Ex-Epstein Assistant Reveals Shocking Allegations: Ex-Florida Mayor and Celebrity Hairstylist Named as Accused Abusers in Epstein's Inner Circle
Sarah Kellen has made allegations that she was abused by Philip Levine and Frédéric Fekkai, in addition to her previously known abuse by Jeffrey Epstein. House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, a Republican from Kentucky, has formally requested that the Justice Department investigate the allegations of sexual abuse that were raised by Sarah Kellen, a former assistant to Jeffrey Epstein, during her interview with the committee last month, as stated in a letter sent by Comer and three other Republican lawmakers. According to a transcript of Kellen's interview that was made public on Thursday, Sarah Kellen, who served as a longtime personal assistant to Epstein, revealed that she was sexually abused by Epstein for a period of over a decade, and also disclosed, for the first time, allegations that she was abused by Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein's convicted accomplice, as well as by two other men who were part of Epstein's social circle. Kellen specifically alleged that she was abused by Frédéric Fekkai, a well-known celebrity hairstylist, and Philip Levine, a wealthy businessman who was later elected as the mayor of Miami Beach. In his letter, Comer has asked the Justice Department to utilize all available resources, including granting immunity to certain witnesses, to investigate the allegations against Philip Levine and Frédéric Fekkai, as well as any other potential criminal conduct committed by these individuals. The committee has also requested that the Justice Department provide an explanation for why Kellen was never interviewed by law enforcement until Epstein's arrest in July 2019. Representatives for both men have denied the allegations made against them in statements provided to ABC News. Kellen's appearance before the Oversight Committee, which took place on May 21 in a closed-door session, was part of the committee's ongoing investigation into the federal government's handling of investigations related to Epstein and his alleged co-conspirators. As one of the four women named as potential co-conspirators in Epstein's controversial 2007 non-prosecution agreement, Kellen has been the subject of criminal investigations in both Florida and New York, although she has never been charged, partly due to her own allegations of persistent sexual abuse at the hands of Epstein, as stated in court documents and records released by the Justice Department earlier this year. In her opening remarks before the committee, Kellen stated, "I was there only to serve and to submit, and only after Jeffrey confirmed that I would submit to his sexual abuse did he begin paying me." Kellen also revealed that she was not aware that her name was included in Epstein's non-prosecution agreement until the document was made public a few years later, which allowed Epstein to avoid federal charges for alleged sexual crimes involving dozens of underage girls. She expressed her feelings of betrayal, stating, "The Federal Government of the United States branded me a criminal in a secret deal with my own abuser, without ever once speaking to me, and I have spent every year since trying to live underneath that piece of paper." Kellen appeared before the committee voluntarily, accompanied by two attorneys, and the scope of her appearance was limited, as agreed upon in advance with the committee, and primarily focused on her own experiences as a victim of alleged abuse.
On the advice of her counsel, she largely chose to decline answering questions about other alleged victims and about Epstein's scheme to recruit underage girls for massages, which was the core activity that led to Epstein's criminal charges, citing the need to protect her own interests and maintain her privacy. According to attorney Kimberly Hamm, Kellen's decision to remain silent on these matters was driven by concerns about privacy and her constitutional rights, as Hamm stated, "She's not going to answer questions about other victims and questions specific to massages in Palm Beach that could implicate other victims." However, Kellen expressed her willingness to cooperate fully and answer more questions if she were granted immunity by either Congress or the Justice Department, emphasizing that she would be "a hundred percent" willing to provide more information under such circumstances.
In the lead-up to Kellen's appearance before the committee, Rep. Comer shared with reporters that the committee members had differing perceptions of Kellen, given the allegations surrounding her involvement in scheduling some of Epstein's massages, with Comer noting, "There are some that believe she was 100% a victim or survivor, and then there are some that think she was a victim and victimizer, so it's just a terrible scenario." Following the interview, Comer expressed his belief that Kellen "was a victim" and characterized her appearance as "the most substantive, productive interview that we've had," indicating a sense of appreciation for her cooperation.
Rep. Robert Garcia of California, the committee's top Democrat, utilized his time to pose questions to Kellen about her knowledge of Epstein's previous relationship with President Donald Trump, who had a friendship with Epstein until they had a falling out around 2004 and has repeatedly denied any knowledge of Epstein's crimes. Kellen recalled that Epstein would often use the gym at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate during the early years of her employment and assumed that Epstein and Trump were friends based on the photographs Epstein displayed in his homes. She also shared that she met Trump on one occasion, during a brief encounter at Mar-a-Lago in 2001 or 2002, and stated, "Jeffrey introduced me to him, that was my only encounter with him during my employment."
