French prosecutors form special unit to probe public figures connected to Jeffrey Epstein

The Paris prosecutor’s office said on Saturday that it was setting up a special team of magistrates to examine evidence that might link French nationals to the crimes of convicted U.S. sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, AFP reported.

Following the release of U.S. documents showing Epstein’s connections to prominent French figures, the Paris prosecutor’s office said it will also conduct a thorough review of the case involving Jean-Luc Brunel, a former French modelling agency executive and close associate of Epstein, who died in custody in 2022, AFP reported.

The new team will work closely with prosecutors from the national financial crimes unit and police with a view to opening investigations into any suspected crimes involving French nationals, the Paris prosecutor's office told AFP.

The aim is “to be able to extract any piece that could be usefully reused in a new investigative framework”, it said.

Brunel was discovered dead in his Paris prison cell in 2022 while facing charges of raping minors. Following his death, the case against him was dismissed in 2023, and no one else was charged.

Prosecutors said an investigation had showed Brunel was "a close friend of Jeffrey Epstein" who had offered modelling jobs to young girls from poor backgrounds.

He had engaged in sexual acts with underage girls in the United States, the US Virgin Islands, Paris and the south of France, they said.

Ten women had made accusations against Brunel, several describing how they had been led to drink alcohol and had been subjected to forced sexual penetration, according to the prosecutor's office.

The prosecutor's office said it had been asked to look into three new specific cases involving a French diplomat, a modelling agent and a musician.

At the request of the French foreign ministry it was looking into the reported appearance of senior diplomat Fabrice Aidan in the cache of Epstein-related documents published by the US authorities.

"An investigation is underway to gather various pieces of evidence that could substantiate this report," the prosecutor's office stated.

The prosecutor's office has also received a complaint filed by a Swedish woman against Daniel Siad, a model recruiter with close ties to Epstein. She accused him of "sexual acts that she describes as rape and that may have been committed in France in 1990".

The office has also received a complaint filed against French conductor Frederic Chaslin alleging acts of sexual harassment allegedly committed in 2016, it said.

The recent release of Epstein-related documents prompted former French minister Jack Lang to step down as head of the Arab World Institute.

Lang has denied any wrongdoing, saying he was “shocked” to see his name listed in the records of an offshore company set up by Epstein in 2016.

The national financial prosecutor’s office announced it has launched a preliminary investigation into Lang and his daughter, Caroline Lang, for “aggravated tax fraud and money laundering.”

Shortly after the announcement, Lang stepped down as president of the Arab World Institute (IMA).

Jeffrey Epstein died in a U.S. prison in 2019 while awaiting trial on child trafficking charges; authorities ruled his death a suicide.