New details revealed of Epstein assistant’s abuse allegations as GOP lawmakers call for DOJ investigation

By Annie Grayer, Nicky Robertson, CNN

(CNN) — House Oversight Chair James Comer and other Republican lawmakers are calling on the Justice Department to investigate allegations involving two men accused of sexually abusing Jeffrey Epstein’s longtime assistant, according to a letter provided first to CNN.

The new pressure from the Republican lawmakers stems from testimony the panel received last month from the assistant, Sarah Kellen.

In her closed-door interview, Kellen said Frederic Fekkai, a French celebrity hairstylist, and Philip Levine, the former mayor of Miami Beach, sexually assaulted her in separate incidents. She alleged that a third individual, Patrick Demarchelier, a French fashion photographer, exposed himself to her, according to a newly released transcript.

Comer’s letter to Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche asked the Justice Department to investigate  “the allegations against, and any other criminal conduct committed by” Fekkai and Levine in particular, noting Levine appears in the so-called Epstein files 600 times and that Fekkai was known as a “close friend” to Epstein.

“Ms. Kellen provided new information crucial to our investigation that is helping to bring transparency for the American people and accountability for survivors. During her transcribed interview, the Oversight Committee received serious allegations of criminal misconduct involving two individuals,” Comer said in a statement. “The Oversight Committee is not a law enforcement entity, and our role is not to determine guilt or innocence. We are referring these allegations to the Department of Justice, which has the tools to investigate criminal misconduct.”

Comer’s office provided the letter to CNN along with the transcript of Kellen’s interview, which offers new details of her allegations against the three men she accused of sexual misconduct, as well as describing her interactions with Epstein and accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell.

None of the men have been charged with a crime in connection with Epstein, and Comer has said the committee did not previously know of allegations of sexual abuse against them.

A media representative for Fekkai said in a statement to CNN that Fekkai “never ‘took advantage’ of Sarah Kellen and he did not introduce her to Jeffrey Epstein.” The representative previously disputed that Fekkai had done anything wrong, and specified “Mr. Fekkai never assaulted anyone.”

“Mr. Fekkai was astonished to read of Ms. Kellen’s testimony. Mr. Fekkai never abused anyone. He never participated in any illegal behavior. He knew nothing about Epstein’s repugnant depravity or trafficking. He did nothing wrong,” the representative, Mark Herr, said previously.

A spokesperson for Levine said in a statement for this story, “Nearly a quarter century ago, our client had a brief intimate encounter with another consenting adult. Any allegation suggesting otherwise is not true.” Earlier this year, Levine told WLRN in a statement that he had only met Epstein “a few times” and regretted it.

“As I have stated previously, my only connection to Jeffrey Epstein arose solely through my former friendship with Ghislaine Maxwell. I met Epstein only a few times. I never conducted business with him, never visited his island and never flew on his aircraft. I regret ever meeting him,” he said at the time.

Kellen’s alleged interactions with Fekkai and Levine

According to the transcript of her interview, Kellen said she initially met Fekkai in 2000 or 2001 in Honolulu, while he was promoting his hair care line. Fekkai, she said, introduced her to Epstein as a “Victoria’s Secret model scout.” She recalled knowing who Fekkai was, given that she was “obsessed” with fashion at the time, and later came to realize his description of Epstein as a model scout was misleading.

“Clearly, he was not a Victoria’s Secret scout, and that’s what they were posturing him to be,” Kellen said.

Kellen testified that Fekkai asked her to be in a hair show that “didn’t exist,” and that she ended up staying in his hotel room because she didn’t have the money to buy a separate room.

“He took advantage of me that night,” Kellen said in her closed-door interview.

Kellen told lawmakers that  Levine abused her in 2002 or 2003 in Saint Tropez, where she was with Epstein and Maxwell, who were vacationing. She described Levine as one of Maxwell’s “really good friends” and alleged that Levine assaulted her after Epstein and Maxwell went to bed, according to the transcript.

