Former President Donald Trump stated this week that his well-publicized estrangement from convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein stemmed from Epstein’s recruitment of young staff members from Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort—specifically spa employees, including Virginia Giuffre, a key figure in the Epstein case.
Speaking to reporters aboard a flight from Scotland, Trump said that Epstein “stole” workers from his Mar-a-Lago spa, one of whom was Giuffre, who later became a prominent accuser in the Epstein scandal. Giuffre had alleged in legal proceedings that Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell trafficked her to powerful men, including Britain’s Prince Andrew—a claim the prince has consistently denied.
Giuffre, who worked as an attendant at Mar-a-Lago, died by suicide in April. She remains the only individual Trump has publicly identified in connection to his fallout with Epstein.
Trump initially avoided specifics, telling reporters, “Everyone knows the people that were taken.” He later confirmed that the staffers Epstein recruited were young women, stating, “The answer is yes, they were.” Pressed further, he added, “People that work in the spa. I have a great spa, one of the best spas in the world at Mar-a-Lago, and people were taken out of the spa—hired by him, in other words—gone.”
Asked directly if Giuffre was among those hired by Epstein, Trump first responded, “I don’t know,” but then added, “I think so, I think that was one of the people, yeah. He stole her. And by the way, she had no complaints about us.”
Trump did not provide an exact number of how many staffers were recruited by Epstein but recalled that after giving Epstein a warning, the financier continued, prompting Trump to sever ties. “Once he did that, that was the end of him,” Trump said.
The White House previously claimed Trump cut off Epstein for being “a creep.” Trump said this week that the explanation about the poaching of staff was consistent with that assessment.
The former president’s comments come amid ongoing public and political scrutiny over his past association with Epstein, who died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex-trafficking charges.
Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s longtime associate and co-defendant, was convicted in 2021 of sex trafficking and is currently serving a prison sentence. She recently told a congressional committee that she would be willing to testify—if granted immunity. On July 28, she filed an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Trump continues to face calls to release all government-held records related to the Epstein investigation.
