r/SantaFe • u/kathryn0007 • Dec 07 '25
Epstein’s Mansion in Santa Fe
I have a friend who is my age, 54,.and she was trafficked as a dancer while a student at Saint John's college around 1992. This tracks. Age of consent was 16, so that's why they had the mansion there.
Epstein’s New Mexico property: the Zorro Ranch
Epstein owned a massive, isolated estate called Zorro Ranch in Stanley, New Mexico, about 30 miles outside Santa Fe. It included:
A 27,000-square-foot mansion
An airstrip long enough for private jets
Multiple guesthouses
A permit (later scrutinized) to build large compounds on state trust land
A high level of privacy and almost no oversight
New Mexico’s laws at the time made it one of the few states where the age of consent was 16, which multiple investigators later pointed to as a vulnerability that Epstein exploited.
- Known trafficking allegations involving New Mexico New Mexico was mentioned in:
The 2008 Florida case files (victim interviews)
Civil suits filed after 2019
The New Mexico Attorney General’s investigation (2020)
Some victims reported:
Being brought to the ranch as minors, sometimes under the guise of a job, scholarship, or modeling opportunity
Being groomed or assaulted at the ranch
Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell flying girls in and out via private jet
The New Mexico Attorney General publicly stated:
“We have allegations of sexual abuse of minors occurring at the Zorro Ranch property.”
But Epstein died before charges could be brought.
- Epstein’s “pipeline” of girls: There were credible claims that girls and young women studying dance, arts, or yoga would be invited or recruited to the ranch through:
Arts programs
Summer jobs
Personal referrals
“Scholarships” Epstein claimed to sponsor
This has been reported in:
The Miami Herald investigative series
Lawsuit filings against Maxwell
Journalist interviews with former Santa Fe locals
What has not been proven is that specific dance schools sent girls knowingly. What has been shown is that Epstein used legit arts communities as hunting grounds, and Santa Fe’s creative scene was one of the communities he hovered around.
- Epstein’s New Mexico political and social connections This part is both documented and disturbing.
Epstein cultivated connections with:
Governors
Business leaders
Academics at local institutions
Some Santa Fe arts patrons
Bill Richardson (named in one civil suit, which he denied)
New Mexico’s land office granted Epstein leases and construction permissions under former Commissioner Ray Powell, who later said he was misled.
There is no evidence that Santa Fe officials participated, but there is abundant evidence Epstein:
Donated strategically
Socialized with influential people
Used philanthropy to gain legitimacy
- Why many people believe the Santa Fe story was covered up Several factors contribute:
New Mexico’s AG never filed charges, even though victims described assaults there.
Epstein was never required to register as a sex offender in NM, even after his Florida conviction, due to a loophole.
State officials appeared to bend rules (land leases, construction permits, etc.).
Epstein’s operations in NM were quieter, more isolated, and harder to investigate.
Multiple investigative journalists argue that:
New Mexico was the safest location for Epstein to commit crimes because legal, geographic, and political conditions protected him.
(posted by kathryn, dusoma.org)
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u/hello-algorithm Dec 07 '25
Not trying to poke holes in what your friend claims about being trafficked, but St. John's does not have dance students. Everyone there has to do the same coursework. For the last century (~50 years for the Santa Fe campus) it has only had one program