--- alias: - Richard D. Kahn - Rich Kahn category: Crime & Abuse Networks created: 2026-09-25 location: New York, New York relations: - end: 2019-08-10 fn: 1 role: in-house accountant type: employed_by with: '[[Jeffrey Epstein]]' - end: 2019 fn: 2 role: treasurer and director start: 2013 type: director_of with: '[[Southern Trust Company]]' - fn: 2 role: treasurer and director type: director_of with: '[[Maple Inc.]]' - end: 2022-12-01 fn: 2 reverse: true role: defendant in the territory's CICO action start: 2020 type: investigated with: '[[Denise George]]' - fn: 4 reverse: true start: 2026-09 type: investigated with: '[[U.S. Attorney''s Office for the Southern District of New York]]' - fn: 14 reverse: true role: counsel in the territory's estate litigation type: represented with: '[[Gordon Rhea]]' summary: Jeffrey Epstein's longtime accountant, treasurer of Southern Trust and co-executor of his estate, named a 25 million dollar beneficiary, sued by victims and the Virgin Islands, and under federal investigation in 2026. tags: - Person - RichardKahn - JeffreyEpstein - EpsteinEstate - Accountant - ShellCompany - VirginIslands updated: 2026-09-25 --- Richard D. Kahn is an accountant who was [Jeffrey Epstein](/people/jeffrey-epstein/)'s longtime in-house accountant, treasurer and director of [Southern Trust Company](/organizations/southern-trust-company/) and of the Virgin Islands corporations that held Epstein's real estate, and, with the lawyer [Darren Indyke](/people/darren-indyke/), co-executor of Epstein's estate and co-trustee of the 1953 Trust. The trust names Kahn to receive 25 million dollars, third in order of payment. The [U.S. Virgin Islands](/places/us-virgin-islands/) government sued him personally in 2020, victims sued him and Indyke in a class action the estate agreed in February 2026 to settle for up to 35 million dollars, and in September 2026 federal prosecutors in Manhattan were reported to be investigating both men. Kahn and Indyke deny knowing of Epstein's sex trafficking or knowingly helping him.[^1][^2][^3][^4] ### Treasurer of Southern Trust According to the Virgin Islands government's Second Amended Complaint of November 2022, Kahn, "as Southern Trust's treasurer, oversaw its accounting, invoicing, and tax reporting," and served on its board with Epstein and Indyke. Southern Trust had obtained a territorial tax-incentive certificate by presenting itself as a "biomedical and financial informatics" business, reported net income of 50.3 million dollars in 2013 and 67.5 million dollars in 2014, and received 158 million dollars from 2013 to 2017 from "a single source," 85 percent of its revenue; the territory alleged it "did not perform the 'informatics' business." Payments from [Leon Black](/people/leon-black/) began under a February 13, 2013 service agreement between Black and Southern Trust Company, Inc. and came to 50 million dollars in 2013 and 158 million dollars in total through 2017, according to the law firm [Dechert](/organizations/dechert/)'s review for [Apollo Global Management](/organizations/apollo-global-management/), which found no evidence Black paid for anything but "legitimate advice." The territory estimated that the Southern Trust certificate let Epstein avoid 80,576,236 dollars in taxes.[^2][^5] On January 24, 2014, the day the [Economic Development Commission](/organizations/economic-development-commission/) certificate for Southern Trust was signed by the commission's chairman, [Albert Bryan](/people/albert-bryan/), Epstein's office manager [Cecile de Jongh](/people/cecile-de-jongh/), wife of Governor [John de Jongh](/people/john-de-jongh/), asked Epstein to give 15,000 dollars toward the governor's final State of the Territory reception. An hour later she emailed Kahn: "Hi Rich, Can you please prepare a check for $15,000 made payable to Governor's Special Events Fund. Thanks."