The Dutroux-Epstein Affair, or, why everything you know about Jeff Epstein could be so much bigger.
Very recently, Ghislaine Maxwell, usually regarded as Jeffrey Epstein’s co-conspirator (though I would liken her more to being the Darth Vader to Epstein’s Emperor Palpatine), was found guilty by the state of all but one of six charges. It’s pretty widely known that the Epstein ring did not consist only of Epstein and Maxwell, and that many (for lack of a better word) “elites” have been implicated in their crimes. Most well known is probably Donald Trump (who had a legal complaint filed against him regarding this prior to Epstein’s arrest) and Prince Andrew, though there are also allegations (which I believe are probably credible) that Bill Clinton (who was visited by Epstein something like 17 times in the White House), Bill Gates, Kevin Spacey and essentially every famous person you ever thought you liked were in some way involved in Epstein’s circle.
Jeffrey Epstein died in 2019 awaiting trial in federal prison- despite officially being ruled a suicide, this is viewed with skepticism by many people from all across the political spectrum. Even though it’s now (I think) considered a right-wing Qanon thing to talk about, I remember vividly Alexandria Ocasio Cortez demanding a thorough investigation of Epstein’s death after it happened.
For a lot of people, the Epstein Affair has completely shattered their preconceived notions of how the world, especially the world of powerful people works. I’ve always thought, as a general rule, that immorality comes with wealth to a certain extent. To me, the Epstein Affair has proven that to an almost absurd extent.
The entire time I spent reading the first chapter of Programmed to Kill: the Politics of Serial Murder, my jaw was on the floor. There is, more than I think is typical when conspiracy theorists point out suspicious similarities between events, a lot of stuff that connects the Epstein Affair to a large political scandal in 80s and 90s Belgium. The Dutroux Affair.
Essentially, a man named Dutroux and several co-conspirators were arrested on charges similar to those of Epstein, though also prolifically including the murder of children (which I personally believe Epstein is probably guilty of, despite a lack of evidence. I don’t think it makes sense that EVERY of the likely hundreds, maybe thousands of victims of Epstein & Maxwell lived through their encounter with them). The investigation is, to the people of Belgium, seen as an obvious coverup by the government, who is partially implicated in the Dutroux Affair.
Eventually, these assertations seem to be proven true when the government sacks the judge on the Dutroux case, who was famous for prosecuting child abuse cases. This judge was very well liked by the people of Belgium. The effects of this sacking are gargantuan.
Protests erupted across Belgium, reminiscent of the small-scale protests organized after the death of Epstein, except for one thing: nearly every Belgian believed the Dutroux Affair to be a conspiracy on part of the Belgian government. One episode of this unrest includes a team of striking firefighters hosing down a court building to “clean out” the corruption in Belgian courts. McGowan also cites a report in a newspaper, which I now cannot find in the book, that only 1 in 5 Belgians thought the Dutroux Affair was NOT part of a conspiracy. Wildcat strikes were widespread across Belgium according to the CNN report. Of 30 people arrested for questioning in the Dutroux case, nine of them were police officers.
On it’s own, this Dutroux Affair stuff is an interesting but little known episode of Belgian history. There is something else about this that makes it mind blowing to me.
According to many people involved, including at least one victim, the Dutroux ring operated extremely similarly to how it’s thought Epstein’s was run. It was claimed that many wealthy businessmen and politicians were implicated as pedophiles in the Dutroux case. It also was claimed that acts of pedophillia were recorded as blackmail for the wealthy patrons of Dutroux’s underground child trafficking ring.
During what I would term the Epstein Affair, beginning with his 2019 arrest, there was a very interesting room found in his New York townhouse. The room contained hundreds of VHS tapes labeled “Young (insert name) plus (insert name).” This is, to me, one of the most fascinating pieces of evidence unearthed during the investigation into Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Though this is hardly a mainstream view, it is theorized by some (including me) that these VHS tapes functioned as a form of blackmail for the rich patrons of Epstein’s underground child trafficking ring. We also know, that during Epstein’s first trial around 2009, a prosecutor was told by a higher up that Epstein “belonged to intelligence” and that his case should not be proceeded further.
I think, as conspiracy theorists often say, there is something suspiciously similar between the Dutroux Affair and the Epstein Affair.
Between the end of World War Two and the end of the Cold War, there was a relatively little known, yet heavily documented CIA operation called Gladio. It entailed the funding, organization and equipping of secret Fascist “stay behind” forces in Europe who would begin guerilla warfare in the event of Communist invasion. Most well known of these groups is the Propaganda Due (commonly referred to as P2) mason lodge. It essentially was a Freemason lodge infiltrated by Fascist and pro-American elements- its membership included the three time Prime Minister of Italy Silvio Berlusconi. I won’t lie, haven’t read much on Gladio specifically yet, but I do recall hearing the Dutroux affair as being connected to Operation Gladio, and with what I’ve found so far I feel like the CIA being involved “fits the puzzle piece.”
IF, which I’m not saying there is, evidence that the CIA was involved with the Dutroux Affair, that creates what I think is an absolutely earth-shattering story.
If it were true, that would make an unbroken line of similarly organized child trafficking rings meant for the purpose of generating blackmail on powerful people to the benefit of the CIA and potentially other governments. Remember that Epstein was once said to “belong to intelligence.” It seems like, in the mind of the Belgian people, Dutroux too “belonged to intelligence.”
In 1993, at a University of California Berkeley lecture entitled “Conspiracy and Class Power,” political scientist and historian Michael Parenti said something to effect of “Everybody always says, with skepticism, ‘oh, so you believe the entire world is controlled by a cabal plotting together in some dark room?’ Of course they plan in rooms! Where else would they do it?”
It is indeed a very common strawman put up against conspiracy theorists (especially, in my experience, conspiracy theories that involve relatively plausible events rather than esoteric reptilian stuff) that we think that everything bad in the world is the product of some sinister actors plotting together in a secret room. If my hunch is true, though, something much more terrifying is proven: evil people do not come up with evil plots hidden away in dark corners, they do it right in front of our faces.
