President Donald Trump said convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein “stole” Virginia Giuffre from his Mar-a-Lago club, a stunning admission that could increase scrutiny of his relationship with the late financier — even as his administration seeks to change the subject from Epstein.
Trump was speaking to reporters Tuesday when he was asked about his comments over the weekend about a falling-out with Epstein because he took employees from his business.
"He took people that worked for me. And I told him, 'Don’t do it anymore.' And he did it," Trump said, telling reporters that he barred Epstein from Mar-a-Lago, his estate in Palm Beach, Florida.
"I said, 'Stay the hell out of here,'" he said.
Pressed about whether any of the "stolen" employees were young women, Trump said many of them worked in the club's spa.
"The answer is yes, they were in the spa," he said. "I told him, I said, 'Listen, we don’t want you taking our people, whether it was spa or not spa.' ... And he was fine. And then not too long after that, he did it again."
Trump was asked specifically whether Epstein had stolen Giuffre, who was one of Epstein's most prominent abuse survivors and led the charge calling for his arrest. Giuffre, who died by suicide in April, has said she met Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell while she was working at Mar-a-Lago as a teenager.
"I think she worked at the spa," Trump said. "I think so. I think that was one of the people. He stole her, and by the way, she had no complaints about us, as you know, none whatsoever."
White House communications director Steven Cheung said in a statement last week that Trump booted Epstein from Mar-a-Lago "for being a creep.”
Trump and his administration have faced growing pressure in recent weeks, including from within his MAGA base, to release more files related to Epstein. Trump, who previously shared conspiracy theories about Epstein, has sought to tamp down the scrutiny by saying the story is "boring" and denouncing supporters focused on the issue.