Gold and Wachtel
Gold and Wachtel was the law firm from which both of Epstein's successive primary legal representatives were recruited. Co-founder Robert Gold, a former SDNY prosecutor, is alleged by Steven Hoffenberg to have helped Epstein avoid indictment in the Towers Financial fraud by leveraging his prosecutorial network.
Gold and Wachtel LLP was a boutique New York law firm founded in 1984 at 10 East 53rd Street by Robert Gold—a former Assistant United States Attorney in the SDNY Criminal Division (1973–1977)—and Harry H. Wachtel (1917–1997), a civil rights attorney who had advised Martin Luther King Jr. The firm began representing Jeffrey Epstein no later than November 1988, when it was registered as process agent for Jeffrey E. Epstein, Inc. (NY DOS #1307306). Both of Epstein’s successive primary legal representatives—Jeffrey A. Schantz and Darren Indyke—were recruited from this firm, and co-founder Robert Gold is alleged by Steven Hoffenberg to have used his SDNY connections to shield Epstein from prosecution in the Towers Financial fraud. The firm underwent name changes after Harry Wachtel’s death—Gold and Wachtel to Wachtel & Masyr LLP to Wachtel Missry LLP—while maintaining institutional continuity in Epstein representation through at least 1998.
From Law Firm to Epstein's Inner Circle
Gold and Wachtel produced the two individuals who would consecutively manage Jeffrey Epstein’s legal, corporate, and financial affairs for a combined span of nearly 25 years. The first was Jeffrey A. Schantz (JD Fordham 1983), who served as Epstein’s “transaction counsel” from at least 1995, conducting negotiations with the Office of Foreign Missions over Epstein’s sublease of the former Iranian consulate building at 34 East 69th Street in April 1996 1. Schantz went fully in-house with Epstein by May 1995 and was named co-Trustee of Trust One in the 2001 Will, with authority over Epstein’s most sensitive financial structures. He remained Epstein’s primary legal representative until approximately 2003.
The second was Darren K. Indyke (JD Cornell Law 1991), who entered Gold and Wachtel in 1986 as a pre-law assistant—hired, by William Wachtel’s own later account to the Daily Beast, “as a favor” to Indyke’s father Bernard. But Wachtel’s characterization of Bernard as “a mailroom employee” was demonstrably false: Bernard Indyke was a manager and board member of Jackie Fine Arts Inc., a Gold and Wachtel client at the center of a $500M+ RICO tax shelter fraud. Darren first encountered Epstein at the firm in 1986, returned after completing law school in 1991, and by the early 2000s had replaced Schantz as Epstein’s exclusive counsel. The 2001 Trust explicitly designated Indyke as successor Trustee: “If JEFFREY A. SCHANTZ resigns, or at any time ceases to act as Trustee, without having designated an additional or successor Trustee, the Grantor appoints DARREN INDYKE as Trustee in his place” 2. Indyke would go on to serve as secretary of Southern Trust Company, signatory at Southern Financial LLC, co-executor of the estate, and beneficiary of the Butterfly Trust—all while maintaining the formal posture of independent legal counsel.
A third attorney, Steven J. Cohen, represented Epstein under the Wachtel & Masyr banner in 1998 federal court proceedings (SDNY 96 CIV. 8307) and is currently a partner at Wachtel Missry LLP, establishing a line of continuity from the original firm to the present. A single boutique firm thus produced the three known attorneys who handled Epstein matters across all successor entities, and the two primary representatives held positions within Epstein’s corporate structure that extended well beyond the conventional role of outside counsel.
Robert Gold and the Towers Financial Shield
Robert Gold (b. 1945) served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the SDNY Criminal Division from 1973 to 1977, assigned to the Official Corruption and Securities Fraud units—the same areas of federal practice that would later bear on a client facing white-collar exposure. Gold co-founded the firm with Harry Wachtel and served as co-managing partner throughout the 1980s and 1990s.
