Fact Check: Is the viral ‘Epstein Birthday Book’ drawing of him giving candy to children authentic?
PALM BEACH, FLORIDA: Social media users have been circulating a bizarre drawing that shows Jeffrey Epstein handing out candy to children and later receiving massages on a beach.
The late s*x offender was found dead in his cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York City on August 10, 2019, while awaiting trial on federal s*x trafficking charges. The New York City Office of the Chief Medical Examiner officially ruled his death a suicide by hanging.
Claim: Jeffrey Epstein's Birthday Book drawing shows him giving candy to children
On September 8, the House Oversight Committee cracked open Jeffrey Epstein’s dusty vault and released the full album from his 50th birthday in 2003. The 238-page scrapbook, subpoenaed directly from his estate, was filled with doodles, letters, and notes from his so-called “friends.”
But one image quickly raised eyebrows on social media. It resembled a cartoon timeline, showing Epstein handing candy and balloons to three little girls. Next to it, the disgraced financier appeared two decades later, reclining on a beach with lighter hair as scantily clad women massaged him.
“Another submission in the Epstein ‘Birthday Book’ appears to show Epstein grooming young children to give him massages on the island,” one X user wrote on September 8.
Fact Check: True, Page 155 cartoon from Jeffrey Epstein scrapbook verified by fact-checkers
Snopes reviewed the Oversight Committee’s massive release and confirmed that the disturbing sketch does exist in the album. The fact-checker stamped the claim as true.
The drawing appeared on Page 155, tucked in a section labeled “Friends.” The artist remains unknown since it wasn’t signed, but the details were unmistakable.
As shown in the viral posts, a 1983 inset depicted a man resembling Epstein handing candy and balloons to girls. In a 2003 scene, the same man appeared older and blonder, stretched out on the sand while a group of women rubbed him down.
In the background was a plane tagged “908JE,” a clear reference to Epstein’s notorious “Lolita Express.”
Mystery surrounds Jeffrey Epstein scrapbook sketch signed only 'Joel'
Right before the sketch, the album included a birthday note filled with doodles of women, a plane, and even a mermaid. It was signed simply, “Joel,” with no last name.
Some social media users speculated the artist might have been Joel Pashcow, a businessman and longtime Mar-a-Lago member. But there’s no hard proof. It’s worth noting that Pashcow’s name has already surfaced in the Epstein scrapbook scandal. According to The Wall Street Journal, he also penned a lewd letter about a woman Epstein and Donald Trump reportedly courted back in the ’90s.
That letter followed the sketch in the book and included a photo of Epstein holding a giant $22,500 check. The caption read: “Jeffrey showing early talents with money + women! Sells ‘fully depreciated’ [redacted] to Donald Trump for $22,500.”
Snopes couldn’t independently confirm whether Pashcow actually wrote that cheeky letter or drew the disturbing sketch. They even reached out to an email tied to him but hadn’t heard back at the time of publication.
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