Jes Staley Photo Credit: GETTY IMAGES
Jes Staley, the former banking executive JPMorgan Chase says was responsible for any lapses that may be found in its business relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, says the bank is using him as a “shield” against the accusations against it.
Lawyers for Mr. Staley have reportedly filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit JP Morgan filed against him in this regard. “What is certain is that the bank cannot treat Mr. Staley as its public relations shield by asserting claims that lack any legal (or factual) basis,” the filing reads in part.
When JPMorgan filed suit against Staley in March, it argued that the personal relationship between himself and Mr. Epstein caused him to breach his duty to his employer “by putting his own personal interests ahead of the company’s.”
Mr. Staley was Jeffrey Epstein’s personal banker at JPMorgan. It has been revealed that he visited Epstein’s private island of Little St. James while the convicted sex offender was serving house arrest in Florida for his crimes.
“Presently, I’m in the hot tub with a glass of white wine,” Mr. Staley reportedly emailed Epstein. “This is an amazing place. Next time, we’re here together….I deeply appreciate our friendship. I have few so profound.”
Mr. Staley, who left JP Morgan in 2015 to head Barclays before stepping down in 2021 following a probe into his relationship with Mr. Epstein, has said that he had absolutely no knowledge of the criminal activity that is alleged to have taken place on that island.
He has asked the courts to dismiss JPMorgan’s demand that he return the over $80 million in compensation paid to him between 2006 and 2013, and to absolve him of any potential liability in the two lawsuits filed against the bank over its relationship with Epstein. Both suits – one by the USVI and the other from an unnamed alleged victim of Epstein – say that Staley’s email exchanges with Epstein, in which he utilized his work address, are evidence that JPMorgan knew or should have known about the pair’s close relationship before Mr. Epstein’s death in a Manhattan jail cell while awaiting trial for sex trafficking.
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