Paris prosecutors open 2 Epstein-linked probes and call on victims to come forward

In this Aug.13, 2019 file photo, a man walks his dog next to an apartment building owned by Jeffrey Epstein in Paris. (AP Photo/Francois Mori, File)

PARIS — Paris prosecutors opened two new investigations Wednesday into potential sex abuse crimes and financial wrongdoing linked to Jeffrey Epstein and called on possible victims to come forward.

Paris prosecutor Laurence Beccuau said investigators will rely on files released by the U.S. administration related to the late financier and convicted sex offender, as well as media reports and new complaints that are being filed.

One investigation will focus on sex abuse crimes, the other on financial wrongdoing, each involving specialized magistrates, she said on France Info news broadcaster.

The move comes after the release by the U.S. Justice Department of more than 3 million pages of documents, as well as thousands of videos and photos related to Epstein, who died behind bars in 2019.

“These publications will inevitably reactivate the trauma of certain victims,” she said. “We are convinced that some (victims) are not necessarily known to us, and that perhaps these publications will lead them to come forward.”

She called on victims who may have never spoken up before to file formal complaints or make witness accounts to feed French and foreign investigations.

Beccuau also said some material from old investigations is to be revisited in the light of new revelations.

She was referring to the investigation into a French modeling agent, Jean-Luc Brunel, accused of rape and the sex trafficking of minors.

The probe was closed in 2022 after he was found dead in his jail cell in Paris. Brunel, a frequent companion of Epstein, was considered central to the French investigation into alleged sexual exploitation of women and girls by Epstein and his circle.

Epstein traveled often to France and had apartments in Paris.

In France, the highest-profile figure impacted by the recent release of the Epstein files in France is former Culture Minister Jack Lang, 86, who stepped down earlier this month as head of the Arab World Institute in Paris over suspicions of tax fraud.

The financial prosecutors’ office opened an investigation into Lang and his daughter Caroline Lang’s alleged links to Jeffrey Epstein through an offshore company based in the U.S. Virgin Islands in the Caribbean Sea.

In a separate case, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot last week said he informed prosecutors of allegations involving a senior French diplomat, Fabrice Aidan, in relation with the Epstein files. “I am also launching an administrative investigation ... and a disciplinary procedure,” Barrot said in a post on X, without providing details on allegations.

Aidan’s name is mentioned over 200 times in the Epstein files, with exchanges dating back to 2010 when he was working at the United Nations suggesting he shared diplomatic documents with the American financier.

Emails also show Aidan’s apparent close relationship with Terje Rød-Larsen, a high-profile Norwegian diplomat facing scrutiny over contacts with Epstein, along with his wife.

Aidan’s lawyer Jade Dousselin said in a written statement her client denies any wrongdoing and called on respecting the principle of the presumption of innocence.

Sylvie Corbet, The Associated Press