Newly released Department of Justice documents reveal that convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein was permanently banned from Xbox Live in December 2013, part of a New York Attorney General initiative that removed over 3,500 registered sex offenders from online gaming platforms.

The ban stemmed from “Operation: Game Over,” a 2012 agreement between New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman and major gaming companies, including Microsoft, Sony, Apple, Electronic Arts, and Disney. Under New York law, registered sex offenders must provide all email addresses and online account identifiers to the state, which then cross-references that information with gaming platforms on a weekly basis.

Epstein received two emails on December 19, 2013. The first was a standard enforcement notice citing “harassment, threats, and/or abuse of other players” that was “severe, repeated, and/or excessive”. A second message clarified the actual reason: “This action is based on the New York Attorney General’s partnership with Microsoft and other online gaming companies to remove New York-registered sex offenders from online gaming services to minimize the risk to others, particularly children”.

Epstein had been a registered sex offender since 2008 following an 18-month sentence for solicitation of prostitution involving a minor. However, emails indicate he didn’t create his Xbox Live account until October 31, 2012, six months after Microsoft joined Operation: Game Over, meaning his account remained active for over a year before Microsoft terminated it.

Whether Epstein actively used the service remains unclear. A July 2014 email shows him asking, “Do we have an Xbox 360 Kinect?” and 2016 correspondence mentions purchasing an Xbox as a birthday gift for a young pal.

Source: XboxEra

Photo by Arturo Rey on Unsplash

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