The US First Lady Melania Trump unexpectedly issued a statement denying any ties to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
She made this statement during a speech at the White House on March 9.
“The lies linking me to the disgraced Jeffrey Epstein must stop today,” Trump began her speech.
The first lady stressed that she was never Epsteinʼs girlfriend or had a relationship with him or his accomplice Gileane Maxwell and her name is not mentioned in court documents, testimony, or FBI interrogation transcripts.
According to her, she met them by chance at public events in New York or Palm Beach, as people from different circles intersected there.
"I was never friends with Epstein. Donald and I were occasionally invited to the same parties as Epstein, as crossing social circles is common," the US first lady noted, adding that she is not a victim of Epstein.
According to Trump, she had no information about the financierʼs crimes, never visited his private island, and never used his plane.
She also denied rumors that Epstein introduced her to her future husband. Trump claims that she met Donald at a party in 1998, while she first met Epstein only in 2000.
At the same time, Melania Trump called on the US Congress to hold open hearings with the participation of women who were affected by Epstein.
"Every woman should be able to tell her story publicly if she wishes, and her testimony should be permanently recorded in the Congressional record," Trump said.
The US first ladyʼs speech lasted about five minutes, after which she left without answering questions from reporters. She did not specify who was accusing her of having ties to Epstein, but noted that some media outlets and public figures have already been forced to publicly apologize and retract false statements.
The Jeffrey Epstein case
American financier Jeffrey Epstein was first arrested in 2008. He was convicted of sex with minors and organizing prostitution. After 13 months in prison, the financier made a deal with prosecutors and was released. In 2019, he was charged with new charges of human trafficking.
At the time, it was reported that the FBI had discovered thousands of names of famous people in Epsteinʼs notebook, including former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger, and billionaire Richard Branson. This sparked a series of accusations and suspicions against famous people that they may have used Epsteinʼs services.
Epstein was arrested a second time on July 7, and on August 10, 2019, he committed suicide in prison. In December 2023, a US court ordered the release of the names of more than 170 people from Epsteinʼs inner circle.
Donald Trump has also been accused of having ties to Epstein. Trump and Epstein were allegedly friends and attended the same parties in the 1990s. However, Donald Trump has filed a lawsuit against journalists who covered this information.
On December 19, 2025, the US Department of Justice released the first selection of the “Epstein files”. Among the tens of thousands of documents that were censored are many photos of famous people. Less than a day after the publication, at least 16 files related to Epstein, including a photo with Trump, disappeared from the US Department of Justice website.
The US Department of Justice published a new set of documents on January 30, 2026. They found information that Microsoft founder Bill Gates was diagnosed with a sexually transmitted infection after communicating with "Russian girls", and Epstein helped him purchase medication.
In late February, former US President Bill Clinton, also mentioned in the files, testified before a congressional committee about his ties to Epstein. He said he “saw nothing” and “did nothing wrong”.
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