A new report from The Wall Street Journal alleges that staff from Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago spa were dispatched to make house calls at Jeffrey Epstein’s nearby mansion, including workers who were teenagers at the time.
Citing unnamed former employees of both Mar-a-Lago and Epstein, the report claims that the club sent masseuses, manicurists, and other spa workers to Epstein’s residence. Although Epstein was not a dues-paying member of Mar-a-Lago, former staffers told the Journal that Trump instructed employees to treat him as if he were.
According to the report, workers allegedly warned one another about Epstein, who was known among staff for sexually suggestive behavior, including exposing himself during appointments.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt rejected the Journal’s reporting, telling the publication it was promoting “fallacies and innuendo in order to smear President Trump.” In a text message, Leavitt said that Trump “did nothing wrong” and claimed he had barred Epstein from Mar-a-Lago after inappropriate conduct.
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That assertion appears to align in part with details included in the Journal’s account. The report states that in 2003, an 18-year-old Mar-a-Lago worker returned from a house call at Epstein’s home and told supervisors that Epstein had pressured her for sex. Former employees told the Journal that a manager sent Trump a fax outlining the allegations and recommended that Epstein be banned from the property. Trump allegedly responded by approving the action and directing staff to remove Epstein.
The incident was not reported to law enforcement at the time, according to the Journal. Two years later, Epstein became the subject of a criminal investigation after a parent accused him of sexually abusing her 14-year-old daughter. Epstein later pleaded guilty to solicitation of prostitution and solicitation of prostitution involving a minor under 18.
Those convictions preceded the 2019 federal sex trafficking charges against Epstein, which were pending when he died in jail while awaiting trial. His relationships with prominent figures have drawn renewed scrutiny as the Department of Justice, following a court order to release evidence in the Epstein case by Dec. 19, has continued to publish documents and photos in stages.
Although Trump has sought to downplay his past association with Epstein during his second term, a recent document release included a troubling reference. One file dated Oct. 27, 2020, described as an FBI intake report, summarized an account from a former limousine driver who said he transported Trump to Dallas Fort Worth International Airport in 1995.
According to the document, the driver reported that comments Trump made during a phone call in the car were so disturbing that he considered stopping the vehicle and confronting him. The report further states that, years later, the driver recounted the story to an unnamed woman who allegedly reacted with shock and claimed she had been raped by both Trump and Epstein.
The Department of Justice addressed those allegations when releasing the latest batch of Epstein-related records. In a statement posted Tuesday, Dec. 23, the agency said that some of the newly released documents include “untrue and sensationalist claims” made against Trump shortly before the 2020 election.
“The claims are unfounded and false,” the statement said, adding that if they had any credibility, they would have been acted upon earlier. The DOJ said the materials were released in keeping with legal requirements and transparency obligations, while maintaining protections for Epstein’s victims.
