Following the arrest of V.I. tax-break recipient Jeffrey Epstein on child molestation charges, Delegate Stacey Plaskett announced Tuesday she will make charitable donations in the amount Epstein donated to her election campaigns in 2016 and 2018.
“In light of new information and allegations that have been made against Jeffrey Epstein I have decided to make contributions to Virgin Islands organizations that work with women and children in the amount of his previous contributions,” Plaskett said in a statement.
“My litmus test for accepting campaign contributions has been based on whether the donor’s money was made legally or by ill-gotten means and that the contributor will not ask of me or my Congressional office for any special favors. All my contributions have passed that test. In this case however, I am uncomfortable having received money from someone who has been accused of these egregious actions multiple times,” she said.
She said she hoped any other V.I. elected officials who took Epstein’s money will do the same.
The move comes on the heels of news articles suggesting she might not return the money.
According to the Federal Election Commission website, Epstein made three donations of $2,700 each, for a total of $8,100 between 2016 and 2018. Those cover two election cycles, in which Plaskett received a little more than $722,000 in campaign contributions.
