One of the survivors of abuse by convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein told US lawmakers on Wednesday that he sexually assaulted her while he was under house arrest following his 2008 conviction for soliciting prostitution from a minor. The woman, identified only as Roza, gave public testimony for the first time during a field hearing organised by Democratic members of the US House Oversight Committee in West Palm Beach.
Roza said she was recruited from Uzbekistan as a teenager by Epstein associate and modelling agent Jean-Luc Brunel, who promised her “a modelling career beyond my dreams”. “Coming from a financially unstable background I was a perfect target for coercion,” she told lawmakers during emotional testimony.
According to Roza, she met Brunel in 2008 and travelled to New York on a visa in May 2009. Two months later, she was introduced to Epstein at his home in West Palm Beach while he was serving a house arrest sentence. She said Epstein offered her work at his Florida Science Foundation to help with her financial difficulties.
“One day his masseuse called me into his room where I was molested for the first time by Jeffrey,” she said. “For the following three years I was subject to ongoing rape.”
Roza was just 18 when she was lured from abroad to pursue modeling in 2008. She was then trafficked to Jeffrey Epstein AFTER his conviction and sweetheart deal that allowed him to keep abusing girls.Roza’s testimony was horrific, but her courage inspires us to keep fighting. pic.twitter.com/GCwcGoo5Mg
— Congressman Robert Garcia (@RepRobertGarcia) May 13, 2026
The hearing was led by Democratic Congressman Robert Garcia, who said West Palm Beach had been chosen because it was where Epstein’s “crimes first came to light”.
Garcia also noted the hearing was held near President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence. Although the House Oversight Committee is controlled by Republicans, Democratic members have increasingly focused on the Trump administration’s handling of files related to Epstein.
The hearing carried no formal legal authority but was intended to keep attention on the case and hear testimony from survivors about how Epstein and his associates avoided accountability for years.
Epstein died in a New York prison cell on 10 August 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges. A report released on Tuesday by Democratic members of the oversight committee said a controversial plea agreement negotiated by Epstein’s legal team in 2008 had allowed him to “continue his abuse and trafficking activities for almost another decade”.
Survivor of Jeffrey Epstein breaks down in tears describing the moment she learned her name was revealed while the rich and powerful remained protected by redactionsRoza: I kept my identity protected as Jane Doe. I woke up one day with my name mentioned over 500 times. While… pic.twitter.com/KtVFwO0zoJ
— Acyn (@Acyn) May 12, 2026
Roza also told lawmakers she felt “justice feel impossible” because the abuse continued while Epstein was technically in custody. She said she had later sought help, but was retraumatised after her name was accidentally revealed in documents released by the US Department of Justice.
“Now reporters from across the globe contact me. I cannot live without looking over my shoulder. I can only imagine the long term impact this ‘mistake’ will have on my life,” she said. The Department of Justice has previously said it “takes victim protection very seriously” and acknowledged that identities were exposed in some Epstein-related files because of “technical or human error”.
Another survivor, Maria Farmer, also addressed lawmakers through a recorded message. She said she first reported Epstein’s behaviour in 1996 and accused law enforcement agencies of repeatedly failing to act. “The government needs to start telling the truth,” she said.
