The recent release of court records in the Jeffrey Epstein case has reignited the national conversation about the accusations and revealed the alleged involvement of Sir Richard Branson, the billionaire founder of Virgin Group.
Court records show that Branson was among a select group of high-profile men accused of having sex with girls while being filmed by Epstein. The claim against Branson was made in 2016 by Sarah Ransome, one of the alleged Epstein victims.
In the wake of the renewed publicity surrounding the Epstein accusations, Branson is relaunching an entrepreneurship program in the hope of bringing more traffic to his upscale hotels. The program is called RM72 and began on January 9 at his Virgin Hotels in Dallas. The goal is to encourage individuals to start businesses and offer guidance on how to be successful.
The program was originally started in 2015 but has not been active since 2018, about the time that accusations of Branson’s involvement with Epstein became public.
The released court records show that Ransome claimed to have seen videotapes of Branson, England’s Prince Andrew, and former President Bill Clinton participating in sex acts with one of her “friends.” However, in 2016 and again in 2019, Ransome retracted her claims.
Upon recanting her statements in 2016, she said, per The Washington Examiner:
“I have spoken to my family at some length this morning and I would like to retract everything I have said to you and walk away from this. I shouldn’t have contacted you and I’m sorry I wasted your time. It’s not worth coming forward and I will never be heard anyhow and only bad things will happen as a consequence of me going public and I know this to be true.”
In 2019, she apparently told a reporter for The New Yorker that she had made up the tapes to draw attention to Epstein’s actions and to convince him that she had evidence that would be revealed if he tried to hurt her.
Yet, appearing on Good Morning Britain last week, Ransome said she was forced to retract her statements after threats by individuals named in court records and again said the videos exist.
There was no evidence of videos submitted to the courts, and Ransome is the only accuser to claim the existence of such tapes.
In a statement sent to The Dallas Express, Branson’s Virgin Group said: “We categorically reject all allegations made by Sarah Ransome. … The allegations are baseless and unfounded. The actions of Jeffrey Epstein were abhorrent and we support the right to justice for the many victims impacted by his abuse.”
According to Branson, the RM72 program will expand to several large cities in 2024 both as a way to attract people to his hotel chain and to offer help to those who are interested in starting a business.
Branson has seen a significant decline in his net wealth in recent years. In an interview with the BBC, he attributed some of his financial decline to losses from the COVID-19 pandemic that harmed many of his 400 business ventures. It remains to be seen how this latest release of Epstein court documents may come to affect his business dealings.
Note: This article was updated on January 16, 2023, at 5:13 p.m. to clarify phrasing, incorporate additional information, and expand the statement provided by the Virgin Group.
