“My very wealthy Russians”: Inside brokers’ name-dropping frenzy to access Epstein’s townhouse

For nearly a decade, Jeffrey Epstein’s Upper East Side townhouse was one of the most closely guarded homes in New York. Newly released Justice Department documents show how Epstein tightly controlled access to the sprawling, off-market mansion, demanding buyer names, rejecting offers he deemed too low and expressing suspicion of ulterior motives. Locked out of one of the city’s most notorious properties, agents dangled the names of billionaires, oligarchs and financiers in hopes of securing a showing. The bar for who was granted access to the townhouse — later revealed to be the site of much of Epstein’s abuse of […] This article originally appeared on The Real Deal. Click here to read the full story.