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Investigative journalist Vicky Ward first wrote about Jeffrey Epstein in 2003 and has been closely following the new sex trafficking charges against the billionaire. She says a prevailing mystery is where his wealth actually comes from, and how his social connections helped him avoid harsher punishment. “This is a man who definitely trades in the knowledge he has over the rich and famous and uses it for leverage,” she says.

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Billionaire Jeffrey Epstein was arrested in New York on new sex-trafficking charges involving allegations that date to the early 2000s, according to law enforcement officials. Prosecutors hold a press conference on the new charges ahead of Epstein’s first court appearance expected Monday.

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In a TODAY exclusive, Jennifer Araoz shares with Savannah Guthrie her chilling account of alleged sexual assault by billionaire Jeffrey Epstein, which she says happened when she was in high school. Araoz is not part of the Southern District of New York’s case against Epstein, who pleaded not guilty to sex trafficking charges.

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Although Miami Herald investigative reporter Julie K. Brown long helped keep the story of Epstein’s wrongdoings alive through her investigation, the indictment of the billionaire pedophile this week also brought to the surface other instances in which overly-cautious editors and prosecutors alike helped keep the story buried for too long.

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