House panel asks DOJ to investigate Epstein associate abuse claims

The House Oversight Committee sent a fresh Epstein-related referral to the Justice Department on Thursday, pressing federal prosecutors to examine abuse allegations that Sarah Kellen made against two men in Jeffrey Epstein’s orbit. The move came as the committee released the transcript of Kellen’s closed-door interview from May 21, reopening a record that ties one of Epstein’s former assistants to claims she said had never before been aired publicly.

Kellen said she was sexually abused by Epstein for more than a decade, and disclosed for the first time that she was abused by Ghislaine Maxwell and by two other men connected to Epstein. The referral named Philip Levine, who served as Miami Beach mayor from 2013 to 2017, and Frédéric Fekkai, the French celebrity hairstylist. Kellen also accused the late fashion photographer Patrick Demarchelier of exposing himself to her. The committee said the allegations involving Levine and Fekkai were the first names of alleged criminal conduct uncovered by its investigation or any other investigation to date.

Chairman James Comer, a Kentucky Republican, said the committee was not a law enforcement body and could not determine guilt or innocence, but was referring the matter to Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche so the Justice Department could pursue possible criminal misconduct. The letter was also signed by Representatives Andy Biggs of Arizona, Lauren Boebert of Colorado, Clay Higgins of Louisiana, and William Timmons of South Carolina. It asked the department to use all available tools, including immunity for certain witnesses, in examining the allegations.

The referral extends a broader congressional inquiry into the federal government’s handling of the Epstein and Maxwell cases, including the 2007 non-prosecution agreement that allowed Epstein to avoid federal charges over alleged sexual crimes involving dozens of underage girls. Kellen was previously identified as one of four women named as potential co-conspirators in that deal. She said in her opening remarks that she did not know her name had been included until the agreement became public years later, and that the federal government had branded her a criminal in a secret deal without ever speaking to her.

The committee also asked why Kellen was never interviewed by law enforcement until Epstein’s arrest in July 2019. Levine and Fekkai denied the allegations through representatives, and the Justice Department had not immediately responded to the request. The referral now puts the burden back on prosecutors to decide whether old evidence, newly surfaced testimony, or both are enough to justify another criminal review of an Epstein network that Congress says the government has never fully confronted.