The scandal surrounding disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein could have been stopped by his many celebrity friends who chose to turn a blind eye, according to attorney and advocate Carissa Phelps.

The author, attorney and advocate for sexually exploited runaway children, spoke to RT’s Mike Papantonio to discuss Epstein’s case. Phelps, who is herself a survivor of human trafficking, said while nobody should have the resources to enslave others and get away with it, “as long as we have the rich and powerful raping children and getting away with it, we will still have that same behavior and local communities won’t stand a chance.”

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On Thursday the 66-year-old was denied bail while awaiting trial in New York for federal sex trafficking. The financier with an estimated network of $559 million, has been jailed in the Metropolitcan Correctional Center since his arrest on July 6 for the alleged sexual abuse of underage girls from 2002 to 2005.

Several people in power have been embroiled in the scandal, including US Labor Secretary Alex Acosta who stepped down from his position after he was held responsible for securing a plea deal for Epstein in 2008.

The deal meant Epstein would serve only 13 months in custody, some of which was spent on work release, for soliciting prostitution from a 14-year-old. Acosta ensured his indictment was sealed, and that proceedings would not go forward to investigate 36 other potential victims identified by the FBI.

Despite his conviction for soliciting a child, Epstein appeared to continue to enjoy a large circle of so-called ‘Hollywood’ friends including President Donald Trump, Bill Clinton, Kevin Spacey and Woody Allen. Some of which, Phelps says, could have, at best, helped victims, and, at worst, participated in the heinous acts.

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“Most of those people that you mentioned probably could have helped victims have a voice and chose not to,” said Phelps.

“Some of those people may have had things themselves that they were involved with that were sinister and bad.”

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