Latest / The Vault: The Epstein Files / Lesley Groff And The Transcript From Her Epstein Related Trip to Congress (Part 20) (7/15/26)

Transcript

Lesley Groff And The Transcript From Her Epstein Related Trip to Congress (Part 20) (7/15/26) · The Vault: The Epstein Files

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: What's up, everyone, and welcome to another episode of the
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: Epstein Chronicles. In this episode, we're going to pick up
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: where we left off with Leslie Groff and her interview
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: with Congress Ms Tolan. Asking the questions question and then
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: just a few general questions about your compensation and benefits.
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: I think you mentioned in a previous hour that you
• 0:20
  Speaker 1: said in your opening statement that your starting salary was
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: fifty thousand. Is that correct? Answer? Yes? Question what did
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: it increase to or what was the maxi amount that
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: you received? Answer? The maximount I believe was one hundred
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: and fifty thousand, and that was only for one year
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: and it went down. Question why did it go down? Answer? Well,
• 0:41
  Speaker 1: it went down when he went to jail. Question and
• 0:44
  Speaker 1: how were payments made to you? Were they direct from
• 0:47
  Speaker 1: Epstein or through an Epstein own entity? Answer? I know
• 0:51
  Speaker 1: was direct deposit into my account. Question do you know
• 0:54
  Speaker 1: if that was coming straight from mister Epstein or were
• 0:57
  Speaker 1: you employed by an entity? Answer? I don't recall. I
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: think it was an entity, but I was always considered,
• 1:05
  Speaker 1: you know, from mister Epstein. Question did jew your family
• 1:08
  Speaker 1: ever receive financial assistance with any of the following things
• 1:11
  Speaker 1: as part of your compensation for your role. Any help
• 1:15
  Speaker 1: with housing answer no question. Any payments for medical appointments
• 1:20
  Speaker 1: answer there may have been some medical and dermatology appointments. Yeah.
• 1:24
  Speaker 1: Question Any cosmetic surgeries answer cosmetic surgeries answer yes. Like
• 1:30
  Speaker 1: did mister Epstein ever answer like botox? Question anything like that?
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: Yes answer yes. Questioned and he paid for it? Answer
• 1:38
  Speaker 1: yes he did? Question on multiple occasions? Answer I did
• 1:42
  Speaker 1: that and acutane actually so accutane was definitely for a while. Yes.
• 1:47
  Speaker 1: Question And did he pay for one of you or
• 1:49
  Speaker 1: your family member's education? Answer my son's preschool. Question for
• 1:55
  Speaker 1: how many years did that continue? Answer it was three years?
• 1:58
  Speaker 1: Question and then it stopped? Answer correct. Question Any other
• 2:02
  Speaker 1: personal expenses that mister Epstein paid for you or your family?
• 2:06
  Speaker 1: Answer he paid one time for me to go to
• 2:08
  Speaker 1: Miami with a girlfriend of mine. Question Were you ever
• 2:11
  Speaker 1: listed as a beneficiary of any trust owned by Jeffrey Epstein?
• 2:15
  Speaker 1: Answer a beneficiary question yes, answer was that the Butterfly trust?
• 2:22
  Speaker 1: Question just if you remember ever being listed? Answer no.
• 2:26
  Speaker 1: No question. Did you ever receive a payout from any
• 2:29
  Speaker 1: trust owned by Jeffrey Epstein? Answer no. Question did you
• 2:33
  Speaker 1: ever receive gifts? From mister Epstein. Answer, I received haircuts.
• 2:37
  Speaker 1: I think I received I got to go get makeup
• 2:39
  Speaker 1: done one time, hair and makeup done, you know that
• 2:42
  Speaker 1: sort of thing. Question did he ever pay for any
• 2:45
  Speaker 1: cards for you? Answer? Oh, yes, he did pay for
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: a car that I was able to use. Yes. Question
• 2:51
  Speaker 1: were you only able to use it in your capacity
• 2:53
  Speaker 1: as secretary forum? Answer? Well, I could drive it wherever
• 2:57
  Speaker 1: I wanted at home. Once he went to jail, had
• 3:00
  Speaker 1: to give the car back. Question did mister Epstein also
• 3:03
  Speaker 1: pay for gifts for other assistants? Answer? I think that
• 3:07
  Speaker 1: other assistance had some nice things. Had a gym membership
• 3:11
  Speaker 1: with the Equinox, and I think that was pretty everybody
• 3:14
  Speaker 1: wanted to go to that gym, and he paid for Equinox.
