Recently released documents from Congress and the U.S. Justice Department have shed new light on the extensive and multifaceted network cultivated by Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted sex offender and financier. These revelations detail his close relationships with prominent figures in the scientific community, his dedicated model scouting operations to procure young women, and the subsequent impact on individuals associated with him, such as Sarah Ferguson, the former Duchess of York.

A notable aspect of Epstein's scientific outreach involved Nobel laureate James Watson, the pioneering biologist who led Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory for decades. From 2016 through 2019, Watson and Epstein maintained a relationship that appears to have been closer than previously understood, marked by multiple meetings and invitations to each other's homes and exclusive events. In early 2017, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory planned an event, "A Night with Nobels: Art, Science & History," at Christie’s, to which Epstein was invited on Watson’s behalf. Watson also extended an invitation to Epstein for his 90th birthday party, a gala and fundraiser at Cold Spring Harbor in March 2018, describing him as one of the "good hearted people" he needed. Despite these invitations, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory stated it had no record of Epstein attending any events or making donations. The laboratory also clarified that Watson's communications with Epstein reflected personal interactions, not actions taken as a representative of the institution, and occurred years after his leadership duties had been terminated. Watson had been ousted from the chancellor position in 2007 following controversial remarks about race and intelligence, but retained honorary titles. Epstein, who expressed an affinity for "maverick and rebels" in science and appeared to sympathize with Watson's predicament, integrated Watson and his wife into his social life, including celebrating Epstein's 64th birthday in 2017. Plans for a lunch between Epstein, Steve Bannon, and Watson at Cold Spring Harbor in July 2019 were ultimately derailed by Epstein's arrest on federal sex trafficking charges the day prior. Watson died in November 2025 at the age of 97.

Epstein's interest in the scientific elite also extended to Stephen Hawking. In 2006, Hawking attended a science symposium funded by Epstein on the Caribbean island of St Thomas. Phillip Peebles, a Nobel Prize-winning physicist who also attended, recounted seeing "comely young women" during breaks, whose presence he later came to believe indicated they were Epstein's victims. Hawking was photographed at the symposium with two women, whom his family identified as his carers. Attendees of the event split their time between St Thomas and Epstein's private island, Little St James, where Epstein personally hosted guests. Hawking reportedly received a submarine tour on the island, with the vessel modified for his participation. While Hawking is referenced numerous times in the Epstein documents, his family has strongly denied any insinuation of inappropriate conduct on his part, particularly in response to an unsubstantiated allegation by victim Virginia Giuffre regarding his participation in an underage orgy on the island, and an FBI tip about Epstein visiting an "all male gay club" with Hawking in 2011.

Parallel to his cultivation of scientific figures, Epstein maintained a demanding and extensive model scouting operation, primarily through figures like Daniel Siad. Siad, a model scout who worked on commission for prominent agents like Jean-Luc Brunel (whom Epstein financially backed for MC2 Model Management) and Gérald Marie, remained a loyal correspondent to Epstein from 2009 until months before the financier's death. Siad's emails, numbering over 1,000 in recently declassified files, detail his efforts scouring villages in eastern Europe, islands in Sweden, central Havana, and other locations for young women for