Ghislaine Maxwell is serving 20 years in federal prison for trafficking children to Jeffrey Epstein.
The two people who actually ran his island while it happened are hiding somewhere in the world.
Now investigators are coming for them – and what the DOJ files reveal about what they knew is damning.
Little Saint James: The Island They Called Home for Three Years
Brice and Karen Gordon didn't just work for Epstein.
They ran his most secretive operations from the inside for nearly two decades.
The New Zealand-born couple – both former New Zealand Defence Force veterans – managed Epstein's Zorro Ranch in New Mexico starting in the early 2000s.
That ranch is where victims reported being drugged and abused, where anonymous tips to the FBI alleged that two foreign girls were buried in the surrounding hills after dying during violent sexual encounters.
New Mexico State Rep. Andrea Romero's office received claims from people alleging their sex organs and sperm had been harvested on the property.
None of those allegations have been proven.
None of them have been investigated – because the federal government shut down the only state probe that tried.
In 2016, the Gordons transferred from the ranch to Little St. James Island – Epstein's 70-acre private compound in the U.S. Virgin Islands where prosecutors say he trafficked underage girls to the world's most powerful men.
They moved in after the previous island manager died.
They called it home.
"When you come back from your New Zealand holiday on Jan. 14th, where will you return to?" a redacted email asked Brice.
"We will be returning to LSJ our new home," he wrote back.
Their names appear more than 11,000 times in the DOJ's Epstein files.
Brice was formally listed as "Island Manager" on a 2011 EPA permit application – signed documentation tying him directly to the most notorious private property in America.
Karen coordinated guest arrivals, meal orders, cleaning rotations, and the logistics of an island compound where dozens of young women were sexually abused.
The Ghislaine Maxwell Connection the Epstein Files Just Confirmed
The DOJ files show exactly what kind of operation the Gordons managed.
Karen coordinated directly with Epstein on guest arrivals – asking how long visitors would stay, whether they needed lunch, who would be at the dock.
Epstein used Brice to arrange visits for prominent guests, writing that Brice would "be able to coordinate the visit, lunch, tour of the island and of course use of computer and phones."
At the ranch, the guest list included filmmaker Woody Allen, former Prince Andrew, and Emirati billionaire Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem.
At the island, the same class of people – and the Gordons were the ones making sure everything ran smoothly when Epstein needed privacy.
In 2008, the island employed 70 staff.
By 2016, the Gordons were running all of it – coordinating directly with Ghislaine Maxwell and reporting to Epstein himself.
Why Epstein Put Brice Gordon in His Will for 2 Million Dollars
In 2011, Epstein granted Brice Gordon limited power of attorney to handle affairs in New Mexico.
That's not what employers do for groundskeepers.
That's what you do for someone you trust to keep your secrets – someone who knows where the bodies are buried, figuratively and, according to that anonymous FBI tip, possibly in the hills outside the ranch.
In his final will – signed two days before his death – Epstein left Brice Gordon $2 million.
The estate has been tied up in victim claims and that money was likely never paid out.
The question isn't whether Brice collected.
The question is what Epstein was buying.
The Day the FBI Raided Epstein Island and the Gordons Disappeared
Epstein died on August 10, 2019.
Two days later, FBI agents were on the island.
Inside, they found a dental chair bolted to the floor, ten yellow masks of men's faces mounted on the walls, and a chalkboard that read "power and deception."
The Gordons were already gone.
They stopped returning calls. They cut ties with every former coworker. News organizations across two countries sent reporters after them.
Relatives in New Zealand told investigators the couple had been living in the U.S. – but said they haven't spoken to them in decades.
Nobody can find them.
The Epstein Truth Commission Now Has Subpoena Power and a Target
The FBI reviewed Brice Gordon's PayPal account in August 2019.
That is the entirety of the federal government's post-death interest in the two people who ran Epstein's operations for 17 years.
No formal interview. No subpoena. No follow-up.
New Mexico State Rep. Andrea Romero is running the Epstein Truth Commission with a $2 million budget and full subpoena power.
She calls the Gordons "people of interest" and says she intends to compel their testimony.
The commission launched in February with bipartisan support and must deliver an initial report by July 31.
Maxwell went to prison. The pilots testified. The assistants gave depositions.
The two people who lived on the island – who managed the guest lists, coordinated with Maxwell, and were trusted enough to receive power of attorney and a $2 million bequest – have never been asked a single question under oath.
That ends when the subpoenas land.
Sources:
- Susan Greene and Sara McGiff, "Caretaker Couple Who Ran Epstein's Island Vanished," Daily Mail, March 6, 2026.
- "Jeffrey Epstein Files Reveal New Zealand Couple Managed His Infamous Island," NZ Herald, February 2, 2026.
- "Jeffrey Epstein Trust Listed New Zealand Man Brice Gordon for US$2M," NZ Herald, February 2026.
- "Brice M. Gordon – Epstein Files: 11,153 Docs," Epstein Exposed, 2026.
- "New Mexico Lawmakers May Subpoena NZ Couple Brice and Karen Gordon," NZ Herald, March 2026.
- "New Mexico Approves Comprehensive Probe of Epstein's Zorro Ranch," NBC News, February 2026.
