NEED TO KNOW
- In 1998, Elizabeth ‘Libet’ Ross Johnson signed the deed of her $24 million ski chalet in Vail over to a trust in her and Jeffrey Epstein’s names
- There was no change in ownership until 2020, when the property was sold by the trust after the deaths of both Johnson and Epstein
- One of Johnson’s five children signed as the trustee when the property sold in 2020
Jeffrey Epstein died owning a New York City townhouse, two Virgin Islands compounds, a ranch in New Mexico, a pied-à-terre in Paris and a bungalow in West Palm Beach.
He also owned a $24 million Colorado ski chalet in Vail.
On Aug. 26, 1998, Elizabeth Ross “Libet” Johnson personally transferred the deed for her home in the ritzy winter enclave to The Elizabeth Ross Johnson Amended and Restated Revocable Trust.
That trust, which was established just a few months prior in May 1998, has just two trustees according to the notarized warranty deed: Johnson and her financial advisor at the time — Epstein.
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Johnson was one of the wealthiest women in the country at the time thanks to her great grandfather Robert Wood Johnson — one of the three brothers who founded Johnson & Johnson. She was also one of the most elusive, and unlike many in her family, she shied away from the spotlight.
How the five-time divorcee met Epstein is unclear, though it is likely the two met through her boyfriend, hairstylist Frederic Fekkai, a known friend of Epstein.
The transfer of the property was similar to the one L Brands founder and fellow Epstein client Les Wexner made a decade earlier when he put his New York City home into a trust and named Epstein a trustee.
Epstein would eventually come to outright own that property, and at the time of his death, he still owned a portion of Johnson’s chalet in Vail.
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The deed grants Epstein the right to “convey, encumber, lease or otherwise deal with interest,” and it is noted that “a new affidavit must be recorded upon each change of trustees or members of joint venture.”
It is noted that the estate will be passed down to Johnson’s heirs, which it was upon her passing in 2016. Four years later, the trust sold the chalet.
Epstein had also passed away by that time, and the affidavit of sale was signed by Annabel Teal, one of Johnson’s five children.
It is unclear, however, if Epstein’s estate or his heir, brother Mark, received any portion of the money from that sale.
The home was built in 1996 and Sotheby’s, the listing agent for the 2020 sale, described the property as the “ultimate mountain escape to entertain and spend time with loved ones.”
It comfortably sleeps 18 people, offers seven en-suite bedrooms, has direct access to two nearby ski resorts, and includes a ski locker room, a four-season swimming pool and a sauna, according to the listing.
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