Mysterious deed claims new ownership of Jeffrey Epstein’s New Mexico ranch
Money, secrets, and sex abuse scandals made Jeffrey Epstein infamous. New Mexico state officials cut all ties with the financier, who owned and leased property south of Santa Fe for decades.
Behind the story: documents indicate ownership change in Epstein’s NM estate
Zorro Ranch south of Santa Fe was shrouded in secrecy. The billionaire behind the sprawling ranch is gone. Only Jeffrey Epstein and his accusers know the dark details of what went on there near Stanley, New Mexico.
Records show Epstein and the Zorro trust bought the ranch from the Gary King family, then built his 33,339 square foot mansion there in the 90s. Since 1993, the Epstein trust had state lease agreements for grazing cattle on public lands near his mansion. “To your knowledge, what was that land being used for?” KRQE News 13 asked New Mexico State Land Commissioner, Stephanie Garcia Richard.
“One can only speculate and I have to tell you Gabrielle, that my staff … you know this has been a difficult topic for us to tackle,” said Garcia Richard. “Thinking about what state land might have been used for has been you know, has been difficult.”
Garcia Richard took office in 2019. That year, she canceled a decades-long lease agreement the state had with Epstein for nearly 1,300 acres of grazing land. “We want to encourage a ranching family to use it, we want to encourage rec access to the area,” Garcia Richard explained. “We’ve even talked about some type of memorial site to just recognize what young girls, and women went through in this area and on state land.”
However, Garcia Richard explained, there’s still a problem. “It’s the inaccessible, landlocked state land.”
(Map of canceled state land leases with Epstein’s company, Cypress Inc.)
A state land map shows the two properties in blue that were canceled in the lease agreements. Garcia Richard said the bottom section is landlocked, and the surrounding private property owner refuses to grant public access.
“My staff and I went out to do a field visit, to access the exact acreage you were talking about and were denied access by the private landowner,” said Garcia Richard. The second section of public land is only accessible by foot, with no road in and out, according to state land officials.
Nearly 7,600 acres of private property surround the state’s land. “That’s a pretty big ranch,” explained Gus Martinez, Santa Fe County Assessor. “It is a remote property. The only way you can get access is really through the ranch hand, and so you can’t just really drive into that property because the gates are closed,” said Martinez.
KRQE News 13 requested records in Santa Fe County to verify how much land the Epstein estate still owns. Martinez was surprised to find records showing portions of the Zorro ranch had indeed changed ownership, according to a mysterious deed filed in 2020.
The Santa Fe County Assessor’s office located a deed filed with Santa Fe County in October 2020, transferring the Zorro Ranch from Epstein’s company, Cypress Inc. to Love and Bliss, a non-profit church for $200.
So, why would the Epstein trust sign over land to a Florida church for $200?
The listed address for Love and Bliss church is a small home in Redington Beach, Florida. Founded in 2018, the Christian non-profit’s listed President is 22-year-old Alexander Leszczynski. Florida records show he was arrested in 2017 for stalking, and again in March for battery.
The Love and Bliss deed is stamped with a notary signature, as well as Jeffrey Epstein’s. The document states it was created in April of 2019.
A Florida address for the attorney listed on the deed turns up as a realty office on Google, with no relation to an attorney listed on the document. The New York phone number on the deed sent News 13 to a Jack Dewitt Sales office, who said they’ve had the same number for 60 years, and did not have an attorney by the name of the person listed on the deed.
Deed is in the article if anyone wants to do some research.
https://www.krqe.com/news/investigations/deed-claims-new-ownership-of-jeffrey-epsteins-new-mexico-ranch/