16 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY FEBRUARY 26-MARCH 4, 2026 www.montereycountynow.com The full extent of the impact of the so-called “Epstein files” has yet to be felt, but it has undoubtedly shaken governments and people around the world. The late child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein embedded himself with powerful people around the world over his career as a financier and consultant. Many sought to distance themselves from him after his arrest on sex trafficking charges, while others claimed they didn’t know him despite evidence to the contrary. During the 2024 presidential campaign, Donald Trump and his supporters alleged the Biden administration was withholding the release of Epstein’s records that had been seized by the FBI, accusing the officials of protecting those in power who may have been involved in Epstein’s crimes. Although Trump later called the files a “hoax,” he did sign the Epstein Files Transparency Act in November after a discharge petition by U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky forced a vote by the House of Representatives to release the documents. In a rare show of bipartisanship at the federal level, the House voted 427-1 to release the documents, with Monterey County’s members of Congress, Jimmy Panetta and Zoe Lofgren (both Democrats), among those in favor. Those millions of redacted files, including emails, photos, flight logs and other correspondence by Epstein, are available for anyone to view online at justice.gov/epstein. A little more than half of the estimated 6 million files have been released. While the controversy may seem so far away, Epstein was known to visit Monterey County and had various local connections. The many hours a group of Monterey County Weekly reporters spent digging through the files did not reveal any obvious evidence of wrongdoing among local people connected to Epstein. In the following pages, however, we attempt to paint a picture of how Epstein’s world collided with ours—his whereabouts in Monterey County and who he interacted with. It’s important to note that being INSIDE THE EPSTEIN FILES Flight logs. Loans. Massage. Epstein’s local footprint. Somewhere along the way in the 1990s, Sophie Biddle Hakim came into the employ of Jeffrey Epstein as a massage therapist, visiting the infamous “Epstein Island” in the Caribbean at least several times. Based on numerous emails disclosed in the Epstein files up until 2019, she was a close friend to Epstein, who himself became the benefactor to not only Sophie, but to her husband and daughter. The Carmel Valley health and wellness expert appears in the files mostly just as “Sophie,” sometimes in emails where her name is redacted, but it becomes obvious who it is when read in context with other documents and sources. Her name also appears in flight logs made public through court documents. Her husband, Monterey chiropractor Dr. Gilbert Hakim, also shows up in the Epstein files, and may have consulted on Epstein’s back on at least one occasion. Gilbert’s and Sophie’s daughter, Dylan Hakim, now 22 and attending college in Boston, also appears in the files, in emails from Sophie with Epstein’s assistant Lesley Groff, coordinating travel for Sophie and Dylan to New York, paid for by Epstein. There is nothing in the files to suggest wrongdoing by the Hakims. What unfolds in reading the files is a close relationship between someone who worked for Epstein starting in the 1990s and who, for reasons unknown, continued the friendship after Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 to prostitution charges involving minors and became a registered sex offender. Sophie, Gilbert and Dylan did not respond to the Weekly’s requests for interviews. What is known about them comes in pieces gleaned from the 3.5 million files the federal government released on Jan. 30, along with court documents and other sources. Sophie was born in 1964 to the acclaimed yachting cinematographer John Scott Biddle and his first wife, Mary McMichael. As the son and daughter of prominent families, their engagement was announced in the New York Times in 1961. Mary, who helped John film America’s Cup races, had a stroke shortly after Sophie’s brother Scott was born in 1966 and died five years later. Sophie was just 7 years old. John was remarried to Amy McKay van Roden in 1977. John was inducted into the America’s Cup Hall of Fame in 2009, and Sophie Biddle Hakim of Los Angeles, as she was referred to in the Jamestown Press, accepted the award posthumously, along with her brother Scott. A photo shows them smiling at the ceremony, along with their stepmother, Amy. Biddle filmed the America’s Cup 10 times, and the Newport Bermuda Race 11 times, which earned him a spot IN EPSTEIN’S ORBIT A Carmel Valley woman worked for the infamous man who befriended her family. By Pam Marino named in the files doesn’t necessarily mean the person has been accused of any crime. The files contain countless seemingly innocuous documents, including newsletters Epstein subscribed to, junk mail and other random things one might accumulate over the years in their email inboxes. The world is watching. Here’s how Epstein fit into our little slice of it. -Erik Chalhoub, associate editor Many photos of Jeffrey Epstein were included in the 3.5 million files released by the U.S. Department of Justice on Jan. 30. In many cases, names of people Epstein emailed with were redacted, as in the case of the above email in 2012 from an unknown person to Epstein fondly recalling trips they took together, including to a “Ted convention in Monterey.” U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
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