The central allegation concerning Gold comes from Steven Hoffenberg, Epstein’s partner in the Towers Financial Corporation Ponzi scheme ($460M+ fraud, Hoffenberg convicted 1995). Asked how Epstein escaped prosecution, Hoffenberg responded “Ask Robert Gold,” alleging that Gold “kept the US attorney away from Epstein until there were only a few weeks left before the statute of limitations ran out.” If accurate, the account would mean Gold drew on his former AUSA colleagues in the very office that might have prosecuted Epstein to run out the clock on criminal liability, allowing Epstein to emerge from the Towers Financial collapse unindicted and free to build his subsequent financial operations. The allegation rests on Hoffenberg’s testimony and has not been independently corroborated.
The personal relationship endured long after the professional one. Epstein’s 2001 Trust One document names Gold as “his friend, ROBERT GOLD” in the context of debt forgiveness—an unusual degree of intimacy in a legal instrument. Thirteen documents in the EFTA corpus show correspondence between Gold and Epstein continuing through 2011–2014, well after Epstein’s 2008 conviction. Gold’s post-firm career path—Ranieri & Co (crisis management, 1998–2000), DLA Piper, Wilson Sonsini, and finally Mishcon de Reya (2014)—is notable because the Ranieri connection overlaps with Schantz: FedEx records show Schantz sending packages to Ranieri & Co from the New York State Governor’s office in December 2003. A June 2014 email from Gold at Mishcon references “spent the day in Paris working with Alan,” though the identity of “Alan” remains unestablished.
The Jackie Fine Arts Nexus
The intersection of Gold and Wachtel, Jackie Fine Arts Inc., and the Indyke family connects several threads of the Epstein record. Jackie Fine Arts was a fraudulent art reproduction tax shelter operation run by Herman Finesod that generated over $500 million in fraudulent tax deductions. The scheme sold lithograph reproduction rights to wealthy investors at inflated prices, allowing them to claim outsized charitable deductions. The operation was eventually dismantled through RICO litigation across at least eight federal districts between 1983 and 1992.
Gold and Wachtel represented Jackie Fine Arts as a client and personally defended Finesod on appeal. William B. Wachtel appeared on the brief for Finesod in Faircloth v. Finesod (938 F.2d 513, 4th Cir. 1991). Simultaneously, Bernard Indyke—not a “mailroom employee” as Wachtel later claimed, but a manager and board member of Jackie Fine Arts—had a son working at the firm. That son, Darren, was hired by Wachtel in 1986 as a pre-law assistant through the Bernard connection. The chronology is notable: Wachtel was simultaneously defending the principal of a $500M fraud whose operations were managed by Bernard Indyke, while employing Bernard’s son Darren in the same office where Epstein was already a client. Darren Indyke’s first encounter with Epstein occurred at Gold and Wachtel in 1986, establishing a relationship that would define Epstein’s operational structure for the next 33 years.
The convergence shows Gold and Wachtel operating in a setting where high-value tax-shelter clients, the people who ran them, and the attorneys who served them overlapped. The Jackie Fine Arts representation places the firm within a pattern of aggressive financial structuring that predates its documented role in Epstein’s affairs.
Firm Succession and Institutional Continuity
Gold and Wachtel underwent a series of transformations while maintaining continuous service to Epstein. The original firm operated from 10 East 53rd Street, New York, NY 10022, with a secondary office at 425 Eagle Rock Avenue, Roseland, NJ 07068. By December 1994, the firm had reorganized: Wachtel Missry LLP was incorporated on December 13, 1994 (NY DOS #1875279) at 885 Second Avenue, 47th Floor. An intermediate entity, Wachtel & Masyr LLP, operated from 110 East 59th Street and represented Epstein in the 1998 United States v. Epstein case through attorney Steven J. Cohen.
