Who was Daniel Siad? French modeling scout linked to Jeffrey Epstein found dead in Paris home | Today’s news
A modeling scout with ties to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was found dead on July 20, 2026 at his home in Colombes, a northwestern suburb of Paris, prosecutors said Wednesday.
Daniel Siad’s body was discovered on Monday evening. An autopsy will be performed to determine the cause of death, the prosecutor’s office in Nanterre said, as cited by Reuters.
“An investigation to determine the cause of death was launched on Monday evening following the discovery,” the prosecutor’s office in the Paris suburb of Nanterre said. An autopsy will be performed as part of the investigation.
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Who was Daniel Siad?
According to reports, Daniel Siad’s name appeared nearly 2,000 times in Epstein’s files released by the US Department of Justice.
Siad has been accused of recruiting women for Jeffrey Epstein and faces multiple complaints, including allegations of rape.
French media reported that at least five women had accused Siad, 69, of rape and human trafficking, which Siad denied.
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Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said in a statement Wednesday that 24 women have come forward as victims or witnesses to alleged acts committed by Siad or others since a wide-ranging investigation into human trafficking and tax fraud began in February following the publication of Epstein’s files.
Siad’s lawyer, Menya Arab-Tigrine, told Reuters in a voicemail that investigators had found no evidence during the investigation that amounted to “serious or corroborating indications” to justify his arrest, meaning neither prosecutors nor police had concluded he had committed a crime.
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Siad told French broadcaster BFM in May that his relationship with Epstein was strictly professional.
In one e-mail to Epstein released in the files, Siad wrote in poor English: “I’m here in Barcelona and I have a girl of Australian-Croatian descent living with me, so you can talk to her very nicely.” Then he delivers. “I want to place her here and in Paris.
Epstein replies, “a photo?”
Siad’s lawyer said he had requested to be heard by French judicial authorities on several occasions, but no action had been taken.
“Daniel Siad has never stopped proclaiming his innocence,” Arab-Tigrine told Reuters in an emailed statement earlier on Wednesday. Siad died of a heart attack, she added.
Siad is the second man publicly linked to Epstein to die in France.
The probe will continue
As part of the investigation, Siad has been subjected to special investigative measures, including wiretapping, but the surveillance has so far not yielded enough evidence to justify his immediate arrest, the statement added.
The Paris prosecutor also said the investigation would continue despite Siad’s death and that about 10 investigators were working on the case.
In France, suspects are only subjected to formal investigation after a preliminary investigation, which means that the investigating judges believe that there are reasonable grounds to believe that a crime has been committed.
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French authorities arrested modeling agent Jean-Luc Brunel in 2020 following allegations that he procured women for Epstein.
Brunel was found hanged in his prison cell in 2022 after spending 14 months in custody awaiting trial on charges of child rape and sexual harassment. He has denied the charges, along with any involvement in Epstein’s sex-trafficking.
Epstein died in prison in 2019 while awaiting trial for sex trafficking.
