James PaTTERSON bought his own jet, a luxury yacht, and a Long Island mansion to go with his expensive Manhattan apartment. He'd also briefly } owned a controlling interest in the New York Post. { To cover his tracks, Hoffenberg had been taking money from { investors and using it to pay previous investors. It svas a Clas + Ponzi scheme—one of the biggest in history —and Hoffenberg a q ended up spending nineteen years in a federal prison. a Why was Epstein not implicated in the case? All that Hoffen- 2 . berg will say when asked is: “Ask Robert Gold.” 4 4 Another source suggests that Gold, the former federal prose- ES cutor who had helped Epstein recover Ana Obregon's money, q 4 kept the US attorney away from Epstein until there were only a 4 a few weeks left before the statute of limitations ran out. 4g . Robert Meister: 1985 As for Epstein himself, he would always deny any wrong: 7] 4 doing. Despite his proximity to Hoffenberg, he managed to avoid 4 4 aga cede salts 4 q obert Meister, the vici 3 ‘ R= and consulting | j in the mid-eighties, f. Palm Beach. Both men were q the other looked familiar. Th 4 ; and Meister filed the conver: ; 7 At that time, Les Wexner, w q 4 of Meister's insurance comp E q the people managing his mo : q Wexner was a billionaire 4 Were in a tangle. Maybe Epst 4 ‘YW ould also be grateful for the r 4 ere's evidence to suggest th 3 ‘ last Bear Stearns bonus— 4 4 Covered for Ana Obregon— 112 q 7 HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_021970