First Lady Melania Trump on Thursday denied claims linking her to Jeffrey Epstein and called for Congress to hold public hearings for women abused by the convicted sex offender.
In a statement released by the White House on April 9, Trump said she was never friends with Epstein and never had a relationship with him or with Ghislaine Maxwell. She said she and Donald Trump sometimes attended the same parties as Epstein because they moved in some of the same social circles in New York City and Palm Beach.
She said Epstein did not introduce her to Donald Trump. Trump said she met her future husband by chance at a New York City party in 1998, and said that story is detailed in her book Melania.
Trump also said the first time she met Epstein was in 2000 at an event she attended with Donald Trump. According to the statement, she had no knowledge at the time of Epstein’s criminal conduct.
She said false images and claims linking her to Epstein have circulated online for years. Trump urged the public to be cautious about such material and said the stories are untrue.
According to the statement, her name does not appear in court documents, depositions, victim statements or FBI interviews related to the Epstein case. She also said she was not a witness in the matter, was never on Epstein’s plane and never visited his private island.
The first lady said she has never been accused or convicted of any crime related to Epstein’s sex trafficking and abuse case. She added that she and her lawyers have challenged false claims about her in the past.
Trump ended the statement by calling on Congress to give Epstein’s victims a chance to testify publicly under oath and have their accounts entered into the Congressional Record.
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