Rosie O’Donnell has denied spending time on Little St. James, the private Caribbean island of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Epstein’s private jet, which was used to transport guests to the island, was derisively dubbed the “Lolita Express” after claims it was used to fly underage girls to some of the late billionaire’s estates.
Following Epstein’s death by apparent suicide in prison in 2019, lists were shared on social media purporting to show the high-profile individuals who had visited the island, which lies east of Puerto Rico in the US Virgin Islands.
The names of several celebrities were baselessly added to the mix by a faction of social media users who have targeted public figures in an apparent campaign to link them to the disgraced financier’s crimes Added Epstein’s guests.
A Daily Mail Article published in February claimed that soon-to-be unsealed court documents from Epstein’s case “are expected to contain information relating to at least one ‘public figure’.”
According to the outlet, court documents refer to “alleged offenders” or individuals accused of “grave misconduct.” These people are not named in the file.
The report has fueled conspiracy theories about a number of celebrities accused of flying to Epstein’s island aboard his jet. Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers recently suggested that there is a “customer list” of Epstein.
Earlier this week, O’Donnell shared two videos on TikTok in which she discussed their decades-long friendship A league of its own co-star Madonna. She also spoke about the dinner parties that Madonna invited her to.
Since Madonna is one of the celebrities wrongly linked to Epstein, a TikTok user asked O’Donnell in the comments section, “Have you been to Epstein Island? Were you not in the flight log?”
O’Donnell answered the question with a curt “f*** no”.
Another TikTok user quizzed O’Donnell on another topic that a number of conspiracy theorists have pinned on celebrities, asking, “Are you part of the Illuminati? And how many people do you know that is? Don’t judge – I love you!”
“No, there is no Illuminati,” said the former co-host The view wrote back.
O’Donnell, along with fellow comedians Kathy Griffin and Chelsea Handler, are speaking out against allegations that they visited Epstein’s island and flew on his jet.
A list of 124 alleged island visitors – many of them celebrities whose politics lean more to the left – was shared on social media back in 2020 by former President Barack Obama.
However, a cross-reference of the list of screenshots shared on social media with the actual flight logs released in the court filings showed that 36 celebrities were named who had never boarded the plane, including all of the above.
Despite this, incorrect information continues to circulate. Part of the problem is that some names, like attorney Alan Dershowitz and former President Bill Clinton, show up in actual flight logs.
Epstein’s personal pilot testified against Epstein’s former partner Ghislaine Maxwell during the New York trial. In June 2022, Maxwell was sentenced to 20 years in prison for molesting girls for Epstein.
Lawrence Paul Visoski Jr. testified that he never saw evidence of sexual activity on airplanes when he flew Epstein and his high-profile passengers aboard the two jets he piloted on some 1,000 trips between 1991 and 2019.
He told the court he remembered Prince Andrew as a passenger on the jet, as well as actors Kevin Spacey and Chris Tucker. He also remembered violinist Itzhak Perlman and tech mogul Bill Gates, as well as politician and former astronaut John Glenn.
Former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell was also named by Visoski as a passenger on the Lolita Express.
There is no indication that those who flew on the jet were involved in any illegal activity.
Virginia Giuffre claimed she was molested by Prince Andrew and Maxwell flew her around the world at the ages of 17 and 18 for sexual encounters with billionaires, politicians, royalty and heads of state. Prince Andrew has denied all allegations against him.
news week previously reported that records show former President Donald Trump boarded Epstein’s plane seven times, despite no evidence of wrongdoing being presented.
Over the years, Trump has distanced himself from Epstein. After Epstein’s arrest in 2019, the then-president said he only knew Epstein because “everyone in Palm Beach” knows him.
“I had a fight with him. I haven’t spoken to him in 15 years. I wasn’t a fan of his, I can tell you that,” Trump said. But years earlier, he had paid more compliments to his former boyfriend.
