Jeffrey Epstein’s Ex-Assistant Accuses Former Miami Beach Mayor of Sexual Assault

(AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein’s ex-personal assistant has accused former Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine of sexual assault.

The Miami Herald confirmed Friday that Sarah Kellen testified before the House Oversight Committee Thursday that she was sexually assaulted by Levine, who also ran for governor of Florida in 2018.

Kellen also named celebrity hairstylist Frédéric Fekkai and fashion photographer Patrick Demarchelier for alleged involvement in Epstein’s sex crimes.

According to the Herald:

In a statement she read before the committee, Kellen said that she was sexually and emotionally abused by Epstein for almost the entire time she worked for him. She traveled all over the world and met many powerful people, including former president Bill Clinton and former Cuban president Fidel Castro.

But at one point she mentioned that she was sexually abused and harassed by some of the prominent people in Epstein’s world, including Levine and Fekkai — whom she said both sexually assaulted her. Demarchelier, a photographer so well known that his name is mentioned in the movie “The Devil Wears Prada,” exposed himself to her, Kellen alleged.

The full transcript of Kellen’s testimony is expected to be released next week, according to the Herald.

Levine has previously said he “never had a friendship or business relationship” with Epstein. However, Epstein reportedly had more than a dozen contacts for Levine in his “little black book,” the report said.

Days after Epstein’s death from suicide in his Manhattan jail cell while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges, Levine told the Herald he had met Epstein “a couple of times” but had “no clue” how they’d met.

“Since that time, however, more emails have surfaced showing that Levine was close to both Epstein and Epstein’s longtime associate, Ghislaine Maxwell, including one in which Levine joked about the size of his penis,” the report said.

“He exchanged several other sexually suggestive emails with Maxwell, who was later found guilty of facilitating Epstein’s child sex trafficking operation,” the report continued. “Up until now, Levine had not been accused of any illegal activity and has denied any involvement in Epstein’s crimes.”

Herald reporters Julie K. Brown, Aaron Leibowitz, and Claire Healy said they reached out to Levine several times for comment. They also reached out to a law firm that previously represented Fekkai, but did not hear back.

Demarchelier died in 2022.

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