Interview of Leslie Groff

Tuesday, June 9, 2026·Room 2247, Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, D.C.·230 pages

Former executive assistant of Epstein, 230k+ emails·Read the Jmail Encyclopedia →

gavelContradictions with the record7

Statements in this interview that conflict with a primary source. Each was cross-checked against the Jmail email archive or the witness's own testimony.

Paying tuition for womenp. 98
In the interview: “Did you ever facilitate payment for school tuition for any woman or girl associated with Jeffrey Epstein? — I did not facilitate payment.”
The record shows: Archive emails show Groff forwarding tuition bills — including a $25,877.24 bill (Jan. 2008) — for payment.mailView email
Researching visa programs for womenp. 128
In the interview: “Did you have a role in researching potential programs for girls or women connected to Mr. Epstein that they could then use to secure visas? — No.”
The record shows: In this email Groff researched and proposed a 100-hour course explicitly tied to securing a visa.mailView email
Visas for anyone but Epsteinp. 149
In the interview: “The only visas that I helped apply for [were for Epstein] … I never applied for a visa for anyone else.”
The record shows: A 2015 email shows her starting Japanese visa applications for Epstein and two of his assistants.mailView email
Knowledge of the Butterfly Trustp. 135
In the interview: “I didn't know about the Butterfly Trust … Until after his death and all of this came out.”
The record shows: A 2011 email has Groff directing colleagues to copy the Butterfly Trust Agreement she kept in her own office; she later signed and notarized trust documents.mailView email
Contact with Arda Beskardesp. 128
In the interview: “I did not speak to Arda. I merely would put Mr. Epstein in touch with him as a phone call.”
The record shows: Groff sent Beskardes multiple direct emails herself in April 2019 (e.g. “Hi Arda!! I found this course…”).mailView email
Working from Epstein's homep. 147
In the interview: “I didn't work at his home … I only worked out of the Helmsley Palace.”
The record shows: Elsewhere in the same interview she describes working from Epstein's 71st Street mansion from around 2013, with an office on the first floor.subjectSee her testimony
“One email that never changed”p. 116
In the interview: “You had one individual email for your work with Mr. Epstein — That is correct … [it] never changed.”
The record shows: She used at least three sender addresses, including [email protected] (2007) and [email protected] (2009–10).personHer addresses

push_pinKey notes

Groff scheduled daily massages for Epstein but denied ever knowing the masseuses were minors.p. 10
Groff stated Epstein convinced her his 2008 conviction was the result of blackmail and a setup.p. 10
Groff denied witnessing any sexual abuse or trafficking involving Epstein or his associates.p. 49
Groff connected Epstein and Donald Trump on the phone multiple times over the years but was unaware of the nature of their relationship.p. 155
Groff arranged flights and hotels for women visiting Epstein, including trips that helped them obtain visas, and said she did not know the purpose of the visits. She denied being a “visa sponsor.”p. 107context-checked

forumNotable exchanges18expand_more

Opening statement: 'a monster'p. 10
Q (Ms. Tolan): Ms. Groff, do you have an opening statement? ... Feel free to read that now.
A: I want to say without any doubt that I have come to believe the man who employed me from February of 2001 through July of 2019 was a monster. For 18 years, I worked for Dr. Jekyll, but was never permitted to see the true Mr. Hyde.
Forwarding photos of young women to Epsteinp. 32
Q (Mr. Timmons): So it's not unusual for someone to email you and say, 'This is a 21-year-old from Ukraine ... we think that Jeffrey would like her,' and you would take that to Mr. Epstein and ask if he wanted to meet her? That's normal?
A: That's correct. He had -- he was involved with a lot of the modeling agencies, and he was just a connector.
Not concerned Epstein was abusing young womenp. 64
Q (Ms. Tolan): Given that he had pleaded guilty to conduct involving minors, were you concerned that he was sexually abusing these young women?
A: Well, I didn't -- I didn't like it, but he -- he was remorseful and said he didn't know and that it was a mistake and he was being blackmailed, and I believed him.
Why she stayed after the convictionp. 66
Q (Ms. Tolan): And what was your interpretation of why he stayed / why others stayed on after his conviction?
A: I looked around the office and I felt people smarter than me were still there and stayed there. All his contacts and business people, no one left.
Epstein and Les Wexnerp. 72
Q (Ms. Ansari): And did their relationship change over time?
A: I knew that they needed to -- Mr. Wexner was no longer going to be a client of Mr. Epstein's around 2008.
Working for a registered sex offenderp. 83
Q (Mr. Lynch): Now, when you went to work for Mr. Epstein, he was a registered sex offender. Isn't that correct?
A: That was after I started working for him that he became a registered sex offender.
The 'decoy flight'p. 107
Q (Ms. Tolan): You said it was a decoy flight because she was not going to take it. Why?
A: She wanted to keep a flight that was taking her to London and have a different flight, though, take her really to see Mr. Epstein. I don't know why she didn't want to tell her parents, but this was not for a visa.
Butterfly Trust beneficiaryp. 135
Q (Ms. Brignac): You were named as a beneficiary of the 2013 Butterfly Trust ... Can you explain what the Butterfly Trust is? Did you know of its existence?
A: No, I cannot. I didn't know about the Butterfly Trust.
Would have objected to contacting a minorp. 151
Q (Mr. Krishnamoorthi): I also presume that if Epstein asked you to contact a minor or underage person to set up an appointment, you would have said something or objected, right?
A: Absolutely.
Epstein's relationship with Trumpp. 156
Q (Mr. Garcia): How would you characterize the relationship of Mr. Trump and Epstein? Mr. Epstein characterized it as a friendship -- best friends for ten years.
A: I mean, I suppose they were friendly. I don't know if they had any business going on. That wasn't something that I asked.
Her understanding of why Epstein went to jailp. 167
Q (Mr. Timmons): When he went to jail and got out, what was your understanding of the reason that he went to jail?
A: The reason he went to jail was procuring an underage prostitute or solicitation of a prostitute.
Didn't know about trafficking until arrestp. 171
Q (Mr. Timmons): You didn't see the levers of control he used to engage in sex trafficking, and the survivors entering your office who would be sexually assaulted -- you didn't know until he got arrested?
A: Everyone was very, very happy. No one came to me ever and showed me any duress, said that they were unhappy. From my perspective, it seemed like everyone was really happy to be there. No one ever said anything to me that they were unhappy or being abused.
Arranged marriagesp. 208
Q (Ms. Brignac): We know Mr. Epstein arranged marriages between American women he sexually abused and foreign women trying to stay in the country. Did you ever have any role in arranging such marriages?
A: Mr. Epstein directed me to have his driver Jojo pick up and a redacted person and go to the marriage place or whatever. But no one ever spoke to me about it. I didn't really know what was going on.
Massages by young women never seemed strangep. 211
Q (Ms. Tolan): Your testimony is that at no point in the 18 years you worked for him did you think it strange that he had girls and young women coming to massage him?
A: No. I did not know that Mr. Epstein had minors coming over to give a massage.
Could a 14-year-old sound like an adult?p. 212
Q (Ms. Tolan): Ms. Groff, do you think that a 14-year-old sounds the same as a person in their 20s or 30s or 40s?
A: It's possible. I don't know. I was not evaluating voices. It -- nobody ever sounded like they were underage.

