The Spy Planes That Helped Jeffrey Epstein Take Off

The Spy Planes That Helped Jeffrey Epstein Take Off

From Lever Time by David Sirota

May 28, 2026 · 36 min · Season 7 · Episode 25

About this episode

The episode explores Jeffrey Epstein's connections to the Iran-Contra scandal and his rise to power.

Everyone knows Jeffrey Epstein as a sex trafficker who died in 2019. But Epstein’s story goes further back than most people realize — and includes surprising links to the Iran-Contra scandal of the 1980s. Today on Lever Time, producer Natalie Bettendorf speaks with Drop Site News journalist Murtaza Hussain about his investigation into Epstein's ties to Iran-Contra and how Epstein built his wealth and connections in the shadows of public power. Listen to “President Rambo,” our episode of Master Plan about the Iran-Contra scandal. Read Murtaza’s full investigation on Drop Site News. Check out Dylan Gottlieb’s book Yuppies. Get ad-free episodes, bonus content, and extended interviews by becoming a member at ⁠levernews.com/join⁠. To leave a tip for The Lever, ⁠click here⁠. It helps us do this kind of independent journalism. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

People in this episode

Host: David Sirota

Guests: Natalie Bettendorf, Murtaza Hussain

Topics covered

  • Jeffrey Epstein
  • Iran-Contra scandal
  • sex trafficking
  • investigation
  • wealth and connections
  • independent journalism

Keywords

  • Jeffrey Epstein
  • Iran-Contra
  • sex trafficking
  • Murtaza Hussain
  • investigation
  • wealth
  • connections

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Drop Site News, Lever, Master Plan, levernews.com

Books & works: Yuppies

More episodes of Lever Time

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Lever Time podcast page.