[^6] ### The Tree Entities Epstein formed Cypress, Inc., Maple, Inc. and Laurel, Inc. as Virgin Islands corporations in November 2011 and moved into them the [Zorro Ranch](/places/zorro-ranch/) in [New Mexico](/places/new-mexico/), the [9 East 71st Street](/places/9-east-71st-street/) townhouse in Manhattan and his house on Brillo Way in [Palm Beach](/places/palm-beach-florida/). Kahn was treasurer and a director of each. Their annual reports to the Office of the Lieutenant Governor of the Virgin Islands, signed by Epstein and Kahn under the attestation "ALL STATEMENTS CONTAINED IN THIS APPLICATION, AND ANY ACCOMPANYING DOCUMENTS, ARE TRUE AND CORRECT," omitted the properties. Maple reported cash of 21,265 dollars and expenses of 300 dollars for 2018 while paying 336,471.87 dollars in [New York City](/places/new-york-city/) property taxes; Cypress reported 301 dollars in 2018 expenses while paying 106,394.60 dollars in Santa Fe property taxes on November 6, 2018; Laurel reported 300 dollars while paying 196,673.56 dollars in Palm Beach property taxes that day. In 2013, the territory alleged, Kahn directed the outside accountant not to report the properties on the companies' tax returns. The complaint concluded that "Indyke and Kahn knew or should have known that their attestations were false" and that the transfers "were made for the sole purpose of sheltering these assets from collection."[^2] ### Other Entities and Payments Kahn was the initial manager, with signatory authority, of JSC Interiors, LLC, a New York company formed in November 2014 whose listed sole owner, identified in the complaint only by the initials JSC, was, according to the territory, "forced and coerced to have sex with Epstein." One of its bank accounts was funded entirely from Epstein's personal accounts, and Kahn described its second payroll recipient to the bank once as an interior designer, which the territory said appeared false, and once as a dentist. The same person was also on the Southern Trust payroll in 2019. Kahn and Indyke signed checks of almost 300,000 dollars from LSJE, LLC to young women or to a New York immigration lawyer, and more than 1 million dollars from the Butterfly Trust, of which both men were themselves beneficiaries. The territory alleged that in at least three cases they took part in arranging marriages to obtain immigration status for foreign women and that Kahn "provided a letter of reference for at least one immigration application and tax services to the spouses." On January 17, 2018 Kahn arranged with a bank for 100,000 dollars in cash to be ready for Indyke to collect. Kahn has denied the allegations and was not charged.[^2] The territory alleged that "from 2011 to 2019, Epstein and Epstein-owned entities paid ... over $10 million net" to Kahn, including loans still outstanding to Kahn-related entities, through HBRK Associates, Inc. and Coatue Enterprises, LLC, which it described as shell companies, and that Epstein entities' tax forms "did not report nearly the full compensation."[^2] Through their lawyers, Kahn and Indyke have said they had no knowledge of Epstein's crimes.[^1] ### Correspondence in the Epstein Releases Kahn's emails to Epstein in the Justice Department's releases are signed from HBRK Associates Inc., 575 Lexington Avenue, New York. On December 15, 2014 a correspondent sent him a contact card titled "President Leon Botstein.vcf" under the subject "Leon Botstein/Bard," and Kahn answered "thank you"; in 2016 Epstein's charity [Gratitude America](/organizations/gratitude-america/) paid [Leon Botstein](/people/leon-botstein/), president of [Bard College](/organizations/bard-college/), 37,500 dollars a quarter by checks drawn on [Deutsche Bank](/organizations/deutsche-bank/) Trust Company Americas.[^7][^8] On October 12, 2018, ten days after the disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi, Kahn sent Epstein a *New York Post* story on Richard Branson halting a Saudi project over it.[^9] In March 2019 Kahn took part in the exercise of warrants in the Israeli company [Carbyne](/organizations/carbyne/) by Southern Trust Company. On March 12, 2019 Darren Indyke told Epstein that the Israeli lawyer on the deal wanted a reference letter from "the transferring bank which is DB," and that he had "asked Rich to find out from Stewart Oldfield at DB with whom Rich has a decent relationship if that would even be possible at this point." Deutsche Bank had notified Epstein on December 21, 2018 that it would no longer service his accounts.[^10] On March 15 Kahn forwarded Epstein Carbyne's audited 2017 and draft 2018 financial statements and a three-year projection, noting "i have not yet reviewed..."; on March 27, replying to a further Carbyne email Kahn had forwarded, Epstein wrote: "Have alan do another for haze trust."