Deputy Prosecutor Maurizio Arcuri, originates from the complaint presented on 26 March by the association Differenza Donna. Through that submission, the association had requested the initiation of investigations into possible transnational crimes of trafficking, sexual violence and sexual exploitation of women, girls and minors, connected to documents already made public by the United States Department of Justice.
According to what was stated in the complaint, those documents already highlight "occurrences of Italian subjects, significant and non-isolated references to stays, movements and relationships in Italian locations — Capri, the Amalfi Coast, the Costa Smeralda, Milan and Rome — as well as contacts with subjects involved in economic and social circles of international significance who may have played a role in the network of exploitation and rape".
The president of Differenza Donna, Elisa Ercoli, defined the opening of the file as "an important step". "We deemed it necessary to request that all possible inquiries be carried out in Italy as well," Ercoli stated. "If there are facts that concern our country, they must be reconstructed and established with rigour, placing at the centre the women and girls possibly involved but also the system of economic and political influence that comes with it."
Lapo Elkann: "Associating my name with Epstein is unacceptable"
Entrepreneur Lapo Elkann has taken a public stance on the matter, rejecting any association with his name. "To see one's name associated with that of Jeffrey Epstein, in the absence of elements that justify such an association, is unacceptable," he stated, recalling the words of American Congressman Thomas Massie pronounced in the preceding days.
Elkann clarified that he encountered Jeffrey Epstein on only two occasions: the first in New York, when he worked as an assistant to Henry Kissinger, in a public context with figures from the world of politics and finance; the second in Rome, at a business event connected to Brasilinvest. He furthermore emphasised that in the public archives of the Epstein Files "there is no direct correspondence between me and him".
"I wonder whether the use of my name does not derive from the desire to divert attention from others," he added, announcing that he will protect his reputation "in every appropriate forum against anyone who improperly uses my name or disseminates news that is entirely without foundation". He specified that he is "at every moment fully available to the competent authorities to provide every element, clarification or information that should be deemed useful".
Elkann concluded by recalling his commitment against abuse and violence through the Laps Foundation, which has for years supported vulnerable people, with particular attention to women and children who are victims of violence.
Source: ANSA Cronaca