format_quoteKey statements

“For 18 years, I worked for Dr. Jekyll, but was never permitted to see the true Mr. Hyde.”p. 10
“Their business was none of my business -- and not to forget it.”p. 10
“After his arrest in 2008, Epstein lied to me and insisted that he had been blackmailed and set up.”p. 10

groupsPeople mentioned5expand_more

Ghislaine Maxwell — Epstein's associate and office manager.p. 19
Interviewed Groff initially and helped explain the job's duties.
Sarah Kellen — Epstein's traveling assistant.p. 10
Groff noted Kellen never told her about being abused.
Les Wexner — Epstein's biggest client.p. 22
Groff identified Wexner as Epstein's primary business client.
Jean-Luc Brunel — Modeling agency owner and Epstein's friend/business partner.p. 69
Groff knew him as a friend who visited the office.
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor — Acquaintance of Epsteinp. 66context-checked
Groff said she knew Epstein and Andrew spoke by phone and visited each other, and denied being aware of Epstein or Maxwell soliciting or introducing minor girls to him or scheduling massages for him.

descriptionExhibits entered20expand_more

Majority Exhibit No. 1p. 34 — Excerpts of Mr. Epstein's phone directories labeled as massage lists.
Minority Exhibit Ap. 69 — Summary of the FBI's November 4th, 2020, interview with a survivor of Mr. Epstein's abuse.
Minority Exhibit Bp. 81 — New York Times article from February 5th, 2005, regarding Wall Street bosses and their assistants.
Majority Exhibit No. 2p. 102 — Email chain dated April 18th, 2012, involving photos of girls sent to Groff.
Majority Exhibit No. 3p. 104 — Email chain dated May 1st, 2012, regarding photos of a 21-year-old girl.
Majority Exhibit No. 4p. 106 — Email from Groff to Amex Centurian Travel regarding a decoy flight, dated Jan 14, 2016.
Majority Exhibit No. 5p. 108 — Emails regarding paying for flights and a hotel for a visa, dated Dec 17-18, 2012.
Majority Exhibit No. 6p. 110 — Email dated March 14, 2013, about securing an apartment for a Czech friend.
Minority Exhibit Cp. 120 — Email exchange from October 21, 2011, about a girl being nervous to visit.
Minority Exhibit Dp. 123 — Email exchange from September 19, 2011, regarding a $600 payment for time on the island.
Minority Exhibit Ep. 126 — Email exchange from April 5, 2019, about a physical therapy program for a visa.
Minority Exhibit Fp. 129 — Email exchange from September 5, 2017, regarding flight confirmations.
Minority Exhibit Gp. 151 — Emails regarding scheduling appointments with individuals who cited school or orchestra rehearsal.
Majority Exhibit No. 7p. 159 — Compilation of individual calendars sent to Epstein.
Majority Exhibit No. 8p. 170 — Email regarding hair appointments at Fekkai.
Majority Exhibit No. 10p. 180 — FBI notes from Groff's September 24, 2021 statement.
Minority Exhibit Hp. 192 — Plea proffer excerpt from US v. Jeffrey Epstein regarding FBI visiting Groff.
Minority Exhibit Ip. 200 — Email from February 27, 2013, regarding an arrival and a meeting with Bill Gates.
Minority Exhibit Jp. 209 — Email from November 18, 2010, regarding Frederic Fekkai requesting the massage room.
Majority Exhibit No. 9p. 175context-checked — Email dated April 7, 2014 about scheduling an appointment with a clinical psychologist (Dr. Neil Vorus); the committee characterized it as a medical/psychological exam, which Groff disputed.

Contradictions, key notes, and panels are AI-generated with Reducto, then each item was checked against the verbatim transcript before it was shown. Page links open the cited testimony.

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