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60 - PLACES/LANDMARKS/Great St. James.md
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@ -11,7 +11,7 @@ tags:
summary: "Great St. James is the island beside Little St. James that Jeffrey Epstein bought in January 2016 through Great St. Jim LLC, developed without permits, and whose estate sold it to Stephen Deckoff in 2023."
location: "U.S. Virgin Islands (off St. Thomas)"
created: 2026-06-20
updated: 2026-09-25
updated: 2026-10-08
relations:
- type: owned
with: "[[Great St. Jim, LLC]]"
@ -48,9 +48,11 @@ On December 21, 2018 the territory's Coastal Zone Management program issued a st
Great St. James was sold together with Little St. James in May 2023 to an entity controlled by the investor Stephen Deckoff, founder of Black Diamond Capital Management, for 60 million dollars. The two islands had been listed in March 2022 at a combined asking price of 125 million dollars, and the sale closed at well below half of that figure.[^8]
Forbes put Great St. James at more than 160 acres and Little St. James at more than 70 acres.[^9]
Deckoff announced plans to develop a luxury resort of about 25 rooms on one of the islands, with reporting citing a planned opening in 2025. The sale resolved part of the estate's obligation under the 2022 U.S. Virgin Islands settlement, which had also directed half of the Little St. James sale proceeds to the territorial government and required environmental remediation on Great St. James.[^7][^8]
The transaction transferred both islands out of the Epstein estate. Poplar, Inc. was listed as the signatory for Great St. Jim's 2017 annual report, with a signature that appears to be Epstein's; at his death the estate valued Great St. James and Little St. James together at 86 million dollars, against the 60 million dollar sale price. As of February 2026 no resort had been built, and the only construction permit Deckoff had requested for either island was for a warehouse on Little St. James.[^1][^9] The combined sale ended Epstein's ownership of the two adjacent islands he had assembled off St. Thomas, the second of which he had acquired and developed largely outside the territory's permitting system.[^8]
The transaction transferred both islands out of the Epstein estate. Poplar, Inc. was listed as the signatory for Great St. Jim's 2017 annual report, with a signature that appears to be Epstein's; at his death the estate valued Great St. James and Little St. James together at 86 million dollars, against the 60 million dollar sale price. As of February 2026 no resort had been built, and the only construction permit Deckoff had requested for either island was for a warehouse on Little St. James.[^1][^10] The combined sale ended Epstein's ownership of the two adjacent islands he had assembled off St. Thomas, the second of which he had acquired and developed largely outside the territory's permitting system.[^8]
### Purpose and Inspections
@ -58,9 +60,9 @@ The territory's 2020 complaint against the estate alleged that Epstein bought Gr
### The 2019 Stop-Work Dispute and the Governor
In May 2019 [[Jean-Pierre Oriol]], Governor [[Albert Bryan|Albert Bryan's]] nominee for commissioner of the [[Virgin Islands Department of Planning and Natural Resources|Department of Planning and Natural Resources]], told the Virgin Islands Daily News that Epstein was continuing illegal construction on Great St. James despite the stop-work order. Epstein complained to Bryan in text messages later released by the [[Department of Justice|Justice Department]]: "Jp going after me in the press!! Army corps told us ok. This is very wrong!" and "Accusing me of illegality!!!" Bryan replied, "We got u." Bryan did not answer the Daily News's questions about why he told Oriol to recuse himself. At a March 2026 briefing he said he had not helped Epstein secure permits, and that "even if I had told DPNR to grant his permit, it's perfectly within the right and power of the governor of the Virgin Islands."[^10]
In May 2019 [[Jean-Pierre Oriol]], Governor [[Albert Bryan|Albert Bryan's]] nominee for commissioner of the [[Virgin Islands Department of Planning and Natural Resources|Department of Planning and Natural Resources]], told the Virgin Islands Daily News that Epstein was continuing illegal construction on Great St. James despite the stop-work order. Epstein complained to Bryan in text messages later released by the [[Department of Justice|Justice Department]]: "Jp going after me in the press!! Army corps told us ok. This is very wrong!" and "Accusing me of illegality!!!" Bryan replied, "We got u." Bryan did not answer the Daily News's questions about why he told Oriol to recuse himself. At a March 2026 briefing he said he had not helped Epstein secure permits, and that "even if I had told DPNR to grant his permit, it's perfectly within the right and power of the governor of the Virgin Islands."[^11]