• 3:17
  Speaker 1: Question did you ever receive any personal loans from mister Epstein? Answer?
• 3:22
  Speaker 1: The only loans were the loans that we discussed for
• 3:25
  Speaker 1: salary compensation. That was it. Question did mister Epstein ever
• 3:29
  Speaker 1: provide you or help you acquire real estate? Answer no question.
• 3:33
  Speaker 1: Did mister Epstein ever set up a business or LLC
• 3:36
  Speaker 1: in your name? Answer? No question for you. Did you
• 3:40
  Speaker 1: ever ask mister Epstein for any personal favors? Answer no question.
• 3:45
  Speaker 1: Is there any other situation that we have not covered
• 3:49
  Speaker 1: that you received from mister Epstein? Answer? I don't think so.
• 3:52
  Speaker 1: Question any bonuses anything like that? Answer, Oh, I probably
• 3:55
  Speaker 1: got bonuses five thousand here and there, and then maybe
• 3:58
  Speaker 1: a year or two I didn't get in, but yeah,
• 4:01
  Speaker 1: they were part of the compensation package, I guess. Question
• 4:05
  Speaker 1: and what was the reason for those bonuses if they came?
• 4:08
  Speaker 1: Answer it was a Christmas gift or a Christmas bonus.
• 4:11
  Speaker 1: Question And in your opinion, would mister Epstein's generosity towards
• 4:15
  Speaker 1: you or other assistants later become transactional? Did he expect
• 4:19
  Speaker 1: things in return? Answer? Oh, no, question even loyalty? Was
• 4:24
  Speaker 1: that part of the way he kept people loyal to him?
• 4:26
  Speaker 1: Do you feel that way? Answer? I don't think that
• 4:29
  Speaker 1: he was. I thought he was a generous person. Backner
• 4:33
  Speaker 1: she's asking about now Groff? Oh, no, I'm sorry, stepping back.
• 4:36
  Speaker 1: I can see that would could be the case that
• 4:39
  Speaker 1: he was doing that to control people, Miss Tolan. But
• 4:42
  Speaker 1: at the time did you feel like that, Miss Groff?
• 4:45
  Speaker 1: At the time, No, I thought he was just a
• 4:47
  Speaker 1: generous person and didn't have a family to dote on.
• 4:50
  Speaker 1: And I think that he like giving people gifts, Miss Brignac,
• 4:53
  Speaker 1: mis Groff, this is a vast amount and number of
• 4:56
  Speaker 1: gifts that we've seen contributed towards you and other assistance,
• 4:59
  Speaker 1: to includ major cosmetic surgeries and the Mercedes Benz. Did you,
• 5:05
  Speaker 1: in fact, whether you understood it to be intended to
• 5:08
  Speaker 1: extract loyalty or not, did you in fact feel more
• 5:11
  Speaker 1: loyal to him at the time because of these gifts, Groff,
• 5:15
  Speaker 1: I thought they were very nice. I don't know that
• 5:17
  Speaker 1: it made me feel more loyal. I just thought that
• 5:20
  Speaker 1: it was very generous and a nice thing to do,
• 5:22
  Speaker 1: Miss Toland. And then just a few general questions were
• 5:26
  Speaker 1: almost to the end of the hour. I know you
• 5:28
  Speaker 1: said these in your statement in your opening statement, and
• 5:31
  Speaker 1: cover them a little bit, But just again, which Epstein
• 5:34
  Speaker 1: residence is did you visit during your time as his secretary? Answer?
• 5:39
  Speaker 1: His island three times, his Paris guest apartment once, and
• 5:42
  Speaker 1: his mansion on seventy first Street after twenty eleven? Question,
• 5:47
  Speaker 1: and when you visited the island, Mister Epstein was not
• 5:50
  Speaker 1: present for any of those visits? Is that correct? Answer?
• 5:53
  Speaker 1: He was not present. I did not see him when
• 5:56
  Speaker 1: I was on the island. Question and was he present
• 6:00
  Speaker 1: when you visited his residence in Paris? Answer no question.
• 6:04
  Speaker 1: Did you keep keys or did you have security access
• 6:06
  Speaker 1: to any residences? Answer no question. Did you ever see
• 6:10
  Speaker 1: any unusual artwork or photographs inside any of mister Epstein's homes?
• 6:15
  Speaker 1: Answer in seventy first Street, he had what we all
• 6:18
  Speaker 1: know is the painting of President Clinton in the Blue dress.
