Fresh data analysis has uncovered a ‘dramatic’ spike in private flights to Jeffrey Epstein’s private island in 2015, the year after major public figures were first publicly named in connection with the sex abuse scandal.
A Tripling of Traffic
According to the data firm Zalingo, the average number of private planes landing on Little Saint James each year more than tripled in 2015. The firm identified a total of 37 flights to the island between 2008 and 2015, verified using Justice Department records and three independent sources.
In the first seven years of that period, from 2008 to 2014, flight traffic was relatively low, with just two to six planes arriving annually. However, in 2015 alone, that figure jumped dramatically to 13 separate flights.
Shifting Flight Patterns and Speculation
The analysis also noted a significant shift in the origins of these flights. Prior to 2015, journeys predominantly originated from New York and Palm Beach, Florida, where Epstein’s mansion was located. But in 2015, flights began arriving from the US West Coast for the first time.
Zalingo stated that this sudden surge and change in pattern is ‘impossible to dismiss as routine’. The firm speculated that it could point to a coordinated cover-up effort. ‘When you break down the routes, timings, and sudden addition of new destinations, the pattern points toward a coordinated effort to move or secure sensitive material,’ a representative said. ‘Whether we’re talking about documents, digital assets, or people, the structure is too deliberate to ignore.’
The Context: Allegations Widen
This flight spike coincides with a key moment in the unfolding scandal. In December 2014, court filings in Florida related to Epstein publicly named high-profile individuals for the first time in connection with the allegations.
The filings, part of a case involving Epstein, claimed that Virginia Giuffre had been trafficked for sex with Prince Andrew, American lawyer Alan Dershowitz, and an unnamed foreign ‘prime minister’. Both Prince Andrew and Alan Dershowitz have consistently denied any wrongdoing.
Zalingo’s previous research also highlighted the sheer volume of travel to the island before Epstein’s first prison sentence, finding 2,348 flight records to Little Saint James between 1995 and 2007 – an average of nearly 200 per year. The subsequent collapse in traffic aligns with his 2008 imprisonment after a controversial plea deal on sex offences.