The succession tracks Harry Wachtel’s death in February 1997 and Robert Gold’s departure from the firm in the late 1990s. “Masyr” in the successor name refers to Jesse Masyr, a Gold and Wachtel attorney whose name appears 141 times in the Epstein document corpus. Masyr later joined William B. Wachtel (Harry’s son) as an officer of Saker Aviation Services (ticker: SKAS), an FBO and charter aviation company where both appear across 25 SEC filings. The current entity, Wachtel Missry LLP, retains Steven J. Cohen as a partner, completing a line of succession from Gold and Wachtel to the present day.
FEC records identify at least four firm personnel making political contributions under the Gold & Wachtel name between 1987 and 1998: William B. Wachtel (donations to Bill Bradley), Jesse Masyr (to Alfonse D’Amato), Deborah S. Clark (to Charles Schumer), and William Dowling (to Robert Abrams). The firm’s broader client roster—recovered through NY Secretary of State address searches—includes O’Sea Inc. (DOS 1471429), International Federation of Jeunesses Musicales (DOS 1384964), Academy Center LP (DOS 1898217), Academy Store LP (DOS 1898213), Associated Buy Liquor Rite Merchants Inc. (DOS 967302), and AIDS-Care Management (DOS 1184070). The diversity of these clients suggests a general commercial practice; the Epstein relationship was not the firm’s sole activity but rather one thread in a broader practice that included real estate, corporate formation, and litigation.
Saker Aviation: The Post-Firm Venture
Saker Aviation Services Inc. (OTC: SKAS) represents the most visible post-dissolution enterprise connecting former Gold and Wachtel principals. William B. Wachtel serves as chairman and Jesse Masyr—a former firm attorney who gave his name to the successor entity Wachtel & Masyr—appears across 25 SEC filings for the company. Saker operates as a fixed-base operator (FBO) providing fueling, hangar, and charter services at airports. An FBO company run by principals of Epstein’s former law firm is notable given the centrality of private aviation to Epstein’s operations, though no direct operational link between Saker and Epstein’s aviation activities has been established.
The Saker connection does, however, demonstrate that the Gold and Wachtel network remained cohesive after the firm’s dissolution. Wachtel and Masyr transitioned from law firm partners to business partners in an aviation venture, maintaining the professional relationship forged during the years the firm served Epstein. Whether this cohesion extended to coordinated activity related to Epstein or was merely the natural continuation of a pre-existing business relationship is an open question.
All Connections
8 total
All Connections
8 totalGold & Wachtel served as Epstein's law firm and process agent for J. Epstein & Company Inc. from 1988. Both Schantz and Indyke recruited from the firm. Co-managing partner Robert Gold maintained personal relationship with Epstein through 2014.
Co-managing partner and name partner. Former AUSA SDNY criminal division 1973-1977. Formed firm with William Wachtel.
Founding partner (Principal) per LittleSis. Founded successor firm Wachtel Missry LLP in Dec 1994.
G&W founding partner William Wachtel chairs Saker Aviation (FBO/charter). Former G&W attorney Jesse Masyr in 25 Saker SEC filings. Aviation company operated by Epstein former law firm principals.
From around 1988, Gold & Wachtel was the process agent for Jeffrey E. Epstein Inc./J. Epstein & Company Inc. Successor firm Wachtel & Masyr LLP continued representing Epstein through at least 1998 in federal court (SDNY 96 CIV 8307).
Schantz served as Epstein's transaction counsel from at least 1996 while at Wachtel & Masyr LLP (successor to Gold & Wachtel). Conducted OFM negotiations for 34 E 69th St sublease April 1996.
Indyke was an attorney at Gold & Wachtel. Father Bernard Indyke managed Jackie Fine Arts, a Gold & Wachtel client, suggesting a family recruitment pipeline into Epstein service.
Cohen appeared as counsel for Epstein at Wachtel & Masyr LLP in SDNY 96 CIV 8307 (1998). Third known attorney from the firm involved in Epstein matters.
