Victim or accomplice? The role of Jeffrey Epstein’s assistant, Sarah Kellen, in the scandal

For more than two decades, one name has repeatedly surfaced in investigations linked to disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein — Sarah Kellen.

To some survivors, Kellen was one of the women who helped sustain Epstein’s abuse network by arranging appointments, managing logistics and recruiting girls.

To others examining the case years later, she appears as another individual trapped inside Epstein’s deeply manipulative world, subjected to alleged abuse and psychological control herself.

Kellen appeared before the United States House Oversight and Accountability Committee on Thursday as lawmakers reviewed the federal government’s handling of the Epstein investigation.

During closed-door testimony, Kellen forcefully denied that she knowingly participated in sex trafficking crimes and instead portrayed herself as one of Epstein’s victims.

“I am here today to answer your questions, to dispel rumours and conspiracies, and to tell you the truth,” Kellen told lawmakers during her opening statement.

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Her testimony reopened longstanding questions surrounding her role inside Epstein’s operation: Was she a victim acting under coercion, an active accomplice, or both simultaneously?

How did Sarah Kellen get close to Jeffrey Epstein?

Kellen began working for Epstein in 2001 when she was in her early twenties. Over time, she became one of the most visible members of Epstein’s household staff and remained employed by him for more than a decade.

According to court records, civil lawsuits and survivor accounts, Kellen handled scheduling duties and coordinated appointments for Epstein and his longtime associate Ghislaine Maxwell.

Survivors later alleged that these duties often involved arranging massages and encounters that became sexual in nature.

Kellen’s name entered the public spotlight in a major way after details emerged about Epstein’s controversial 2007 federal non-prosecution agreement.

The deal, negotiated by federal prosecutors in Florida under then-US Attorney Alexander Acosta, granted immunity not only to Epstein but also to several women identified as potential “co-conspirators.”

Under that agreement, Epstein avoided a sweeping federal indictment and instead pleaded guilty in state court to charges related to soliciting prostitution from a minor. He ultimately served 13 months in a county jail under a work-release arrangement that later became heavily criticised.

Kellen was among four women specifically named in the agreement alongside Lesley Groff, Adriana Ross and Nadia Marcinkova.

Victims’ lawyers and critics of the deal have long argued that the immunity provision suggested federal authorities viewed these women as participants in Epstein’s criminal enterprise.

Yet Kellen has insisted she did not even know the agreement existed at the time. “I did not even know my name was in that agreement until after it had been signed and released to the public,” she told lawmakers during her testimony.

“The federal government of the United States branded me a criminal in a secret deal with my own abuser, without ever once speaking to me.”

Kellen also told Congress that investigators never contacted her before the agreement was finalised. “... no one from law enforcement ever spoke with me, ever heard my side, ever asked me a single question,” she said.

The 2007 plea arrangement itself has remained one of the most controversial episodes in the Epstein saga. Internal Department of Justice reviews later concluded the agreement effectively shut down a broader federal investigation into Epstein’s activities and protected unnamed associates from prosecution.

Was Sarah Kellen a victim?

During her appearance before Congress, Kellen described Epstein not as an employer she willingly served but as a manipulative and abusive figure who allegedly controlled nearly every aspect of her life.

“He groomed me, sexually and psychologically abused me, controlled me, manipulated me, dominated me, and gaslit me until I could no longer tell which thoughts were mine and which were his,” she said.

“It was like living with a permanent virtual reality headset on.” Kellen alleged the abuse continued throughout much of the time she worked for Epstein and claimed it frequently became violent.

“I will not catalogue every assault; it would take too much time, but I want this committee to know that the abuse happened on average on a weekly basis, and was at times violent,” she said.

According to records reviewed by prosecutors, Kellen had previously stated that she engaged in sexual contact with Epstein “pretty often” and described at least one incident in which she was “aggressively raped.”

Interview notes cited by prosecutors also suggested Kellen told authorities she felt trapped and ashamed during encounters involving Epstein and sometimes Maxwell or other women. She allegedly said she “did not feel that she had a choice” and feared Epstein’s anger if she disobeyed him.

Kellen repeatedly portrayed Epstein as a deeply intimidating figure whose influence extended into powerful social and political circles.

“I was reminded every day how powerful he was – how influential he was – and that to turn on him or disobey him would mean losing everything: my job, my home, everyone I knew in the world, even my life,” she told lawmakers.

She also alleged that the abuse did not stop even when Epstein served his Florida jail sentence following the 2007 plea deal.

“He even Skyped me from a computer inside the Palm Beach County Stockade and ordered me to undress for him on camera,” Kellen said.

Kellen also explained why she believed she could not simply leave Epstein’s orbit. “I know some of you are wondering why I did not leave. I had nowhere else to go. I had no money, no family, no education and no sense that I deserved any better,” she said.

“This is why it is so important for people to be educated on how the grooming process works, how trauma bonds form.”

She added, “I can provide more information about how I was groomed, but I will not speak for or about other victims.”

Kellen also claimed Epstein used fear and his powerful connections to maintain control over those around him.

“Epstein made certain I knew that defying him would cost me my life,” she said. “He knew everyone in the highest echelons of society and everyone catered to him.”

Was Sarah Kellen an accomplice?

While Kellen’s testimony presented her as another victim of Epstein’s abuse, survivor accounts and legal filings over many years have painted a far more complicated picture.

