Epstein survivor describes 'wilful blindness' around financier

Epstein survivor describes 'blindness' around financier - and criticises justice department over files When asked how she felt about the latest release, Jess Michaels said the Department of Justice had broken the Epstein Transparency Act, and "blatantly so", with its many redactions. Image:Jess Michaels said Epstein raped her when she was 22 in 1991. Pic: Reuters Image:Pic: Reuters Sunday 21 December 2025 20:45, UK The earliest publicly known survivor of Jeffrey Epstein's abuse has told Sky News there was a "wilful blindness" about the young women and children around him - as she claimed the US Department of Justice (DoJ) had "broken the law" with the Epstein files. Warning: This article contains details of sexual assault. In 1991, Jess Michaels, then a 22-year-old professional dancer, was introduced to Epstein by a roommate who said he had a "fabulous experience" with the financier. They met twice, with the first meeting being an interview at his office in Madison Avenue for a role as a masseuse. During their second meeting at Epstein's penthouse, she said he raped her. Speaking to Sky News presenter Barbara Serra, Ms Michaels said that while she did not meet anyone else in connection with the convicted sex offender, "the volume of wilful blindness and blatant disregard for the protection of the young women and the children" that were "very obviously around Jeffrey Epstein" was "horrific". Three months after her encounter with Epstein, Ms Michaels said she left New York "because of the anxiety and the insomnia". Six months after, she said she could "pull a pair of size zero jeans down off of my hips because I was really struggling to even eat properly", and noted that a friend remembered she "just slept all the time". 'That didn't even get us justice' Speaking almost 35 years after her ordeal and days after the release of thousands of files relating to Epstein , Ms Michaels said her mission now "is that nothing like this happens again and that we change something". However, the White House has come under heavy criticism as only a fraction of the files have so far been released, with many heavily redacted and some disappearing after being uploaded. When asked how she felt about the latest release, Ms Michaels noted that the Epstein Transparency Act , signed by in November, required the DoJ to release all files by 19 December. Donald Trump "The US Department of Justice has broken the law," she said. "Blatantly so. So sometimes I hear from people or journalists, 'so how do you feel? what comes up next?' I actually don't care." She added the DoJ had "proved the point of why we needed to get an Act of Congress to actually listen to us and try to get justice. And that didn't even get us justice." Ms Michaels later said "it's not unexpected", and said it marked the "exact same treatment we have received across five administrations". It is important to note that inclusion in the Epstein files does...

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