• 6:22
  Speaker 1: Question do you know anything about that painting? Answer like
• 6:24
  Speaker 1: where it came from? No, I don't question, yes, where
• 6:28
  Speaker 1: it came from? Why he had it? Answer I do not.
• 6:32
  Speaker 1: Question do you know if President Clinton had any involvement
• 6:34
  Speaker 1: in that painting? Did you ever see any nude paintings
• 6:37
  Speaker 1: or photographs of young women in the house? Answer no question.
• 6:41
  Speaker 1: And I think you mentioned this already. But did you
• 6:43
  Speaker 1: ever travel on any of mister Epstein's private airplanes? Answer?
• 6:47
  Speaker 1: Not on his airplanes. I took the one helicopter ride.
• 6:51
  Speaker 1: That was it? Question? And one was that? Answer? That
• 6:55
  Speaker 1: was when I would go for a visit construction his
• 6:57
  Speaker 1: construction project the one time and numerous victims have alleged
• 7:01
  Speaker 1: that young victims were forced to carry out sex acts,
• 7:05
  Speaker 1: and mister Epstein and his guest conducted group sex with
• 7:08
  Speaker 1: girls on mister Epstein's private aircraft. It's even nicknamed the
• 7:12
  Speaker 1: Lolita Express. Are you familiar with any of these allegations?
• 7:17
  Speaker 1: Answer only after twenty nineteen, mister Tolan. Okay, we'll end
• 7:23
  Speaker 1: our hour right here. We'll go off the record. Question.
• 7:27
  Speaker 1: We'll go back on the record. Now. Groff is being
• 7:30
  Speaker 1: questioned by redacted. Question. Miss Groff, I'd like to ask
• 7:34
  Speaker 1: you a few more questions about the offices that you
• 7:36
  Speaker 1: worked in. I know we talked about this earlier, but
• 7:38
  Speaker 1: I would like to clarify some things. So, for the
• 7:41
  Speaker 1: office on four fifty seven Madison Avenue, you worked there
• 7:44
  Speaker 1: from two thousand and one to two thousand and nine.
• 7:46
  Speaker 1: Correct answer, yes, question, And your office was next to
• 7:50
  Speaker 1: mister Epstein's, but you wouldn't necessarily see people come in
• 7:53
  Speaker 1: and out because the door your office door was sometimes closed.
• 7:56
  Speaker 1: Correct answer. That is correct, as well as there was
• 7:59
  Speaker 1: a door prior to getting to my office that would
• 8:02
  Speaker 1: go to his office. Question. Got it? Starting in two
• 8:05
  Speaker 1: thousand and nine, you worked out of an apartment at
• 8:07
  Speaker 1: three oh one E sixty sixth Street. Is that correct? Answer? Yes, question,
• 8:12
  Speaker 1: and you were there from two thousand and nine, you
• 8:14
  Speaker 1: think twenty eleven or twenty eleven. Answer that sounds right. Yes.
• 8:18
  Speaker 1: Question did mister Epstein ever work out of three oh
• 8:22
  Speaker 1: one East sixty sixth Street Answer no, question. And then
• 8:25
  Speaker 1: in twenty twelve you went to a building on Lexington
• 8:29
  Speaker 1: Is that correct? Answer? Yes? Question do you know the
• 8:32
  Speaker 1: address of that building? Answer? I think it was five
• 8:35
  Speaker 1: seventy five Lexington. Question and you were there until twenty
• 8:39
  Speaker 1: thirteen when you started working out of his home at
• 8:42
  Speaker 1: nine e seventy first Street correct answer, yes, I believe
• 8:46
  Speaker 1: those are around the proper dates twenty thirteen, twenty fourteen. Question,
• 8:50
  Speaker 1: And mister Epstein worked at the Lexington office is that right? Answer? No?
• 8:54
  Speaker 1: Never question? So who was at the Lexington office? Answer? Sure,
• 8:59
  Speaker 1: so the accountant Rich, the attorney, Darren Endyke, It was
• 9:03
  Speaker 1: Harry Beller, the trader redacted, the assistant to the accountant,
• 9:07
  Speaker 1: and that was who was there at first, and then
• 9:09
  Speaker 1: Henry Harry Beller left and we had an assistant to
• 9:12
  Speaker 1: mister Endyke. Question, so the only two properties that you
• 9:16
  Speaker 1: worked at that mister Epstein also worked at were the
• 9:18
  Speaker 1: first one, four fifty seven Madison Avenue and then the
• 9:22
  Speaker 1: last one, nine East seventy first Street, correct answer correct yes. Question.
