An investigation by BBC Eye, the BBC’s investigative documentary unit, has revealed links between the US branch of the modelling agency MC2 and the late financier Jeffrey Epstein, based on testimony and documents released by the US Department of Justice.
The investigation tells the story of a young woman from Uzbekistan, identified as “Rosa”, who says the agency sent her, at 18 and just a month after arriving in the United States, to Epstein’s home in Palm Beach, Florida, for a photo shoot. Those sessions turned into work as his assistant, during which she says he repeatedly abused her over three years. Epstein was then serving a sentence for sex crimes against a minor, with permission to work from home.
Rosa is calling for the agency to be investigated, saying it “was supposed to protect me, but put me in danger”. The investigation said the head of the branch at the time did not respond to the evidence the BBC put to him, and had previously denied knowing she was being exploited.
According to the investigation’s review of Justice Department documents, ten of the agency’s models met or were in contact with Epstein after his conviction, and the documents show Epstein paid the agency $1 million in 2005, while its owners told a US newspaper two years later that he had no role in their company.
The investigation raises questions about the responsibility of intermediaries in the fashion industry to protect young models, especially those newly arrived from abroad.
Source: BBC Arabic (BBC Eye)
