Roza Gilles, a former model from Uzbekistan, has decided to break her silence and tell her harrowing story for the first time, alleging that Jeffrey Epstein sexually abused her for years, including while he was serving a prison sentence.
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In an exclusive interview with CNN, Gilles said she was just 18 when she arrived in the United States with dreams of building a modeling career.
In the summer of 2009, she believed she was going to an interview for a weekend receptionist job to pay off debts she had incurred after arriving in the US. But according to her, that visit marked the beginning of a nightmare.
When she entered the office where she had been summoned, Gilles saw a woman massaging Epstein’s feet. She recalled noticing an electronic monitor around his ankle and asking what it was. According to her, Epstein and the woman merely laughed.
“I froze. A woman came over, unbuttoned my blouse, took it off, and then removed my bra before leaving the room,” Gilles recalled, describing what she says was the first sexual assault against her.
Only later did she learn that Epstein was serving a sentence for sex offenses against minors. However, thanks to a controversial agreement with the US justice system, he was allowed to leave prison for most of the day as part of a work-release program.
According to her account, Gilles had arrived in the US through French modeling agent Jean-Luc Brunel, the owner of MC2 Model Management, who was later accused of links to Epstein’s network.
She alleges that young women were burdened with large debts for visas, rent and other expenses, leaving them vulnerable to Epstein’s offers of additional “work.”
During the interview, she also recounted a moment that she says destroyed any hope she had of receiving help. Gilles recalled seeing a uniformed police officer talking and laughing with Epstein inside his residence.
“I thought, ‘Thank God, today this will all come to an end.’ I wished him a good day, but he walked past me without saying a word. That was when I realized no one was going to stop this man. I could scream as much as I wanted, but no one would care,” she said.
After several years, Gilles managed to escape that environment, built a new life in the western US, got married and now works as a fitness trainer.
For many years, she kept her story secret, even from her family. She decided to speak publicly after documents released by the US Department of Justice revealed her identity and correspondence, despite promises to protect victims’ privacy.
“The things he did to me hurt me deeply. They left scars that I do not believe will ever fully heal, no matter how hard I try to move forward,” Gilles said at the end of her account.