[^11][^12] *The Daily Beast* reported in August 2020 that on the day after Epstein's death Kahn was photographed leaving the Manhattan townhouse with a bag that, according to a source close to him, contained Epstein's funeral clothes.[^13] ### Co-Executor Kahn and Indyke filed Epstein's will for probate on August 15, 2019, valuing his Virgin Islands property at 577,672,654 dollars, and filed a Certificate of Trust for the 1953 Trust on August 26, 2019. Testifying to the House Oversight Committee on March 11, 2026, Kahn said: "I believe that Epstein envisioned me taking this role as co-executor and co-agent trustee ... would be many, many years of working. So if I was not in Epstein's Trust and I was a corporate trustee, I probably would have received an executor fee of $12 million for serving as co-executor and serving as co-trustee. So that could be the only reason why he left me such a large bequest." He testified that the estate spends 10 to 15 million dollars a year on legal and other fees and pays the co-executors' legal bills. The estate's assets fell from 655.1 million dollars at the end of 2019 to 107.6 million dollars by September 2026.[^1][^2] The territory's action against the estate, Kahn, Indyke and the Epstein companies settled on December 1, 2022 for more than 105 million dollars in cash, half the proceeds of the sale of [Little St. James](/places/little-st-james/) and the return of more than 80 million dollars in tax benefits.[^5] In 2024 Governor Bryan appointed as attorney general Gordon Rhea, who had represented Kahn in that litigation; Rhea said he would recuse himself from Epstein matters.[^14] ### Victim Suits and Federal Investigation In the 2024 class action Doe 3 v. Indyke, No. 1:24-cv-01204 (S.D.N.Y.), victims represented by Boies Schiller Flexner alleged that Kahn and Indyke built "a complex web of corporations and bank accounts" that concealed Epstein's abuse and paid victims and recruiters while they were "richly compensated"; the estate agreed on February 19, 2026 to pay up to 35 million dollars to settle, and Indyke's lawyer, Daniel H. Weiner, said that neither co-executor "has made any admission or concession of misconduct." Victims filed a further suit in August 2026. Kahn's lawyer, Daniel Ruzumna, and Weiner said their clients "emphatically reject" any allegation of complicity in or knowledge of Epstein's crimes, and that any funds from the 1953 Trust would come "only after all claims against the Estate are finally resolved and the Estate is fully probated."[^1][^3] On September 23, 2026 the [Washington Examiner](/organizations/washington-examiner/), citing a source familiar with the matter, reported that federal authorities in New York were investigating Kahn and Indyke; the [Wall Street Journal](/organizations/the-wall-street-journal/), which first reported it, said prosecutors were requesting emails and financial records and asking witnesses about the men's roles in legal entities allegedly used to conceal Epstein's activities. The [Justice Department](/organizations/department-of-justice/) declined to comment.[^4] [^1]: Em Steck, "Epstein left millions to his closest advisers. A shrinking estate and new lawsuits may stand in the way," *CNN,* September 21, 2026, citing the 1953 Trust, estate court filings, and House Oversight Committee testimony of Kahn (March 11, 2026) and Indyke (March 19, 2026). https://edition.cnn.com/2026/09/21/politics/jeffrey-epstein-estate-lawsuit-vis [^2]: Government of the United States Virgin Islands v. Darren K. Indyke et al., No. ST-20-CV-14 (V.I. Super. Ct.), Second Amended Complaint (filed November 30, 2022), paragraphs 11 to 17, 76 to 117, 163, 166 to 175, 177 to 195; reproduced as ECF No. 1-1 in Government of the United States Virgin Islands v. JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., No. 1:22-cv-10904-JSR (S.D.N.Y., filed December 27, 2022). https://web.archive.org/web/20260117011558/https://www.justice.gov/multimedia/Court%20Records/Government%20of%20the%20United%20States%20Virgin%20Islands%20v.%20JPMorgan%20Chase%20Bank,%20N.A.,%20No.%20122-cv-10904%20(S.D.N.Y.%202022)/001-01.pdf [^3]: Reuters, "Epstein estate agrees to $35 million settlement in victim class action," *NBC News,* February 20, 2026; Doe 3 v. Indyke, No. 1:24-cv-01204 (S.D.N.Y., filed February 16, 2024, Judge Arun Subramanian), docket. