‘Yes, that’s Jeffrey Epstein’: Photographer Christopher Anderson releases never-before-seen photos

According to Anderson, he was assigned the shoot in 2015 by Jody Quon of New York magazine, for an article written by journalist Michael Wolff. At the time, Anderson said he knew little about Epstein beyond his connections to powerful men.

In his caption, Anderson wrote that Epstein insisted on meeting him before the shoot to discuss purchasing the photographs after publication. He described being let into Epstein’s home by a young woman with an Eastern European accent, whom he later saw setting up a massage table in a room adjacent to one of Epstein’s offices. She was followed by Epstein’s longtime private secretary, Lesley Groff.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Christopher Anderson (@christopherandersonphoto)

Anderson said Epstein immediately began questioning him about how the shoot would proceed and how much the photographs were worth. “He said he didn’t want anyone else to have the pictures after the magazine published them, and offered me $20,000 to own them after publication,” Anderson wrote.

“At the time, it was all the money in the world to me,” he added. “I had a young family and was living month to month.” Anderson said Epstein wrote a personal cheque and handed it to him, noting that the magazine had already approved such an arrangement, with the condition that Epstein would not see the photographs until after publication.

The image shows a printed email exchange between Epstein and a royal government office regarding payments involving the Duke and Duchess. (Instagram)

However, Anderson claims that after the shoot, Epstein abruptly withdrew from the story and began demanding the photographs. “I reiterated that the pictures were not his until after publication,” Anderson wrote. “Then the threats started.”

He further alleged that Epstein sent a “massive” bodyguard named Merwin, dressed in a long black overcoat and leather gloves, to Anderson’s studio. “It worked,” Anderson wrote.

According to the photographer, he eventually cashed the cheque and surrendered the hard drive to Merwin, who ensured that no additional copies of the images existed.

A stuffed tiger at Epstein’s residence. (Instagram)

Anderson said he recently rediscovered the photographs on an old hard drive. The images include a formal portrait of Epstein, photographs of him working in two different offices inside the house including one featuring a stuffed tiger as well as close-ups of his desk. One image shows a printed email exchange between Epstein and a royal government office regarding payments involving the Duke and Duchess.