An emotional scene unfolded as a model, who was a victim of Jeffrey Epstein, broke down in tears while discussing how mishandling by the Justice Department exposed her identity. Her story was shared on Tuesday during a session with Democratic members of the House Oversight Committee in Palm Beach, part of a broader investigation into the management of the Epstein files.
Identified as Roza, the model recounted her harrowing experiences, explaining how she was introduced to Epstein through Jean-Luc Brunel, a well-known French modeling agent. Brunel, who had established MC2 Model Management with Epstein’s support, was later found dead in a Paris jail cell, awaiting trial for his own accusations of sexual assault.
Roza’s journey from Uzbekistan to the United States began when she was just 18 years old. In 2008, Brunel brought her to the U.S., and the following year he took her to Epstein’s Palm Beach mansion. At the time, Epstein was under house arrest following his conviction for soliciting prostitution from a minor.
During her testimony, Roza shared how Epstein boasted about his connections to influential politicians to showcase his power. “Epstein used the names of powerful politicians to demonstrate his influence,” she stated, adding that he described himself as an investor in the very agency that had promised her a modeling career. Roza also recounted Epstein’s dismissive attitude towards his arrest, bragging about young women visiting him while he was in custody and his relationships with law enforcement officials.
‘Epstein used the names of powerful politicians to demonstrate his influence,’ Roza told the hearing.
‘He told me he’s an investor of the very agency that promised me a career, he also spoke of his arrest like it was a game, bragging about girls visiting his cell and his friendships with authorities.’
Epstein offered her a job at his science foundation to earn money after Roza’s modeling agency informed her that she owed them $10,000.
‘One day, his masseuse called me into his room where I was molested for the first time by Jeffrey,’ Roza said. ‘For the following three years, I was subjected to ongoing rape.’
The aspiring model, who was named as Roza, testified before Democratic members of the House Oversight Committee in Palm Beach on Tuesday as part of the congressional probe into the handling of the Epstein files
Breaking down in tears, she testified: ‘Jeffrey Epstein was under house arrest for the molestation of underage girls at the exact time he was abusing me’
Jeffrey Epstein attends Launch of RADAR MAGAZINE at Hotel QT in New York on May 18, 2005
Breaking down in tears, she testified: ‘Jeffrey Epstein was under house arrest for the molestation of underage girls at the exact time he was abusing me.’
Roza said that her agency relocated her to Miami for the duration of his house arrest so that she could be near Palm Beach and only once his sentence was served did she return to New York.
She said that years later she reported the abuse but kept her identity protected as a Jane Doe, only for it to become public in the botched release of the Epstein files.
‘I woke up one day with my name mentioned over 500 times, while the rich and powerful remain protected by redactions, my name was exposed to the world,’ Roza told the hearing.
‘I can only imagine the long-term impact this will have on my life.’
Her concerns were shared by another survivor, Jena-Lisa Jones, who blasted the government’s release of Epstein files without care for victims’ privacy.
She testified that husbands had learned of their wives’ abuse from press reports and children about their mother’s trauma from online documents.
‘Take responsibility,’ she told the Trump administration.
Epstein and Brunel with two unidentified women in a photo from the Epstein files
Brunel and Ghislaine Maxwell in a photo from the Epstein files
The committee also heard from other women who revealed how Epstein silenced his victims with threats and harassment.
Maria Farmer, the first to report Epstein’s abuse in a 1996 whistleblower complaint, said she had been ‘robbed’ of her personal life and career.
‘Why won’t the FBI release my full report?’ she asked. ‘Doing my civic duty has cost me dearly.’
California Representative Robert Garcia, the ranking Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, said: ‘We are taking this investigation to Epstein and Trump’s backyard.’
Committee Democrats are set to release a new report on Tuesday detailing how Epstein’s 2008 sweetheart plea deal helped enrich the financier and expand his sexual abuse network, Garcia said.
‘This report,’ he said, holding up papers, ‘is just the beginning that we intend to put out over the course of the months ahead.’
Garcia added: ‘No one is above the law.’
The Palm Beach hearing is the latest front in House Oversight Committee Democrats’ parallel investigation into the Justice Department’s handling of the Epstein files, running alongside the Republican-led probe.
Their focus is on Donald Trump’s association with the financier and how that may have influenced the release of the files.
Epstein was found hanged in his cell at Manhattan’s Metropolitan Correctional Center in August 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges, in a death New York’s medical examiner ruled a suicide.
British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell is the only Epstein associate ever convicted and jailed as a co-conspirator, sentenced in 2022 to 20 years for sex trafficking.
Brunel, the French modeling agent accused of funneling young girls to Epstein, was found hanged in his cell at La Santé prison in Paris in February 2022 while awaiting trial on charges including the rape of minors.