The stop-work order had been issued on December 21, 2018, in the last weeks of Governor [[Kenneth Mapp|Kenneth Mapp's]] administration; Bryan was inaugurated on January 7, 2019, and Epstein contacted him days later, corresponding with him in the months before his arrest. Epstein was arrested in [[New Jersey]] on July 6, 2019, two months after the exchange over Oriol.[^10] Under the estate's 2022 settlement with the territory, the 450,000 dollar remediation payment for Great St. James covered damage where, according to the government, Epstein had razed the remains of structures built by enslaved workers.[^7]
The stop-work order had been issued on December 21, 2018, in the last weeks of Governor [[Kenneth Mapp|Kenneth Mapp's]] administration; Bryan was inaugurated on January 7, 2019, and Epstein contacted him days later, corresponding with him in the months before his arrest. Epstein was arrested in [[New Jersey]] on July 6, 2019, two months after the exchange over Oriol.[^11] Under the estate's 2022 settlement with the territory, the 450,000 dollar remediation payment for Great St. James covered damage where, according to the government, Epstein had razed the remains of structures built by enslaved workers.[^7]
### Footnotes
@ -72,5 +74,6 @@ The stop-work order had been issued on December 21, 2018, in the last weeks of G
[^6]: "DPNR planning visit to Epstein's island." *Virgin Islands Daily News,* 2019. https://www.virginislandsdailynews.com/news/dpnr-planning-visit-to-epstein-s-island/ (planned complex of buildings; single minor permit approved; December 21, 2018 stop-work order; alleged violations involving a beach-bar cabana and a driveway).
[^7]: "U.S. Virgin Islands Attorney General Settles Sex Trafficking Case Against Estate Of Jeffrey Epstein And Co-Defendants For Over $105 Million." *U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Justice,* December 1, 2022. https://usvidoj.com/u-s-virgin-islands-attorney-general-settles-sex-trafficking-case-against-estate-of-jeffrey-epstein-and-co-defendants-for-over-105-million/ (450,000 dollars for environmental remediation on Great St. James; razed structures associated with enslaved workers).
[^8]: "Financier buys Jeffrey Epstein's private islands, with plans to create a resort." *NPR,* May 4, 2023. https://www.npr.org/2023/05/04/1173956903/jeffrey-epstein-island-sold-st-james ; "Jeffrey Epstein's two private islands sell for $60m." *AOL/The Independent,* May 2023. https://www.aol.com/jeffrey-epstein-two-private-islands-160710392.html
[^9]: Carlson, Suzanne. "Still no resort plans for Epstein's islands purchased by Deckoff." *Virgin Islands Daily News,* February 6, 2026. https://www.virginislandsdailynews.com/news/still-no-resort-plans-for-epsteins-islands-purchased-by-deckoff/article_84d776de-8427-4080-a1b5-6cf81418e23d.html
[^10]: Carlson, Suzanne. "Bryan unapologetic for texts with Epstein, doubles down on denial of wrongdoing." *Virgin Islands Daily News,* March 3, 2026. https://www.virginislandsdailynews.com/news/bryan-unapologetic-for-texts-with-epstein-doubles-down-on-denial-of-wrongdoing/article_8bab46a1-6075-4c7c-abec-6efb19622e62.html
[^9]: Chang, Richard J. "Exclusive: Billionaire Investor Buys Jeffrey Epstein's Private Islands For $60 Million." *Forbes,* May 2023. Copy filed as Exhibit 29 to document 226-30, *Government of the United States Virgin Islands v. JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A.,* No. 1:22-cv-10904-JSR (S.D.N.Y.), July 24, 2023; U.S. Department of Justice, Epstein Library, EFTA02810216. https://www.justice.gov/epstein/files/Court%20Records/Government%20of%20the%20United%20States%20Virgin%20Islands%20v.%20JPMorgan%20Chase%20Bank,%20N.A.,%20No.%20122-cv-10904%20(S.D.N.Y.%202022)/EFTA02810216.pdf
[^10]: Carlson, Suzanne. "Still no resort plans for Epstein's islands purchased by Deckoff." *Virgin Islands Daily News,* February 6, 2026. https://www.virginislandsdailynews.com/news/still-no-resort-plans-for-epsteins-islands-purchased-by-deckoff/article_84d776de-8427-4080-a1b5-6cf81418e23d.html
[^11]: Carlson, Suzanne. "Bryan unapologetic for texts with Epstein, doubles down on denial of wrongdoing." *Virgin Islands Daily News,* March 3, 2026. https://www.virginislandsdailynews.com/news/bryan-unapologetic-for-texts-with-epstein-doubles-down-on-denial-of-wrongdoing/article_8bab46a1-6075-4c7c-abec-6efb19622e62.html