## 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 was a classic Ponzi scheme one of the biggest in history-and Hoffenberg ended up spending nineteen years in a federal prison.

Why was Epstein not implicated in the case? All that Hoffen- berg will say when asked is: "Ask Robert Gold."

Another source suggests that Gold, the former federal prose- cutor who had helped Epstein recover Ana Obregón's money, kept the US attorney away from Epstein until there were only a few weeks left before the statute of limitations ran out.

As for Epstein himself, he would always deny any wrong- doing. Despite his proximity to Hoffenberg, he managed to avoid the blast radius.

Robert Meister: 1985

obert Meister, the vici
Rim kerage and consulting
in the mid-eighties,
Palm Beach. Both men were
the other looked familiar. Th
and Meister filed the convers
At that time, Les Wexner, w
of Meister's insurance comp
the people managing his mo
Wexner was a billionaire
were in a tangle. Maybe Epst
would also be grateful for the
there's evidence to suggest th
his last Bear Stearns bonus-
recovered for Ana Obregón-

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{"people":["james patterson","steven hoffenberg","robert gold","jeffrey epstein","robert meister","les wexner","ana obregon"]}