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/epstein-estate-agrees-35-million-settlement-victim-class-action-rcna259863 ; https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/68260876/doe-3-v-indyke/ [^4]: Kaelan Deese, "Two Jeffrey Epstein associates under investigation by New York federal prosecutors," *Washington Examiner,* September 23, 2026. https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/justice/4739210/jeffrey-epstein-associates-under-investigation-new-york-federal-prosecutors/ [^5]: Dechert LLP, Memorandum to the Apollo Conflicts Committee, "Investigation of Epstein/Black Relationship and Any Relationship Between Epstein and Apollo Global Management, Inc.," January 22, 2021, pp. 3 to 4, 16 to 17, filed as Exhibit 99.1 to Apollo Global Management, Inc., Form 8-K (January 25, 2021), https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1411494/000119312521016405/d118102dex991.htm ; "U.S. Virgin Islands Attorney General Settles Sex Trafficking Case Against Estate of Jeffrey Epstein and Co-Defendants for Over $105 Million," *Government of the U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Justice,* December 1, 2022. https://usvidoj.com/u-s-virgin-islands-attorney-general-settles-sex-trafficking-case-against-estate-of-jeffrey-epstein-and-co-defendants-for-over-105-million/ [^6]: "V.I. Officials Enabled Epstein to Act With Impunity, JPMorgan Alleges in Latest Salvo," *St. Thomas Source,* June 16, 2023, on the January 24, 2014 certificate and same-day emails. https://web.archive.org/web/20240721172424/https://stthomassource.com/content/2023/06/16/v-i-officials-enabled-epstein-to-act-with-impunity-jpmorgan-alleges-in-latest-salvo/ [^7]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA02087019, DataSet 10, email to Richard Kahn, "Re: Leon Botstein/Bard," December 15, 2014. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%2010/EFTA02087019.pdf [^8]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA01348714, DataSet 10, check of Gratitude America, Ltd drawn on Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas to Leon Botstein, August 1, 2016. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%2010/EFTA01348714.pdf [^9]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA02619942, DataSet 11, email from Richard Kahn to Jeffrey Epstein, October 12, 2018. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%2011/EFTA02619942.pdf [^10]: New York State Department of Financial Services, In the Matter of Deutsche Bank AG, Deutsche Bank AG New York Branch, and Deutsche Bank Trust Company of the Americas, Consent Order Under New York Banking Law sections 39 and 44 (executed July 6, 2020), paras. 16-58. https://www.dfs.ny.gov/industry_guidance/enforcement_discipline/ea20200706_deutsche_bank [^11]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA02634615, DataSet 11, email chain "Carbyne warrants" among Tomer Toor, NJF Capital, Darren Indyke and Jeffrey Epstein, February 28 to March 14, 2019. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%2011/EFTA02634615.pdf [^12]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA01035810, DataSet 9, email from Richard Kahn to Jeffrey Epstein, "Fwd: Carbyne," March 15, 2019; EFTA02636176, DataSet 11, email from Jeffrey Epstein to Richard Kahn, "Re: CARBYNE," March 27, 2019. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%209/EFTA01035810.pdf ; https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%2011/EFTA02636176.pdf [^13]: U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA00163119, DataSet 9, press printout: Kate Briquelet and William Bredderman, "Jeffrey Epstein's Right-Hand Mystery Men: The Lawyer and the Accountant," *The Daily Beast,* August 30, 2020. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/DataSet%209/EFTA00163119.pdf [^14]: Suzanne Carlson, "Docs confirm Bryan pressed for special treatment of sex offender," *Virgin Islands Daily News,* February 2, 2026, https://www.virginislandsdailynews.com/news/docs-confirm-bryan-pressed-for-special-treatment-of-sex-offender/article_5e9483c9-38d2-406c-8bb0-e5757ce287f2.html ; Suzanne Carlson, "Bryan unapologetic for texts with Epstein, doubles down on denial of wrongdoing," *Virgin Islands Daily News,* March 3, 2026. https://www.virginislandsdailynews.com/news/bryan-unapologetic-for-texts-with-epstein-doubles-down-on-denial-of-wrongdoing/article_8bab46a1-6075-4c7c-abec-6efb19622e62.html