All Findings
20 total
All Findings
20 totalcommunication (1)
Email from Jeffrey Epstein to 'Gold, Steven' on April 22, 2013 about rescheduling an inspection: 'Steve can we move the inspection to tues next week, I am not returning until then.' CC'd to Richard Bamen. This may be Steven Gold, a possible named partner of Gold & Wachtel, still in contact with Epstein 25+ years after the firm's founding.
relationship (1)
Firm evolution: Gold & Wachtel (at 10 E 53rd St) was Epstein's original law firm from ~1988, serving as process agent for Jeffrey E. Epstein, Inc./J. Epstein & Company Inc. The firm became Wachtel & Masyr LLP (at 110 E 59th St) by at least 1996. 'Gold' departed (name dropped from firm), while 'Wachtel' remained as named partner with new partner 'Masyr'. Both Schantz (active 1995-2003) and Indyke (Cornell Law 1991, active from early 1990s) came from this firm.
legal (13)
Wachtel and Masyr LLP represented Jeffrey E. Epstein in United States v. Epstein (96 CIV 8307 SDNY 1998) - eviction case from former Iranian consulate building. Attorney Steven J. Cohen of Wachtel and Masyr appeared for Epstein. Gold and Wachtel (a related/predecessor firm led by William Wachtel) also represented Jackie Fine Arts Inc and hired Darren Indyke in 1986 as a favor to Bernard Indyke. This establishes the Wachtel firm-Epstein relationship back to at least 1996.
Gold and Wachtel founded 1984 by Harry Wachtel and Robert Gold. Represented Epstein from 1988.
Gold & Wachtel was a boutique NYC law firm at 10 East 53rd Street, NY 10022, co-managed by Robert Gold and William B. Wachtel. Served as process agent for J. Epstein & Company Inc. (NY DOS #1307306) from 11/16/1988. Firm became Wachtel Missry LLP on 12/13/1994 (NY DOS #1875279). Successor firm at 885 Second Ave, 47th Floor, NY 10017.
[Merged from finding #2082]: Gold & Wachtel was a boutique NYC law firm at 10 East 53rd Street, New York, NY 10022. Co-founded by Robert Gold and William B. Wachtel. Represented Jeffrey Epstein from at least November 1988, serving as process agent for J. Epstein & Company Inc (NY DOS ID 1307306). Both Jeffrey A. Schantz (from 1995) and Darren K. Indyke originated from this firm.
Gold and Wachtel represented Herman Finesod on appeal in Jackie Fine Arts RICO fraud case. William B. Wachtel was on brief as defense counsel for Finesod in Faircloth v Finesod 4th Cir 1991. This means Wachtel was personally defending the man who ran the 409M fraud that Bernard Indyke managed, while simultaneously employing Bernards son Darren.
Court records document multiple lawsuits involving Gold & Wachtel: (1) Zhadanov v. Gold & Wachtel (SDNY 99-cv-05900, 1999, contract dispute), (2) Urse v. Gold & Wachtel (OHSD 94-cv-00604, 1994, civil rights employment), (3) Del Raso v. Gold & Wachtel (Bankr FLSB 94-00548, 1994), (4) Tri-State Sol-Aire Corp v. Gold & Wachtel (NY App Div 1997, malpractice suit), (5) Gold & Wachtel LLP v. Mark-Holli Realty (SDNY 97-cv-00308, 1997, contract - firm suing a client for fees). Cases span 1994-2000 indicating firm was active through late 1990s.
Gold & Wachtel underwent succession: (1) Gold & Wachtel (active by 1987, dissolved by late 1994), (2) Wachtel & Masyr LLP (active by 1998, at 110 E 59th St), (3) Wachtel Missry LLP (formed Dec 13 1994 per NY SoS, at 885 Second Ave 47th Floor). Steven J. Cohen represented Epstein under Wachtel & Masyr in US v. Epstein (96 CIV 8307, SDNY 1998) and is currently partner at Wachtel Missry, establishing continuity.