One of the committee's primary areas of interest was determining whether Kellen had directly witnessed any inappropriate sexual activity by prominent individuals linked to Epstein, and in each case, Kellen responded in the negative. However, when asked if anyone associated with Epstein had abused her, Kellen named Maxwell, Fekkai, and Levine, making serious allegations against these individuals. Kellen alleged that Fekkai, now 68, had abused her before she began working for Epstein, recounting an incident in the early 2000s when she was trying to secure modeling opportunities. According to Kellen, Fekkai invited her to a fashion show in Hawaii, but when she arrived, there was no show, and she found herself in a vulnerable position, stating, "I didn't have any money to get my own hotel room or fly back, and he took advantage of me that night." Kellen was in her early 20s at the time of the alleged incident. She also stated that Fekkai later introduced her to Epstein, describing him as a model scout for Victoria's Secret. In response to Kellen's allegations, a representative for Fekkai issued a statement to ABC News, denying the accusations and stating, "Mr. Fekkai was astonished to read of Ms. Kellen's testimony, Mr. Fekkai never abused anyone."
The spokesperson, Mark Herr, stated that he never participated in any illegal behavior and was unaware of Epstein's repugnant depravity or trafficking, emphasizing that he did nothing wrong. According to the statement, the incident involving Levine allegedly took place during a summer trip to France around 2003, when Levine was a houseguest at a property rented by Epstein and Maxwell in Saint-Tropez. Kellen claimed that after Epstein and Maxwell had gone to sleep, Levine approached her and said, "You know, must be so lonely for you, working with them, because you're with them all the time, and you can't have your own life, so you must be really lonely," and then he basically forced himself on her. She further alleged that a similar incident occurred during a walk on the beach when Levine grabbed her hand and pulled her into a wooden shack.
A spokesperson for the 64-year-old Levine denied Kellen's allegations in a statement to ABC News, saying that nearly a quarter century ago, their client had a brief intimate encounter with another consenting adult, and any allegation suggesting otherwise is not true. Previously, Levine had stated that he never had a friendship or business relationship with Epstein, as reported in the Miami Herald. Kellen informed the committee that she did not know what, if anything, Epstein and Maxwell knew about either alleged incident, and she did not report them at the time, nor had she considered pursuing legal action against Levine.
Kellen, who is 47 years old, began working for Epstein and Maxwell around 2001, after being approached about the job by a co-worker at a hotel in Hawaii, and she said she had no idea it was Epstein until she arrived at his private island. She described Epstein to lawmakers as controlling every aspect of her life, including dictating her clothing, haircut, hair color, and where she lived, and he even had a code phrase, "cold sheets," that meant she was to come to his residence and sleep with him. Epstein referred to her as his "human hot water bottle," and Kellen told the committee, "I was being paid, in part, to be raped," and the assaults occurred on average once a week.
Even during his Florida jail sentence, Epstein made a video call to her from inside the Palm Beach County Stockade and ordered her to undress on camera, and Maxwell was present and participated in her abuse on one occasion on the island. Kellen recalled that Maxwell touched her and showed her how to touch Jeffrey and what he liked, and Maxwell was also a pervasive psychological force, repeatedly reinforcing Epstein's power and allegedly calling Kellen her "slave" and "minion." Kellen said of Maxwell, "She just fed him and catered to every whim that he wanted," and added, "I always felt like she turned him into the monster that he became." Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year sentence at a federal prison camp in Texas, could not be reached for comment.
