A woman who helped put Jeffrey Epstein behind bars broke her silence after years – as other survivors have detailed plans to create their own “client list” of people involved in his heinous crimes.
Calls for increased transparency around the Epstein Files have grown since July, when the Justice Department released a memo stating no further disclosures were warranted and there was no evidence to support the existence of a “client list.” That decision led to immediate backlash from both sides of the political aisle who demanded more information. On Tuesday, more files were released by Congress about the investigation. Today, victims are set to speak in Washington, D.C., about Epstein and the FBI handling of the case.
Now, for the first time, Marina Lacerda, who was named as an unidentified victim in the 2019 federal indictment against Epstein, has publicly joined those calls for more disclosure.
“I would like for them to give all the victims transparency [about] what happened and release these files. It’s also not only for the victims, but for the American people,” she told ABC News Wednesday.
Other victims of Epstein are also speaking out and say they are creating a database of people involved.
“We’ll compile our own list and seek justice on our own,” Lisa Phillips, a survivor of Epstein’s abuse, told NBC News Tuesday.
Outrage erupted after the July 6 memo stated there was no evidence to support the existence of a “client list,” just months after Attorney General Pam Bondi said the “client list” was sitting on her desk. The DOJ also didn’t uncover evidence that could warrant a probe into “uncharged third parties,” the memo stated.
When asked if she saw other prominent individuals with Epstein who she believes law enforcement should pursue, Phillips told NBC: “Well, let me get this straight, Jeffrey wasn’t doing this for himself.”
“The parties, the charity events on the island, everyone that he was involved with, not everybody, because obviously there were people that didn’t – there were people that didn’t know about what he was doing. But there were many people that knew what he was doing that were involved in the sex trafficking ring,” she continued.
She didn’t identify any names.
“Pam Bondi has said the client list was on her desk. She could release it right now if she wanted to. While Comer tries to give cover to Trump by re-releasing public documents, House Democrats are fighting for real transparency,” California Democratic Rep. Robert Garcia said in a statement Tuesday. Congress has received the files and say they plan on releasing information publicly.
Through court documents and public pleas, several survivors have also urged the Trump administration to release all the Epstein Files.
Lacerda, who was only 14 years old in 2002 when Epstein recruited her to massage him, spoke publicly for the first time Wednesday. She was identified as “Minor-Victim 1” in Epstein’s 2019 court case.
For years, she was sexually abused by Epstein and was enticed to recruit other girls, according to the 2019 indictment.
“He forced me to have sex with him. Basically. I really had no choice,” she said.
“His house was a revolving door. There was always girls,” Lacerda told ABC. “If he was in New York, he had his week prepped to see as many girls as possible. I would say he was seeing about five to maybe eight women, maybe even more, maybe up to ten women a day.”
When she turned 16 or 17, she recalled him losing interest. “He didn’t want me anymore. He was just like, ‘you’re too old,’” she said.
The disgraced financier died by suicide behind bars in 2019, the FBI determined. His sudden death has been the subject of countless conspiracy theories, fueling the demands for heightened transparency around the case. President Donald Trump also called for more information to be released as he campaign. But, has backtracked on those remarks in recent months saying there was nothing more to release.
