A series of unpublished images recovered from photographic and video archives document moments previously little known of the relationship between the President of the United States, Donald Trump, and the deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
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One of the most notable revelations is the confirmation of Epstein’s presence at Trump’s wedding to Marla Maples in 1993, held at the Plaza Hotel in New York.
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Additionally, a video of a Victoria’s Secret parade in 1999 in Manhattan shows both of them conversing and laughing minutes before the event started. This material was discovered by CNN’s KFile team while analyzing recordings of Trump’s social life during the 1990s and 2000s.
New images spark controversy amid political tensions
These visual records, which had not been widely disclosed until now, are being made public at a time when the relationship between Trump and Epstein is once again generating controversy. The recent decision by the Department of Justice to not release files related to Epstein sparked reactions among Trump supporters, especially in far-right sectors of the MAGA movement who were hoping that those documents would reveal names of alleged accomplices.
When consulted by CNN over the phone on Tuesday, July 23rd, Trump responded briefly when asked about Epstein’s presence at his wedding: "You’ve got to be kidding me," he said before dismissing the coverage as “fake news” and ending the communication. Later, the White House Communications Director, Steven Cheung, issued a statement where he affirmed that “they are nothing more than manipulated snapshots of public events meant to insinuate falsehoods”.
Were Trump and Epstein friends?
The relationship between Trump and Epstein dates back to the 1980s, according to CNN. During that time, they were frequently seen together at social events in both Palm Beach and New York, and NBC aired a video from 1992 showing Trump chatting with Epstein at a party.
British photographer Dafydd Jones recalled in an interview with CNN having captured Trump and Epstein together at the opening of the Harley Davidson Café in October 1993. Two months later, Jones photographed Epstein again, this time entering Trump’s wedding.
On the other hand, a 1999 video of a Victoria’s Secret fashion show was not the only record of Trump and Epstein at events of that company. Photos taken in 1997 also show them together at a themed party. Epstein had close ties to the company’s owner, Leslie Wexner, whom he financially advised until 2007.
According to the Washington Post, they stopped seeing each other in the mid-2000s, after a dispute over a real estate operation in Florida. However, there are multiple photos and videos where they appear together in different social contexts before that break.
In 2002, Trump was quoted in a profile of Epstein published in New York Magazine describing him as “a fantastic guy” and adding that “he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are quite young”.
According to court records, Trump traveled on Epstein’s planes at least seven times between Palm Beach and New York.
There are no charges against Trump related to the crimes committed by Epstein, who died by suicide in prison while being investigated for various crimes, such as sex trafficking and pedophilia.