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House Republicans Refer Two Men to DOJ After Release of Epstein Assistant’s Transcript

Republicans urged the Justice Department to use tools including witness immunity to probe the allegations, signaling a push for criminal scrutiny of Epstein’s wider network.

Overview

  • The House Oversight Committee released Sarah Kellen’s transcribed interview on Thursday and sent a letter to Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche asking the DOJ to investigate allegations she made against Philip Levine and Frédéric Fekkai.
  • Kellen told the committee she was sexually abused by Levine and Fekkai in separate incidents and said photographer Patrick Demarchelier exposed himself to her, according to the newly published transcript.
  • Chairman James Comer and four Republican colleagues asked the DOJ to “use all available tools,” explicitly including granting immunity to witnesses to obtain more testimony and evidence.
  • Neither Levine nor Fekkai has been charged and both deny the allegations, and the committee stressed that it is not a law enforcement body while referring the claims to prosecutors.
  • The referral expands congressional scrutiny of Epstein and Maxwell’s circle and raises questions about why Kellen was not interviewed by authorities until 2019, a point the committee said it plans to probe further.