Share this @internewscast.com

A French modeling agent awaiting trial for raping minors was found dead Saturday morning in his Paris jail cell, just days after Britain’s Prince Andrew settled a lawsuit charging him with sexual abuse.

Jean-Luc Brunel, 74, was also under investigation for human trafficking and sexual exploitation in connection with a French investigation into potential crimes committed in France in connection with American financier and convicted pedophile, Jeffrey Epstein.

Brunel, a longtime friend of Epstein and his convicted pimp Ghislaine Maxwell, was found hanging by his bedsheets at about 1:30 a.m., the Paris prosecutor’s office told CNN. He was not believed to have been on suicide watch.

In a statement, Brunel’s attorneys said that Brunel “never stopped claiming his innocence” and that “his decision (to kill himself) was not guided by guilt but by a deep sense of injustice.”

Anne-Claire Le Jeune, an attorney for some of his alleged victims, however, told BFM-TV that Brunel’s suicide was “an act of cowardice … a desire to flee from responsibility and probably from guilt.”

Brunel was indicted on charges of raping minors over 15 and sexual harassment and arrested in December 2020 — as he was boarding a plane for Senegal. He told detectives at the time he was “going on holiday,” the Daily Mail reported.

After being released under judicial supervision for a few days last November, an appeals court returned him to custody

French authorities had begun looking into Brunel’s activities in connection with Epstein, who was found hanging in his Manhattan jail cell in August 2019 while awaiting his trial on sex trafficking charges. Virginia Roberts Giuffre, whose lawsuit against Prince Andrew was settled last week for an undisclosed amount, testified last year to keep him in prison. She has testified that Brunel abused her and more than 1,000 other girls that he procured for Epstein.

“The suicide of Jean-Luc Brunel, who abused me and countless girls and young women, ends another chapter,” Giuffre wrote on Twitter on Saturday.

“I’m disappointed that I wasn’t able to face him in a final trial to hold him accountable, but gratified that I was able to testify in person last year to keep him in prison.

According to the New York Times, Giuffre says in filings in a New York federal court that Brunel offered modeling jobs to girls as young as 12 and then brought them to the United States to “farm them out to his friends, especially Epstein.”

Giuffre also said that Epstein trafficked her to Brunel on “numerous occasions and in numerous places.”

As CrimeOnline previously reported, Andrew signed off on the settlement with Giuffre but did not admit to any wrongdoing.

“It is known that Jeffrey Epstein trafficked countless young girls over many years. Prince Andrew regrets his association with Epstein, and commends the bravery of Ms. Giuffre and other survivors in standing up for themselves and others,” the prince allegedly wrote in a letter.

He repeatedly denied Giuffre’s claims about him.

For the latest true crime and justice news, subscribe to the ‘Crime Stories with Nancy Grace’ podcast

[Featured image: L-R, Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein, and Jean-Luc Brunel aboard Epstein’s private jet/US Department of Justice, Southern District of New York]

Source: This post first appeared on

Share this @internewscast.com
You May Also Like

Hawthorne resident apprehended with missing firearm and large quantities of drugs following traffic stop.

Staff report GAINESVILLE, Fla. – William Blas Hernandez, a 27-year-old resident of…

Judge Delivers Sentence for Man Who Used Extension Cord to Discipline Stepchildren

Lerenzo Legardy (Dona Ana County Jail). A man from New Mexico, who…

Mother Accused of Stabbing Children and Starting Fire Believing They Were ‘Possessed by the Devil’: Prosecutors

Inset: Wendy Tolbert (Chicago Police Department). Background: The home of Wendy Tolbert…

Melbourne Arson Case: Police Explore Potential Connections

Five people are sought over an arson attack on a business in…

Police: Woman Used Insect Foggers to Remove Family from Apartment

Ervyana Davis (Metropolitan Nashville Police Department via WZTV). A Tennessee woman is…

Brave Woman Prevents Theft of Boy’s Water Sales: Police Report

Mikaya Williams (Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office). Background: Intersection of Edgewood Avenue and Moncrief…

Florida Attorney General Criticizes Judge and Immigration Groups in Supreme Court Response

Background: Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier at a press conference on June…

“Jury’s Decision Met with Erin Patterson’s Focused Gaze: Her Reaction to the Verdict”

Erin Patterson’s eyes were “fixed” on the jury as they delivered their…

Woman Assaulted with Rock and Screwdriver and Raped, Says DA

Inset: Daysnel Hernandez (Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office). Background: The area near the underpass…

19-Year-Old Faces Charges in Queensland E-Bike Crackdown Incident

A Brisbane man has been charged with multiple offences during a police…

Couple Arrested Following Nightclub Incident Involving Gun Threat

Staff report GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Early this morning, law enforcement apprehended Juan…

Verdict Anticipated in Erin Patterson Court Case

The jurors have reached a verdict in the murder trial of Erin…