French authorities have launched new investigations into possible sexual and financial crimes linked to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and are reportedly re-examining the file of modeling agent Jean-Luc Brunel, who died in a French prison in 2022.
Paris prosecutors said Saturday they were investigating the roles of three people whose names appear in Epstein’s files. They are French diplomat Fabrice Aidan, modeling agent Jean-Luc Brunel and conductor Frédéric Chaslin.
The Epstein files
The release of a large tranche of Epstein’s files by the US Department of Justice has prompted the Paris prosecutor’s office to create a specialized investigative team to analyze the documents for possible links to French nationals.
With Epstein’s circle now expanding to include prominent French figures, prosecutors said they would also thoroughly re-examine the case of former French modeling agency head Jean-Luc Brunel.
The new team will work closely with prosecutors from the national financial crimes unit and police to open investigations into all suspected crimes involving French nationals, the Paris prosecutor’s office told AFP.
Who is Fabrice Aidan?
Aidan is a mid-ranking French diplomat who had ties to Jeffrey Epstein. He is suspected of passing United Nations documents to a deceased convicted sex offender, Reuters reported.
He joined the State Department around 2000 and is identified by the Department as “Principal Secretary for Foreign Affairs who is currently on personal leave working outside the Department,” the report added.
Aidan’s work at the ministry included assignments at UN headquarters in New York from 2006 to 2013. He was under disciplinary proceedings at the time of his resignation from the assignment, Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, was quoted as saying.
How is Aidan connected to Epstein?
Fabrice Aidan’s name has reportedly appeared in more than 200 documents released by the US Department of Justice, including emails he sent to Epstein between 2010 and 2016 from both his personal and US accounts.
According to Reuters, in one email exchange, Aidan asked Epstein if he could get access codes to a financial luxury apartment in Paris – a request to which Epstein responded favorably.
A diplomat, Fabrice Aidan, was also accused of serving as Epstein’s fixer. He allegedly provided him with contacts and information.
Investigative site Mediapart notes that he was also investigated by the FBI in 2013 on child pornography charges while living in New York.
Prosecutors said they had been informed by the foreign ministry in Paris that his name had surfaced and were looking for more evidence.
Aidana’s lawyer previously denied any wrongdoing on the part of her client to AFP.
Who was Jean-Luc Brunel?
Jean Luc Brunel was a French modeling agent who killed himself in prison in 2022 while awaiting trial on rape charges.
Brunel co-founded the French modeling agency Karin Models in 1977 and MC2 Model Management in the US with funding from Epstein.
This undated handout photo at an undisclosed location provided by the U.S. Department of Justice on Dec. 19, 2025 shows French businessman Jean-Luc Brunel. (AFP)
Brunel was found dead in his cell in a Paris prison in 2022 after being accused of raping minors.
The case against him was dropped in 2023 after his death, no one else was charged.
How was Brunel connected to Epstein?
Brunel was an associate of Epstein’s. Emails between the two showed they discussed aspects of Brunel’s modeling agency, Bloomberg reported.
The friendship soured after Epstein pleaded guilty to sex crime charges in Florida in June 2008.
Brunel was investigated on suspicion of rape of minors and trafficking of minors for sexual exploitation. However, he denied any wrongdoing, according to the BBC.
Who was Jeffrey Epstein?
Epstein was a convicted sex offender who pleaded guilty in Florida in 2008 to charges of prostitution involving a minor.
He died in a New York City jail cell on August 10, 2019, while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges without the chance of bail.