'Venus Project:' Jeffrey Epstein Paid for Genetic Testing to Extend His Life, New Emails Show

Jeffrey Epstein paid thousands for experimental genetic tests to explore life extension, newly released emails suggest, revealing private projects tied to Harvard-linked scientists and a shadowy £160k scheme titled 'The Venus Project.'

Epstein's pipe dream - genetic experiments in plain sight

Five years after his 2008 conviction for sex crimes, Epstein funnelled money into a private genetic programme run by Dr Joseph Thakuria, a Harvard-affiliated researcher at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH).

The evidence lies in newly leaked emails and invoices showing Epstein's staff sent a £2,000 cheque in 2014 to fund sequencing of the financier's exome and fibroblast cells.

These cells, used in regenerative medicine, could potentially reverse tissue deterioration, a tantalising prospect for a man known to obsess over youth.

Thakuria, now unaffiliated with MGH, told CNN the work was part of a public database, the Harvard Personal Genome Project. He insists Epstein was just a 'research subject' and not a donor.

Epstein's interest stretched beyond basic data.

Thakuria's 2014 proposal outlined editing Epstein's stem cells with CRISPR, then a cutting-edge gene-editing tool.

The aim? Introducing 'mutations believed to increase longevity.'

Thakuria, sympathetic to victims, said in a statement that he knew nothing of Epstein's background and criminality.

'I feel terrible about what his victims went through,' he said. 'I regret at that time not knowing more about his background and the extent of his crimes.'

How much for the price of immortality?

The costs mounted quickly.

A £2,000 initial fee merely scratched the surface, as Epstein's men prepared the cheque.

'Mr. Epstein was enrolled in the Personal Genome Project, which would study his genetic predisposition to various health conditions. At one point, a $2,000 check was provided to cover DNA sequencing,' Thakuria said.

Thakuria's invoice hinted at a £193,400 roadmap: £10,000 to grow custom stem cells, £11,400 to sequence Epstein's entire genome, and a £160,000 line item for a project he called 'The Venus Project.'

No documents confirm Epstein paid beyond the initial sums, but his emails show frustration.

In one, he threatened to report Thakuria to his superiors for delays.

'If I do not have the results by June, I will lodge a formal complaint with your supervisors, administration, etc.,' Epstein wrote. 'I have been patient and understanding, the burden is now firmly on you to deliver,' he added.

'I hope you do so. I reserve all my options,' Epstein concluded.

Regenerative research was in its infancy, but Epstein's urgency was clear.

He saw genes as currency, not just for his health but for control. The invoices reference plans to test CRISPR on Epstein's cells, a move that would have placed him at the frontier of science. Yet MGH later denied approving Thakuria for such work.

What is the 'Venus Project' and why Epstein is fixated

Named after the Roman goddess, 'The Venus Project' appears to be Epstein's wilder ambition: a genetic analysis of 'facial features' to create a new human lineage.

Thakuria's notes cryptically mention '200 participants,' though no funding or data materialised. The idea aligns with Epstein's past. He once donated to the World Transhumanist Association, now Humanity+, which advocates for technology to 'reverse aging.'

Critics say he mused about using his DNA to engineer a 'new race.'

The project's vagueness worries experts.

Thakuria dismissed it as a 'preliminary idea' Epstein 'never pursued.'

But emails show he promised to deliver, leveraging Epstein's wealth to attract bioinformatics 'infrastructure,' a euphemism for custom-built labs.

Where is the ethics behind this?

Thakuria's collaboration with Epstein stemmed from a 2014 introduction by George Church, the Harvard geneticist who pioneered CRISPR.

Church apologised in 2019 for his ties to Epstein, calling it a 'nerd tunnel vision' oversight. Epstein had long courted academics, funding Church's £300k genome research. MGH, which denied Thakuria's involvement, referred questions to Church's 2019 remarks.

The ethical minefield is stark.

Critics argue scientists shouldn't trade with predators, while others stress separating research from the researcher's crimes.

Still, the emails paint a man who saw science as another tool to cheat time, even as the law closed in.

When Epstein died in 2019, his genetic experiments ended, even before that. But the files he left behind expose a world where money could once buy the best science, even as his crimes made headlines.