Gold & Wachtel personnel pipeline to Epstein: Jeffrey A. Schantz (JD Fordham 1983) served as Epstein's primary legal representative 1995-2003 and was original co-Trustee of 2001 Trust ONE with M bequest. Darren K. Indyke (JD Cornell Law 1991) replaced Schantz as primary legal representative 2003-2019 and was designated successor Trustee in Trust. Indyke is identified as a G&W attorney in LittleSis records. Robert Gold co-managed the firm. Both Schantz and Indyke moved from G&W attorneys to roles within Epstein's inner circle.
The 1998 SDNY case records that Epstein leased the former Iranian Deputy Consul General residence at 34 East 69th Street from the Office of Foreign Missions in 1992 at 15K/month. Epstein occupied it until Jan 1996, then illegally sublet to Ivan Fisher at 20K/month without written OFM consent. Jeffrey Schantz conducted negotiations with OFM on April 19, 1996 about the sublet. OFM terminated Epstein's lease Aug 23, 1996. This is the earliest documented legal representation by the Gold & Wachtel successor firm.
Gold & Wachtel served as registered process agent for J. EPSTEIN & COMPANY, INC. (formerly JEFFREY E. EPSTEIN, INC.) at 10 East 53rd Street, New York, NY 10022. NY Corp ID #1307306. Filed circa 1988, name change 10/03/1997, final dissolution 04/04/2001.
Successor firm Wachtel & Masyr LLP represented Jeffrey Epstein in United States v. Epstein (SDNY 96 CIV. 8307, 1998). Attorney Steven J. Cohen of Wachtel & Masyr appeared as Epstein's counsel. Case involved US government evicting Epstein from former Iranian Deputy Consul General residence at 34 East 69th Street. Jeffrey Schantz identified as Epstein's 'transaction counsel' in same case.
G&W served as process agent for O'SEA INC (DOS 1471429) at 10 East 53rd St
O'SEA, INC. (NY DOS 1471429) lists Gold & Wachtel as its process server at 10 East 53rd Street, NY, the firm's original office address. The entity name and sparse record are consistent with a holding company or shell entity.
G&W served as process agent for Intl Federation of Jeunesses Musicales (DOS 1384964) and two Academy entities (DOS 1898213, 1898217) at its office addresses
Three additional Gold & Wachtel client entities appear in NY Secretary of State records: (1) GENERAL SECRETARIAT OF THE INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF JEUNESSES MUSICALES, INC. (DOS 1384964) at 10 East 53rd St with G&W as process server — an international music youth organization; (2) ACADEMY CENTER, L.P. (DOS 1898217) at 110 East 59th St with G&W as process server; (3) ACADEMY STORE, L.P. (DOS 1898213) at 110 East 59th St with G&W as process server. The two Academy entities appear to be a pair of related real estate LPs.
ASSOCIATED BUY LIQUOR RITE MERCHANTS INC (DOS 967302) is earliest known G&W client at 110 E 59th — predates firm's Epstein-era work
ASSOCIATED BUY LIQUOR RITE MERCHANTS INC. (NY DOS 967302) lists Gold & Wachtel as process server at 110 East 59th Street. The liquor industry trade association predates the Epstein relationship era, reflecting G&W's client base before Indyke joined. It joins AIDS-CARE MANAGEMENT (DOS 1184070) at 10 E 53rd, O'SEA INC (DOS 1471429), JEUNESSES MUSICALES (DOS 1384964), ACADEMY CENTER LP (DOS 1898217), and ACADEMY STORE LP (DOS 1898213) among six Gold & Wachtel client entities identifiable through NY Secretary of State address records.
