Elon Musk Issued Subpoena in Lawsuit Over JPMorgan’s Ties to Jeffrey Epstein
U.S. Virgin Islands seeking documents from Tesla leader for its civil suit against bank
Elon Musk is being asked to turn over documents as part of a civil lawsuit by the U.S. Virgin Islands against JPMorgan JPM 0.84%increase; green up pointing triangle Chase over the bank’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, according to court documents filed Monday.
The U.S. Virgin Islands said it wants information from Mr. Musk because it believes the Tesla chief executive “is a high-net-worth individual who Epstein may have referred or attempted to refer to JPMorgan,” according to the court filing.
Lawyers in the case issued a subpoena for documents to Mr. Musk on April 28, but they have been unable to physically serve him with the court papers, according to Monday’s filing. So the lawyers are seeking a judge’s approval to issue the subpoena to Mr. Musk by email, the filing states.
In a tweet, Mr. Musk called the subpoena “idiotic on so many levels” and said that Epstein never advised him. “The notion that I would need or listen to financial advice from a dumb crook is absurd,” he said.
Mr. Musk also said Tesla had a dispute with JPMorgan a decade ago and withdrew its business from the bank. “I have never forgiven them,” he said.
Spokeswomen for the U.S. Virgin Islands and JPMorgan declined to comment.
It is unclear how much business Mr. Musk would have done with JPMorgan. He currently has a contentious relationship with the bank and his companies have largely relied on other banks.
Epstein, who had a residence in the U.S. Virgin Islands, banked with JPMorgan for a number of years until it closed his accounts in 2013, though bankers continued meeting with him years later, the Journal has reported. Epstein died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex-trafficking charges.
The U.S. Virgin Islands sued JPMorgan late last year in a Manhattan federal court, saying the bank facilitated Epstein’s alleged sex trafficking and abuse by allowing the late financier to remain a client and helping him send money to his victims.
The civil lawsuit alleges that JPMorgan received referrals of high-value business opportunities from Epstein and turned a blind eye to his activities. The bank has said it didn’t know about Epstein’s alleged crimes and can’t be held liable.
In March, the U.S. Virgin Island issued subpoenas to other billionaires, including Google co-founder Sergey Brin, to gather information for its civil lawsuit. In civil cases, lawyers can use subpoenas during the discovery process to get information from people who aren’t a party to a lawsuit but could provide evidence related to the case.
JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon is scheduled to be deposed as part of the case. Lawyers have already questioned several JPMorgan employees in this case and one filed by an unnamed woman who accused Epstein of sexual abuse. The cases are running concurrently in Manhattan federal court.