The latest batch of U.S. Department of Justice documents includes an exchange in which modelling scout Daniel Siad appears to disclose disturbing emails related to recruiting models.
According to a report by The Guardian, Siad expressed frustration with Epstein for not attending a scheduled meetings. “I had 2 girls from Sweden, a Slovakian, 2 French and [redacted] the Russian, with whom you spoke and a beautiful Chinese named [redacted],” he wrote. Epstein responded in an attempt to calm him, saying, “I will reimburse you of course for any expenses.”
“In This busyness I feel like fisherman some time I cache quick, some time no fish,” Daniel Siad, a model scout, wrote to Jeffrey Epstein in July 2014, describing the challenges he faced while searching globally for prospective models, as reported by The Guardian.
Also, public documents reviewed by AFP indicate that hundreds of emails featuring photos of young women from across the globe suggest modelling scout Daniel Siad may have acted as a key recruiter for convicted U.S. sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
A former Swedish model, Ebba Karlsson, lodged a complaint in France in February, accusing Siad of rape and human trafficking after she recognised him in a photograph from the Epstein files, AFP reported.
AFP reported, citing a source familiar with the case, that she alleges that Siad lured her with the promise of a career opportunity before she found herself stranded in southern France in 1990 at the age of 20.
Karlsson told BFMTV that she had received death threats from the talent scout.
The earliest emails included in the U.S. Department of Justice documents date back to 2009, a year after Epstein was convicted in Florida of procuring a child for prostitution.
Epstein’s conversation with Siad
Epstein and Siad continued exchanging messages until 2019, shortly before the financier was arrested and later died by suicide in jail while facing charges of trafficking underage girls for sex.
In his emails to Epstein, Siad referenced young women and teenage girls he had identified, often in Eastern Europe or Scandinavia — and included photographs. The ages of the girls were frequently specified, AFP reported.
In a June 2009 message attaching seven photos, Siad wrote, “I just found an amizinng One she is 20 years old but she looks younger from Latvia.”
In a July 2014 email, he mentioned “at least five” prospective recruits aged “16 and 17,” as well as a 15-year-old French girl.
The documents also indicate that in the early 2010s, Siad was involved with a Thai foundation established by Mom Luang Rajadarasri Jayankura, who describes herself as a descendant of Thailand’s royal family. According to the DOJ files, he sought Epstein’s assistance in registering the organisation as a non-profit entity in the United States, AFP reported.
According to a report by The Guardian, emails from Siad suggest that Epstein was highly exacting in his responses. In June 2011, Siad sent him a photo of a 19-year-old woman, writing: “Measurement 80C – 60 – 90 1m74 Very nice girl.”
Two days later, Epstein responded, “not very interseting, sorry”.
At times, Epstein replied with a single word — “age?”. Siad frequently stressed the youthful appearance of the women he introduced, noting in one instance: “26 but she look 18”. In another message about a 20-year-old, he wrote: “she is very sweet and shy”.
French prosecutors announce special team for Epstein probe
Earlier, on February 15, the Paris prosecutor’s office announced the creation of a dedicated team of magistrates to review evidence that could link French nationals to the crimes of convicted U.S. sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, as reported by AFP.
Following the release of documents by U.S. authorities that expanded Epstein’s known network to include prominent French figures, prosecutors said they would also conduct a comprehensive re-examination of the case involving former French modelling agency executive Jean-Luc Brunel, a close associate of the American financier who died in custody in 2022.
The new team will work closely with prosecutors from the national financial crimes unit and police with a view to opening investigations into any suspected crimes involving French nationals, the Paris prosecutor’s office told AFP.
(With inputs from agencies, The Guardian)
