Newsmax crime correspondent Jason Mattera reported Monday on "Wake Up America" that the huge desert ranch once owned by the deceased and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein is being repurposed.
Mattera reported, "According to court records, this picturesque stretch of southwestern charm was also one of the places where underage girls say the convicted sex offender trafficked and abused them."
Mattera said, "Now, in a Newsmax exclusive, we were taken inside the gates for a firsthand look at what Epstein left behind and the redemptive vision that's taking shape."
A well-known Texas family bought the ranch, Mattera said.
"The new owners are the Huffines out of Texas, led by the father, Don Huffines, who is running for Texas comptroller," Mattera said. "The family business is real estate and land development, and their motto is, 'Seeing beyond the obvious.'"
Devin Huffine told Mattera that buying the ranch meant separating the property from the predator who once owned it.
"We ended up looking at this as like just a, a once in a lifetime opportunity, a once in a lifetime deal," Devin Huffine said.
He added that some in the family weren't convinced it was a good idea.
"All the girls and my mom were saying, 'Absolutely not. No way. You can't do it. It's, you know, ick, nah, don't do it,'" Devin Huffine admitted.
Devin Huffine said the family allowed the state of New Mexico to send investigators to the property after the state reopened its review into the ranch earlier this year.
That latest investigation of the property found nothing.
Mattera reported that the family is now moving forward with renovation plans.
"The plan is for a Christian retreat," he said, "with prayer and fasting cabins, fishing, hunting, a shooting range, and horseback riding, a place where families and church groups can withdraw from the noise of the world."
Previously known as the Zorro Ranch, the massive site has been renamed as the San Rafael Ranch.
Mattera also said, "The Huffines do not have an exact date for when the retreat will open. They say they have paused development until they know the criminal probe is truly behind them. In a way, it's another example of Epstein still disrupting lives even from the grave.
"But once the family can get past the investigation and the permitting process, they can kick-start the project and bring a redemptive element to the ranch that no one saw coming."
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