intelligence (1)
Gold and Wachtel was founded 1984 at 10 E 53rd St NYC by Harry H. Wachtel (1917-1997, MLK advisor, VP of Rapid American Corp/Riklis) and Robert Gold (b.1945, AUSA SDNY 1973-77 in Official Corruption and Securities Fraud units). The firm was the institutional origin of much of Epstein's legal and corporate infrastructure. (1) Personnel pipeline: Darren Indyke started as a pre-law assistant in 1986 through his father Bernard's connection — Bernard was a manager and board member of Jackie Fine Arts (a G&W client, $500M+ tax shelter fraud, Herman Finesod convicted). William Wachtel told the Daily Beast that Bernard was 'a mailroom employee,' a characterization the record contradicts. Indyke first encountered Epstein at G&W in 1986 and returned after Cornell Law in 1991. Schantz (Fordham 1983) went in-house with Epstein in May 1995. Both successive primary legal representatives came from this firm. (2) Steven Hoffenberg's account that Robert Gold shielded Epstein from prosecution in the Towers Financial fraud: asked how Epstein avoided indictment, Hoffenberg said 'Ask Robert Gold' — Gold 'kept the US attorney away from Epstein until there were only a few weeks left before the statute of limitations ran out.' Gold's AUSA SDNY background (corruption and securities fraud) is cited as the source of those connections; the allegation is uncorroborated. (3) Gold is named in 2001 Trust One as 'his friend, ROBERT GOLD' for debt forgiveness, and 13 documents show personal correspondence after the 2008 conviction, 2011-2014. (4) Gold's later career: Ranieri & Co crisis management (1998-2000) — the same Ranieri firm Schantz sent FedEx packages to from the NY State Governor's office in Dec 2003 — then DLA Piper, Wilson Sonsini, and Mishcon de Reya (2014). A Jun 2014 Mishcon email reads 'spent the day in Paris working with Alan.' (5) William B. Wachtel (Harry's son) chairs Saker Aviation Services (SKAS) with former G&W attorney Jesse Masyr across 25 SEC filings, an FBO/charter company run by Epstein's former law firm partners. (6) Steven J. Cohen represented Epstein in 1998 from the successor firm and is now a partner at Wachtel Missry LLP. (7) The firm became Wachtel Missry LLP after Harry's death in Feb 1997, and Gold departed in the late 1990s. Firm succession: Gold and Wachtel → Wachtel and Masyr → Wachtel Missry.
identity (2)
FEC records identify 4 Gold & Wachtel employees/partners making political donations (1987-1998): William B. Wachtel (NYC 10024, K to Bradley 1987, K to Bradley 1989), Jesse Masyr (Somers NY 10589, K to D'Amato 1996), Deborah S. Clark (NYC 10024, K to Schumer 1997, K to Schumer 1998), William Dowling (Brooklyn 11217, + to Abrams 1992). Clark's filings show both 'GOLD & WACHTEL LLP' and 'GOLD & WACHTELL LLP' spellings. Masyr's name appears 141 times in the Epstein document corpus.
Steven J. Cohen, an attorney at Wachtel & Masyr LLP, represented Epstein in the 1998 SDNY case. Distinct from Schantz and Indyke, his appearance shows additional firm personnel handled Epstein matters. Cohen appeared on behalf of the firm in federal court filings.
location (2)
Gold & Wachtel firm address confirmed as 10 East 53rd Street, New York, NY 10022 from NY State corporate filing for J. Epstein & Company Inc. The successor firm Wachtel & Masyr LLP relocated to 110 East 59th Street, New York, NY 10022.
Gold & Wachtel had two known offices: 10 East 53rd Street, New York, NY 10022 (primary, per NY SoS filing for J. Epstein & Company 1988) and 425 Eagle Rock Avenue, Roseland, NJ 07068 (per USLawyersDB listing, phone 973-226-6000). The NJ office may have been Robert Gold's base, as the firm is listed as Gold & Wachtel LLP in Roseland.