France Forms Legal Team to Examine Epstein Files
The Paris prosecutor’s office announced on Saturday (14 February) the formation of a special team of prosecutors to review evidence that may implicate French nationals in crimes committed by convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The special team was established “in order to extract every element that can be reused within the framework of new investigations,” the prosecutor’s office told news agency Agence France-Presse (AFP).
According to several French media outlets including Franceinfo, the team will work closely with police and prosecutors from the national financial crimes unit.
Brunel case to be re-examined
Among the cases that will receive particular attention is that of the late modelling agency executive Jean-Luc Brunel, who was a close associate of Epstein.
He was found hanged in his cell at La Santé Prison in 2022 after being charged with raping minors and sexual assault.
Brunel allegedly raped, assaulted and abused a number of underage and adult victims, and arranged transport and accommodation for young women for Epstein.
Prosecutors stated that Brunel committed sexual acts with underage girls in the United States, the US Virgin Islands, Paris and southern France.
The case against him was dropped in 2023 following his death, and no other parties were charged.
French public figures in the “Epstein Files”
A number of French public figures appear in files newly released by the US Department of Justice, and prosecutors are now investigating senior diplomat Fabrice Aidan at the request of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“An investigation is underway to gather various pieces of evidence that could strengthen this report,” the prosecutor’s office said.
The prosecutor’s office also received a complaint filed by a Swedish woman against Daniel Siad, a model recruiter with close ties to Epstein.
Prosecutors stated that the woman accused Siad of “sexual acts which she described as rape and which may have been committed in France in 1990.”
A complaint was also filed against French conductor Frédéric Chaslin, alleging sexual assault in 2016, prosecutors said.
More than a week ago, French financial crime prosecutors confirmed that a preliminary investigation into former culture minister Jack Lang and his daughter, film producer Caroline Lang, had been opened on suspicion of “laundering the proceeds of aggravated tax fraud.”
Last week, Lang announced his resignation from a prestigious cultural centre in Paris. His name was mentioned more than 670 times in the “Epstein Files.”
Being named in the “Epstein Files” does not necessarily mean that any legal offence was committed.