Numerous women who accused Epstein of abuse alleged that Kellen played a direct role in managing the operation surrounding him.

Civil lawsuits and testimony during Maxwell’s 2021 criminal trial described Kellen as an administrative coordinator who handled scheduling, payments and recruitment-related logistics.

According to a 2019 civil lawsuit referenced in reporting on the case, Kellen and another Epstein associate allegedly oversaw parts of Epstein’s daily operations and instructed girls to recruit additional young women. Survivors also testified that Kellen distributed cash payments following abuse sessions.

A prosecution witness identified publicly only as “Carolyn” testified during Maxwell’s trial that Kellen scheduled sexualised massages for her when she was 14 or 15 years old. The witness also said Kellen paid her hundreds of dollars to pose nude for photographs allegedly taken on Epstein’s behalf.

Other accusers challenged Kellen’s insistence that she did not realise some of Epstein’s victims were minors.

Teresa Helm, one of Epstein’s accusers, alleged that Kellen “groomed” her for Epstein and expressed doubt about claims that Kellen was unaware of what was happening. According to reporting on the matter, Kellen’s lawyer later denied that Kellen had ever met Helm.

Kellen has consistently disputed allegations that she knowingly facilitated abuse involving minors. According to Department of Justice interview records cited by ABC News, Kellen told investigators she was given lists of names to contact for massages and viewed the women as adults in their early twenties.

She allegedly stated that it “never [crossed] her mind that any of them were minors.”

Prosecutors’ notes indicated Kellen claimed she only learned about allegations involving underage girls after media reports began emerging in the mid-2000s.

She reportedly told authorities she felt “shocked, angry, and disappointed” once she became aware of those accusations and was especially upset that Epstein had manipulated her into assisting in activities involving other women.

Still, critics of Kellen argue that the evidence against her extends beyond simple administrative work.

During Maxwell’s sentencing in 2022, US District Judge Alison Nathan openly referred to Kellen as “a knowing participant in the criminal conspiracy” and “a criminally responsible participant.”

Kellen’s own legal actions in previous years also drew attention. When questioned under oath in 2010 about her role in Epstein’s network and the involvement of high-profile individuals, including Prince Andrew, Kellen repeatedly invoked her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.

Why did prosecutors never charge Sarah Kellen?

After Epstein’s arrest in New York in 2019 on federal sex-trafficking charges, prosecutors reportedly considered whether charges should be brought against several people in his orbit, including Kellen.

Internal records later showed prosecutors examined possible witness tampering allegations involving her.

However, no indictment followed.

According to Kellen’s attorney Kathleen Cassidy, prosecutors eventually came to view Kellen as a victim after hearing details about her own alleged abuse.

“... prosecutors recognised her as a victim and declined to prosecute,” Cassidy told MS Now, according to reports summarising the interview.

Kellen’s legal team also argued that her conduct should be viewed in the context of coercion and trauma.

In a 2020 communication with prosecutors, her lawyers described her as “basically as a cog in Epstein's wheel, acting entirely at his direction and doing what she did at a time that she herself was a very vulnerable victim.”

According to interview notes cited in media reports, Kellen told investigators that most of her personal relationships and friendships came through Epstein, leaving her isolated from the outside world.

Prosecutors noted that she described Epstein as “an overpowering, ominous figure” and believed she could “feel Epstein’s wrath” if she failed to comply with his wishes.

Sources cited in reports also indicated prosecutors once explored whether Epstein could face charges connected to an alleged assault involving Kellen aboard a private plane in 2005.

Those charges were never pursued after she was instead categorised within the broader co-conspirator framework tied to the 2007 plea agreement.

Even after she stopped working directly for Epstein, Kellen reportedly remained connected to him. Prosecutorial notes suggested she continued seeing Epstein every few months and received money from him for apartment renovations.

According to those notes, Epstein allegedly reassured her that “she would always be safe and he would always take care of her.”

What did US Congress say?

The congressional inquiry is examining how federal authorities handled investigations into Epstein and why his 2007 plea deal allowed him to avoid far more serious charges.

Following Kellen’s testimony, House Oversight Committee chairman James Comer described the interview as highly significant.

“Sarah Kellen has been very helpful,” Comer told reporters. “Of all the people we’ve interviewed thus far, this was by far the most substantive and productive interview we’ve had.”

Comer also revealed that Kellen provided investigators with “three names of people that were involved” in Epstein’s abuse network and said those names had not previously surfaced during the committee’s inquiry.

“These were new names for us,” Comer added.

At one point, Comer suggested Kellen’s testimony had persuaded him that she herself had been victimised. “I believe she was a victim now,” he told reporters during a break in proceedings.

Not everyone agreed with that interpretation.

US Representative Nancy Mace criticised the notion that adult women involved in recruiting underage girls should automatically be viewed solely as victims.

“If you’re an adult female and you’re recruiting underage girls, you’re not a victim. You’re a prostitute, a child predator, and a sex trafficker,” Mace told Politico.

Years after Epstein’s 'death' in a Manhattan jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex-trafficking charges, debate surrounding Sarah Kellen remains deeply polarising.

“I was a literal indentured slave,” Kellen told lawmakers. “I had zero power or authority, I was there only to serve and to submit.”

With inputs from agencies