She has consistently maintained her innocence throughout the entire ordeal and has argued that the government essentially prosecuted her as a substitute for Epstein, particularly following his death in custody back in 2019. Kellen has described two specific incidents that suggest possible efforts by Epstein to obstruct the first investigation into his conduct, which took place during the mid-2000s. One of these incidents occurred in 2005 while she was on Epstein's private island, where she claims to have overheard Epstein on the phone, instructing another one of his assistants to go to his house in Palm Beach and remove the computers that were there. Then, in the following February, she said that Epstein summoned her to his New York townhouse, where he directed her to collect all of his printed contact directories, as well as certain framed photographs, and bring them to his lawyers. She stated that she did not know what ultimately happened to these items or why she was asked to gather them in the first place. Kellen also shared that in 2007, as she and another woman were leaving Epstein's private island, an airport employee informed them that FBI agents wanted to speak with them. Epstein then told them to wait, walked over to the agents himself, and returned about ten minutes later, at which point he simply said, "OK, let's go," according to Kellen's account. Additionally, Kellen told the committee that she had received various gifts from Epstein over the years, including jewelry, luggage, clothing, as well as a New York City apartment that she could stay in. She also revealed that Epstein had given her money to help pay for her wedding in 2013 and had provided her with $250,000 in late 2018, shortly after the Miami Herald had published in-depth reports on Epstein's activities. After Epstein's arrest in July 2019, federal prosecutors cited the $250,000 payment to Kellen, suggesting that Epstein was attempting to buy her silence in the matter. However, Kellen claimed to the committee that the money was actually intended to assist her and her then-husband, who had been experiencing health issues at the time, and was not connected to the Herald articles, which Epstein had reportedly dismissed as "old news." She acknowledged that Epstein had instructed her not to tell anyone about the payment, but she did not know why he had done so, speculating that perhaps he did not want to make other people jealous or something to that effect. Kellen's appearance on Capitol Hill took place as the committee is ramping up for a busy stretch of its investigation, which was officially launched back in February of the previous year. Other notable witnesses who are scheduled to testify in the coming weeks include another longtime Epstein assistant, Lesley Groff, as well as former Goldman Sachs chief counsel Kathryn Ruemmler, Epstein's former personal banker Jes Staley, and billionaires Bill Gates and Leon Black. Comer has indicated that a comprehensive report on the committee's findings will be produced before the end of the year. Following Epstein's death in custody in July 2019, federal prosecutors in New York, who were investigating possible collaborators, engaged in discussions with Kellen and her attorneys that spanned more than a year. Documents released by the DOJ earlier this year included prosecutors' internal assessments of a potential case against Kellen, as well as emails from her attorneys arguing against charges being brought against her.
In the spring of 2020, an attorney representing Kellen expressed the opinion that, considering Kellen's own history of abuse and her role as essentially a cog in Jeffrey Epstein's operation, acting under his direction and committing her actions at a time when she was a highly vulnerable victim herself, a non-prosecution agreement would be the most suitable resolution. According to records from the Department of Justice, the government did not dispute the fact that Kellen was, in fact, a victim of abuse perpetrated by Epstein. In a proposed "statement of facts" sent to Kellen's attorneys in late 2020, prosecutors outlined that several minor victims had reported to federal agents that Epstein had paid them for sexualized massages, including instances that occurred during massages scheduled by Kellen.
Kellen maintained to prosecutors that she had been given a directory of names and instructed by Epstein on who to contact, and she denied having any knowledge that some of the individuals who came to the house were underage. As stated in a December 2019 memo summarizing their investigation, government lawyers noted that Kellen told them she viewed the masseuses as her peers, namely young adults, and it never occurred to her that any of them were minors. Kellen also claimed that she only became aware that Epstein was sexually abusing minors when news articles about it started emerging in the mid-2000s, and she recalled feeling shocked, angry, and disappointed upon learning this information, as indicated in the records. Ultimately, federal prosecutors decided against pursuing charges against Kellen, although the internal deliberations that led to this decision remain redacted in the publicly available versions of the Department of Justice records.
Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein's former girlfriend and associate, remains the only other individual to have been charged in connection with Epstein's crimes. Currently, Maxwell is seeking to have her conviction overturned or her sentence reduced. When Maxwell was sentenced in 2022, U.S. District Judge Alison Nathan stated that the evidence demonstrated that Maxwell supervised Kellen, whom Nathan described as a "criminally responsible participant" in Epstein's scheme. Notably, Kellen was not called as a witness by either the government or Maxwell during the proceedings. Continuous coverage of breaking news and live events is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
On the advice of her counsel, she largely chose to decline answering questions about other alleged victims and about Epstein's scheme to recruit underage girls for massages, which was the core activity that led to Epstein's criminal charges, citing the need to protect her own interests and maintain her privacy. According to attorney Kimberly Hamm, Kellen's decision to remain silent on these matters was driven by concerns about privacy and her constitutional rights, as Hamm stated, "She's not going to answer questions about other victims and questions specific to massages in Palm Beach that could implicate other victims." However, Kellen expressed her willingness to cooperate fully and answer more questions if she were granted immunity by either Congress or the Justice Department, emphasizing that she would be "a hundred percent" willing to provide more information under such circumstances.
