Melania Trump issued a statement on April 9, 2026, denying any relationship with Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. She said, "The lies linking me with the disgraceful Jeffrey Epstein need to end today."
She asserted that she and Donald Trump occasionally attended the same parties as Epstein in New York and Palm Beach, but that she first met her husband at a New York party in 1998, as detailed in her memoir MELANIA. She added, "The first time I crossed paths with Epstein was in the year 2000, at an event Donald and I attended together."
Trump rejected claims of friendship, email correspondence, or involvement, stating, "My email reply to Maxwell cannot be categorized as anything more than casual correspondence," and that she was never on Epstein's plane or private island. She emphasized she is not a victim, witness, or named in any legal documents related to Epstein.
She noted that The Daily Beast, political commentator James Carville and Harper Collins UK have been ordered to apologize and retract false statements. She called on Congress to hold a public hearing for Epstein's female survivors, urging that testimonies be entered into the Congressional Record.
