Emmanuel Macron has publicly spoken for the first time about the Epstein case, emphasizing the European distance and warning that it is a matter that "mainly concerns the United States." "American justice must do its job", declared the French President, justifying the resignation of former Culture Minister Jack Lang as President of the Arab World Institute in Paris, after his ties with the pedophile financier were made public: "He made his decision consciously."
"It is clear that (Epstein) had a very extensive system, which justifies the justice system doing its job independently and calmly," Macron added. "I see that behind all this, many conspiracy theories are being fueled, so real journalistic work will be needed."
Macron himself has been a victim of fake news regarding the Epstein case. The Digital Interference Surveillance and Monitoring Service (Viginum) reported last week an "informational attack" from the Russian network Storm-1516 to impersonate the France Soir portal and spread a supposed news titled "He likes them young," implicating the French President in the scandal.
Last December, Macron had to address a false news story about a "coup d'état in France" that was shared over 13 million times on social media after receiving a call from an African leader alarmed by the "information." A 17-year-old from Burkina Faso was identified as the creator of the video, made with the help of generative AI. According to Viginum, France has become a favorite target of disinformation campaigns, mostly originating from Russia and the United States.
Although President Macron is cited over 200 times in the thousands of pages of the Epstein file, the mentions are indirect during conversations or in references to press articles. The spread rumor mentions a supposed exchange of messages about Macron between Jeffrey Epstein and his French accomplice Jean-Luc Brunel (director of a modeling company who was also found dead in his cell in February 2022 at La Santé prison).
The "issue" refers to a party on Avenue Foch in Paris, where the financier purchased an 800-square-meter apartment in 2021. In the fictional exchange, Brunel assures that he will bring young women to the party for the president's delight, to which the supposed Epstein replies: "We know what he likes." France Soir labeled it as fake news when the alleged "Russian interference" was revealed.
The existence of Jeffrey Epstein's apartment in one of the most luxurious areas of Paris is indeed true and actually led to a police investigation, archived in 2019, following a young woman's complaint. The French NGO Inocencia en Peligro, dedicated to defending minors who are victims of sexual violence, has requested the reopening of the investigation amid suspicions that the apartment may have been used by Epstein and Brunel for sexually oriented parties. Several witnesses have confirmed that there were naked women photos in the apartment in the hallways and even in the bathrooms. The apartment had a gloomy decoration, including several taxidermied animals.
"I can't imagine that Epstein came to Paris to quietly read books at home," declared Homayra Sellier, director of Inocencia en Peligro, in statements to Radio France. "Some minor victims did not speak at the time of the incidents because they were subject to a confidentiality agreement. What we need now are essential clarifications about possible victims in France and the role of the French citizens mentioned."
The most prominent name that has emerged to date is that of Jack Lang, 86, the former socialist Culture Minister of the 1980s, who resigned over the weekend as President of the Arab World Institute after a decade. The Financial Crimes Prosecutor's Office has opened a preliminary investigation against him for "money laundering and tax fraud."
In the Epstein case documents, both Jack Lang and his daughter Carolina Lang are mentioned over 700 times (his daughter has also resigned from the film producers' union). According to the revealed documents, Epstein may have helped the Langs create an offshore company specialized in art acquisitions and credited with 1.4 million dollars, which was dissolved after the financier's imprisonment.
Banker Arianne de Rothschild is also mentioned in the Epstein case documents, although she herself stated in statements to the Politico portal that they were "discussions for business advice" and that she was completely unaware of his "personal conduct." Oliver Colom, former diplomatic advisor to Nicolas Sarkozy, and film director Michel Hazanavicius (who claims to have seen him in person "only twice") are among the other French names that have emerged to date in the Epstein case.