This undated photo, taken at an unknown location and released by the US Justice Department on Dec. 19, 2025, shows Jeffrey Epstein, the wealthy American financier who died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on charges of sex trafficking underage girls.
PARIS, France — The Paris prosecutor’s office announced Saturday the creation of a special team of magistrates tasked with reviewing evidence that could involve French nationals in the crimes of convicted US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Following the release of US documents showing Epstein’s connections to prominent figures in France, prosecutors said they would also re-examine the case of former French modelling executive Jean-Luc Brunel, a close associate of Epstein who died in custody in 2022.
The new team will coordinate with France’s national financial crimes unit and law enforcement to investigate any suspected criminal activity linked to French citizens, the prosecutor’s office told AFP.
The office said its goal is “to recover any information that could be relevant for a new investigative framework.”
Brunel was found dead in his Paris prison cell in 2022 while facing charges of raping minors. Following his death, the case against him was closed in 2023, with no further arrests.
Investigators noted that Brunel had been “a close friend of Jeffrey Epstein” and had offered modelling jobs to young girls from disadvantaged backgrounds. He reportedly engaged in sexual acts with underage girls in the United States, the US Virgin Islands, Paris, and southern France.
Ten women accused Brunel, several describing being given alcohol and subjected to forced sexual acts, according to the prosecutor’s office.
New cases
The latest US Department of Justice release of Epstein-related documents mentions several French public figures, though being named does not imply any wrongdoing.
The Paris prosecutor’s office is examining three new cases involving a French diplomat, a modelling agent, and a musician.
At the request of the French foreign ministry, authorities are investigating reports that senior diplomat Fabrice Aidan appears in the released documents.
“An investigation is underway to collect evidence that may confirm these reports,” the prosecutor’s office said.
The office has also received a complaint from a Swedish woman against Daniel Siad, a model recruiter closely connected to Epstein, accusing him of sexual acts she describes as rape in France in 1990.
Another complaint targets French conductor Frederic Chaslin, alleging sexual harassment in 2016.
The document release has also prompted former French minister Jack Lang to resign from his role as head of the Arab World Institute (IMA). Lang denies any wrongdoing, stating he was “shocked” to see his name linked to an offshore company founded by Epstein in 2016.
France’s national financial prosecutor has opened a preliminary investigation into Lang and his daughter Caroline for “aggravated tax fraud and money laundering.” Following the announcement, Lang stepped down from the IMA presidency.
In an interview with La Tribune Dimanche published Sunday, Lang again insisted he is “white as snow,” calling the allegations “a tsunami of lies” and claiming he had no knowledge of Epstein’s 2008 conviction for procuring a child for prostitution.
Epstein died in US custody in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. US authorities ruled his death a suicide.
