Epstein Survivor Recalls How Women Who Recruited Her ‘Laughed’ As She Was Sexually Assaulted

Last Updated:February 15, 2026, 15:07 IST

Juliette said her passport was taken and she was flown by helicopter to Epstein’s island. She said there was no way to escape.

A woman who was raped by Jeffrey Epstein multiple times across the world has described how the women who recruited her “laughed" as he sexually assaulted her.

According to Sky News, Juliette Bryant was 20 when Epstein told her he could arrange a modelling contract. Instead, she says she was trafficked from Cape Town to his ranch in New Mexico and his private island in the Caribbean.

Juliette, now 43, said she was recruited in 2002 while she was a first-year university student and an aspiring model.

She met Epstein at a restaurant in Cape Town. Former US President Bill Clinton was there on an official AIDS awareness trip, accompanied by actors Kevin Spacey and Chris Tucker.

Three weeks later, she travelled to New York on her first trip outside South Africa. Within hours of arriving, she was told she would travel on to the Caribbean.

A driver took her to a runway at Teterboro Airport in New Jersey, where she boarded a private jet. Epstein and the women she says recruited her were on board.

Assault on the plane

Juliette said Epstein asked her to sit next to him. As the plane took off, she said he began forcibly touching her.

“They were laughing. I was really petrified," she said, referring to the women who had recruited her.

She said she feared for her life and believed her family might never see her again.

Life on the island

Juliette said her passport was taken and she was flown by helicopter to Epstein’s island. She said there was no way to escape.

She said she was not trafficked to other men but was raped repeatedly by Epstein.

“I would see him at lunch, breakfast and dinner, and then I would be called to his room," she said.

She spent much of her time alone, sitting by the pool or reading. She found disposable cameras and took photographs during her stay.

She said she could not swim away and felt trapped.

Travel to other Epstein properties

After returning to Cape Town, she boarded more flights to Epstein’s properties in New York, Palm Beach, Paris and New Mexico.

She said she met women and underage girls from Brazil, Romania, France and Spain.

Emails from the Epstein files show flight details for unnamed female travellers flying from Cape Town to London, Atlanta and New York until late 2018.

Juliette said she had never told her family or anyone about what happened until after Epstein died.

She described the experience as being held by “invisible chains", saying it was like being handcuffed invisibly.

She said she continues to struggle with the psychological impact and constant exposure to news about Epstein.

“I look on Facebook, I see Epstein’s face. I look on X, I see Epstein’s face. I look at the news, there it is again," she said, adding that it has made her feel physically ill at times.

Release of Epstein files

The US Department of Justice released further Epstein files, in which some victims were exposed due to insufficient redactions.

However, Juliette’s emails to Epstein were published without redactions. They show her expressing support for him before his 2008 trial and continuing to contact him until 2017.

She said she often emailed him when she had been drinking or during breakdowns and felt as though he was watching her.

“I have nothing to hide. It has obviously been upsetting because it confuses people because obviously the man had a terrible grip on my mind," she said.

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