In the lead-up to Kellen's appearance before the committee, Rep. Comer shared with reporters that the committee members had differing perceptions of Kellen, given the allegations surrounding her involvement in scheduling some of Epstein's massages, with Comer noting, "There are some that believe she was 100% a victim or survivor, and then there are some that think she was a victim and victimizer, so it's just a terrible scenario." Following the interview, Comer expressed his belief that Kellen "was a victim" and characterized her appearance as "the most substantive, productive interview that we've had," indicating a sense of appreciation for her cooperation.
Rep. Robert Garcia of California, the committee's top Democrat, utilized his time to pose questions to Kellen about her knowledge of Epstein's previous relationship with President Donald Trump, who had a friendship with Epstein until they had a falling out around 2004 and has repeatedly denied any knowledge of Epstein's crimes. Kellen recalled that Epstein would often use the gym at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate during the early years of her employment and assumed that Epstein and Trump were friends based on the photographs Epstein displayed in his homes. She also shared that she met Trump on one occasion, during a brief encounter at Mar-a-Lago in 2001 or 2002, and stated, "Jeffrey introduced me to him, that was my only encounter with him during my employment."
One of the committee's primary areas of interest was determining whether Kellen had directly witnessed any inappropriate sexual activity by prominent individuals linked to Epstein, and in each case, Kellen responded in the negative. However, when asked if anyone associated with Epstein had abused her, Kellen named Maxwell, Fekkai, and Levine, making serious allegations against these individuals. Kellen alleged that Fekkai, now 68, had abused her before she began working for Epstein, recounting an incident in the early 2000s when she was trying to secure modeling opportunities. According to Kellen, Fekkai invited her to a fashion show in Hawaii, but when she arrived, there was no show, and she found herself in a vulnerable position, stating, "I didn't have any money to get my own hotel room or fly back, and he took advantage of me that night." Kellen was in her early 20s at the time of the alleged incident. She also stated that Fekkai later introduced her to Epstein, describing him as a model scout for Victoria's Secret. In response to Kellen's allegations, a representative for Fekkai issued a statement to ABC News, denying the accusations and stating, "Mr. Fekkai was astonished to read of Ms. Kellen's testimony, Mr. Fekkai never abused anyone."
The spokesperson, Mark Herr, stated that he never participated in any illegal behavior and was unaware of Epstein's repugnant depravity or trafficking, emphasizing that he did nothing wrong. According to the statement, the incident involving Levine allegedly took place during a summer trip to France around 2003, when Levine was a houseguest at a property rented by Epstein and Maxwell in Saint-Tropez. Kellen claimed that after Epstein and Maxwell had gone to sleep, Levine approached her and said, "You know, must be so lonely for you, working with them, because you're with them all the time, and you can't have your own life, so you must be really lonely," and then he basically forced himself on her. She further alleged that a similar incident occurred during a walk on the beach when Levine grabbed her hand and pulled her into a wooden shack.
A spokesperson for the 64-year-old Levine denied Kellen's allegations in a statement to ABC News, saying that nearly a quarter century ago, their client had a brief intimate encounter with another consenting adult, and any allegation suggesting otherwise is not true. Previously, Levine had stated that he never had a friendship or business relationship with Epstein, as reported in the Miami Herald. Kellen informed the committee that she did not know what, if anything, Epstein and Maxwell knew about either alleged incident, and she did not report them at the time, nor had she considered pursuing legal action against Levine.
Kellen, who is 47 years old, began working for Epstein and Maxwell around 2001, after being approached about the job by a co-worker at a hotel in Hawaii, and she said she had no idea it was Epstein until she arrived at his private island. She described Epstein to lawmakers as controlling every aspect of her life, including dictating her clothing, haircut, hair color, and where she lived, and he even had a code phrase, "cold sheets," that meant she was to come to his residence and sleep with him. Epstein referred to her as his "human hot water bottle," and Kellen told the committee, "I was being paid, in part, to be raped," and the assaults occurred on average once a week.
Even during his Florida jail sentence, Epstein made a video call to her from inside the Palm Beach County Stockade and ordered her to undress on camera, and Maxwell was present and participated in her abuse on one occasion on the island. Kellen recalled that Maxwell touched her and showed her how to touch Jeffrey and what he liked, and Maxwell was also a pervasive psychological force, repeatedly reinforcing Epstein's power and allegedly calling Kellen her "slave" and "minion." Kellen said of Maxwell, "She just fed him and catered to every whim that he wanted," and added, "I always felt like she turned him into the monster that he became." Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year sentence at a federal prison camp in Texas, could not be reached for comment.
