Deutsche Bank reportedly flagged several Jeffrey Epstein transactions as being suspicious

While working to cut ties with Jeffrey Epstein earlier this year, Deutsche Bank officials discovered that the disgraced financier not only had dozens of accounts, but he had also made several suspicious transactions involving moving money out of the United States, three people familiar with the matter told The New York Times.

The bank decided to drop Epstein late last year, after the Miami Herald published a report on sexual abuse allegations against Epstein from teenage girls; earlier this month, he was arrested and charged with sex trafficking. He opened his first accounts with Deutsche Bank in 2013, five years after he was accused of sexual abuse but pleaded guilty to soliciting prostitution in exchange for a lenient sentence.

Even before the Miami Herald report, Deutsche Bank anti-money laundering compliance officers sounded the alarm, notifying executives that it wouldn't reflect well on the bank if the public learned Epstein was a client, the Times reports. The compliance officers also noted potentially illegal activity tied to Epstein moving his money outside the U.S., and filled out a suspicious activity report; it's unclear if that was filed with the Treasury Department's financial-crimes division, the Times says.

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Deutsche Bank is under scrutiny for its relationship with President Trump, having given him $2 billion in loans over two decades when other major banks refused to do business with him. When asked about the Times report Tuesday night, Rep. Katie Porter (D-Calif.) told MSNBC's Lawrence O'Donnell she believes it is "exactly on-brand for Deutsche Bank. They seem to be the lender of last resort for unsavory characters."