“He brought me into his bedroom and said, you know, you must be so lonely, always with them and never – not having your own life and kind of not being able to be with anyone, kind of, and was -basically forced himself on me,” Kellen said.

Kellen alleged that Levine also assaulted her on the beach.

“We were kind of all walking, and I think it was Jeffrey and Ghislaine were kind of ahead of us, and then there was me and Philip. And then there was, like, this wooden kind of shack on the beach. And he just, like, grabbed my hand and pulled me into the shack,” she told lawmakers.  She said she never considered pursuing sexual assault charges.

Kellen also described an instance that she said occurred around 2002 in which  French fashion photographer Patrick Demarchelier exposed himself to her in his studio after he took photos of her. “He walked over to me with his pants down, and I refused.” She did not provide further details. CNN has attempted to reach representatives of Demarchelier, who died in 2022.

Kellen is a polarizing figure in Epstein’s orbit whose work with the disgraced late financier gave her access to significant information on his activities. In 2007, she was labeled by law enforcement as one of Epstein’s potential co-conspirators, and many believe she helped him recruit and abuse girls. She has described herself as a victim of Epstein’s abuse. Kellen testified that she was not interviewed by law enforcement about her time working for Epstein until 2019.

More details on Epstein and Maxwell abuse

In her interview, Kellen also offered more detail about the alleged abuse she said she suffered at the hands of Epstein and Maxwell, who is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence. Epstein, she said, sometimes abused her on a “weekly basis,” and controlled her life, dictating what she wore, how her hair was cut and where she lived.

“He was terrifying. He was completely dominating of everything in my life,” Kellen said of Epstein, according to the transcript. “He just decimated any source of autonomy that I had.”

Kellen described how it was difficult to leave Epstein’s orbit, particularly when he offered financial assistance or to make dreams come true.

“He was very good at targeting vulnerable people. He would get to know you and your situation and then offer to help,” Kellen said.

Kellen recalled one instance – she did not say when it occurred – where Maxwell abused her on Epstein’s Little St. James Island. She said she was not aware Maxwell was involved in abusing minors – but was not surprised.

“I remember Ghislaine just being on the bed naked. And I was not expecting her to be there, and I was just very surprised and extremely uncomfortable. And I just remember her kind of like touching me and showing me how to touch Jeffrey and what he liked,” Kellen said.

Kellen accused Maxwell of turning “Jeffrey into the monster that he became,” describing her as “the most selfish person I had ever encountered.”

“She was mean and belittling. She would literally call me her slave, her minion, piglet, polyp on a donkey’s ass. Like, she would belittle you as much as she could to make herself more superior,” Kellen said of Maxwell.

Kellen said she met Trump for ‘maybe five minutes’

Throughout her years working for Epstein, Kellen said she only met Donald Trump once for “maybe 5 minutes” at Mar-a-Lago in 2002 or 2003, when she accompanied Epstein to use the gym at Trump’s Florida club, according to the transcript. She said she knew Trump and Epstein were “friendly” because Epstein had photos of Trump in multiple of his homes.

She recalled that Trump banned Epstein from returning to his club after he hit on a “member’s daughter,” and that the falling out between the two men occurred after they were bidding on the same property in Palm Beach.

She also said she was on Epstein’s private plane with former President Bill Clinton for all of his trips with Epstein to Asia and Africa, and saw Bill Gates, former Prince Andrew, Ehud Barak and Leon Black, among others, interacting with Epstein. She did not allege any wrongdoing by any of those men.

Though Kellen described her own abuse and experiences, her attorney made clear in the interview that she would not talk about “other persons’ victimization.”

“The reasons for this include her own mental trauma, her ability to withstand sustained questioning on these points, legislative purpose and pertinency, concerns about the private rights of individuals including my client, and the protection of her constitutional rights” Kellen’s lawyer Kimberly Hamm told the committee.

Kellen said she would be more willing to answer about other victims if she was given immunity by the Department of Justice or the Oversight Committee.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.