She has consistently maintained her innocence throughout the entire ordeal and has argued that the government essentially prosecuted her as a substitute for Epstein, particularly following his death in custody back in 2019. Kellen has described two specific incidents that suggest possible efforts by Epstein to obstruct the first investigation into his conduct, which took place during the mid-2000s. One of these incidents occurred in 2005 while she was on Epstein's private island, where she claims to have overheard Epstein on the phone, instructing another one of his assistants to go to his house in Palm Beach and remove the computers that were there. Then, in the following February, she said that Epstein summoned her to his New York townhouse, where he directed her to collect all of his printed contact directories, as well as certain framed photographs, and bring them to his lawyers. She stated that she did not know what ultimately happened to these items or why she was asked to gather them in the first place. Kellen also shared that in 2007, as she and another woman were leaving Epstein's private island, an airport employee informed them that FBI agents wanted to speak with them. Epstein then told them to wait, walked over to the agents himself, and returned about ten minutes later, at which point he simply said, "OK, let's go," according to Kellen's account. Additionally, Kellen told the committee that she had received various gifts from Epstein over the years, including jewelry, luggage, clothing, as well as a New York City apartment that she could stay in. She also revealed that Epstein had given her money to help pay for her wedding in 2013 and had provided her with $250,000 in late 2018, shortly after the Miami Herald had published in-depth reports on Epstein's activities. After Epstein's arrest in July 2019, federal prosecutors cited the $250,000 payment to Kellen, suggesting that Epstein was attempting to buy her silence in the matter. However, Kellen claimed to the committee that the money was actually intended to assist her and her then-husband, who had been experiencing health issues at the time, and was not connected to the Herald articles, which Epstein had reportedly dismissed as "old news." She acknowledged that Epstein had instructed her not to tell anyone about the payment, but she did not know why he had done so, speculating that perhaps he did not want to make other people jealous or something to that effect. Kellen's appearance on Capitol Hill took place as the committee is ramping up for a busy stretch of its investigation, which was officially launched back in February of the previous year. Other notable witnesses who are scheduled to testify in the coming weeks include another longtime Epstein assistant, Lesley Groff, as well as former Goldman Sachs chief counsel Kathryn Ruemmler, Epstein's former personal banker Jes Staley, and billionaires Bill Gates and Leon Black. Comer has indicated that a comprehensive report on the committee's findings will be produced before the end of the year. Following Epstein's death in custody in July 2019, federal prosecutors in New York, who were investigating possible collaborators, engaged in discussions with Kellen and her attorneys that spanned more than a year. Documents released by the DOJ earlier this year included prosecutors' internal assessments of a potential case against Kellen, as well as emails from her attorneys arguing against charges being brought against her.
In the spring of 2020, an attorney representing Kellen expressed the opinion that, considering Kellen's own history of abuse and her role as essentially a cog in Jeffrey Epstein's operation, acting under his direction and committing her actions at a time when she was a highly vulnerable victim herself, a non-prosecution agreement would be the most suitable resolution. According to records from the Department of Justice, the government did not dispute the fact that Kellen was, in fact, a victim of abuse perpetrated by Epstein. In a proposed "statement of facts" sent to Kellen's attorneys in late 2020, prosecutors outlined that several minor victims had reported to federal agents that Epstein had paid them for sexualized massages, including instances that occurred during massages scheduled by Kellen.
Kellen maintained to prosecutors that she had been given a directory of names and instructed by Epstein on who to contact, and she denied having any knowledge that some of the individuals who came to the house were underage. As stated in a December 2019 memo summarizing their investigation, government lawyers noted that Kellen told them she viewed the masseuses as her peers, namely young adults, and it never occurred to her that any of them were minors. Kellen also claimed that she only became aware that Epstein was sexually abusing minors when news articles about it started emerging in the mid-2000s, and she recalled feeling shocked, angry, and disappointed upon learning this information, as indicated in the records. Ultimately, federal prosecutors decided against pursuing charges against Kellen, although the internal deliberations that led to this decision remain redacted in the publicly available versions of the Department of Justice records.
Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein's former girlfriend and associate, remains the only other individual to have been charged in connection with Epstein's crimes. Currently, Maxwell is seeking to have her conviction overturned or her sentence reduced. When Maxwell was sentenced in 2022, U.S. District Judge Alison Nathan stated that the evidence demonstrated that Maxwell supervised Kellen, whom Nathan described as a "criminally responsible participant" in Epstein's scheme. Notably, Kellen was not called as a witness by either the government or Maxwell during the proceedings. Continuous coverage of breaking news and live events is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
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