• 9:28
  Speaker 1: I'd like to ask you a few questions about Leon Black.
• 9:31
  Speaker 1: Were you ever aware of mister Epstein paying women who
• 9:33
  Speaker 1: had been in relationships with mister Black? Answer no question.
• 9:38
  Speaker 1: Were you aware of mister Epstein being involved in negotiation
• 9:42
  Speaker 1: of non disclosure agreements with women who had been in
• 9:44
  Speaker 1: relationships with mister Black? Answer no question. To your knowledge,
• 9:49
  Speaker 1: how many times did mister Black visit mister Epstein's island?
• 9:52
  Speaker 1: Answer island. I didn't know he did visit mister Epstein's island.
• 9:57
  Speaker 1: Question okay, I'd like to ask you some questions about
• 9:59
  Speaker 1: just day. To your knowledge, how many times did mister
• 10:02
  Speaker 1: Staley visit mister Epstein's island? Answer I do not know.
• 10:07
  Speaker 1: Question are you aware of mister Staley ever visiting Zoro Ranch? Answer?
• 10:11
  Speaker 1: I am not question. Were you ever aware of mister
• 10:14
  Speaker 1: Staley having sex with a member of mister Epstein's staff?
• 10:18
  Speaker 1: Answer no question. Ms Groff, we have asked you a
• 10:21
  Speaker 1: lot of questions today about specific people. Is there anyone
• 10:25
  Speaker 1: that we have not asked about that you have knowledge
• 10:27
  Speaker 1: of being involved in any of mister Epstein's crimes? Answer
• 10:31
  Speaker 1: no question. Is there anyone that you think the Committee
• 10:35
  Speaker 1: should talk to for its investigation to get a better
• 10:37
  Speaker 1: sense of mister Epstein's crimes and is sex trafficking? Answer?
• 10:41
  Speaker 1: Uh huh, I don't think so. I mean maybe Alan Dershowitz.
• 10:45
  Speaker 1: I don't know if you can though, because he is
• 10:46
  Speaker 1: an attorney. I don't know. Question. Why do you say
• 10:49
  Speaker 1: Dershowitz answer because he was his attorney? Question anyone else? Answer?
• 10:54
  Speaker 1: No question. I'd like to ask you some questions about
• 10:57
  Speaker 1: the investigation into mister Epstein that started in two thousand
• 11:00
  Speaker 1: and five. You talked about this earlier, and you said
• 11:03
  Speaker 1: you spoke to law enforcement in the fall of two
• 11:06
  Speaker 1: thousand and seven. Is that correct? Answer? I think it
• 11:08
  Speaker 1: was August of two thousand and seven, Is that right? Yes? Question?
• 11:12
  Speaker 1: And you said when the FBI agents came to your home,
• 11:15
  Speaker 1: you went upstairs and then you contacted Darren Endyck. Correct answer, yes, Groff.
• 11:21
  Speaker 1: Minority Exhibit H has been introduced. I would like to
• 11:27
  Speaker 1: introduce as minority Exhibit H, this plea proffer from the
• 11:30
  Speaker 1: United States versus Jeffrey Epstein, which was released by the
• 11:33
  Speaker 1: Department of Justice in January of this year. The Bates
• 11:37
  Speaker 1: number is EFTA zero zero two one three three sixty nine.
• 11:42
  Speaker 1: It's an excerpt of a larger document. So the relevant
• 11:46
  Speaker 1: pages state that you said on August twenty first, two
• 11:49
  Speaker 1: thousand and seven, FBI agents went to your home to
• 11:52
  Speaker 1: speak with you about mister Epstein. The document says that
• 11:55
  Speaker 1: after the FBI agents arrived, you excused yourself to go
• 11:58
  Speaker 1: upstairs and then called mister Epstein. The document says that
• 12:02
  Speaker 1: mister Epstein quote instructed Miss Groff not to speak with
• 12:05
  Speaker 1: the agents. Is the plea proffer correct answer? I believe
• 12:09
  Speaker 1: it is. I don't know how they would know that.
• 12:12
  Speaker 1: I really believe that I called mister Endyke. I wouldn't
• 12:15
  Speaker 1: call mister Epstein question. The document then says that mister
• 12:20
  Speaker 1: Epstein quote applied pressure to keep Miss Groff from complying
• 12:23
  Speaker 1: with the Grand Jerry subpoena that the agents had served
• 12:26
  Speaker 1: on her, and that mister Epstein quote warned Miss Groff
• 12:29
  Speaker 1: against turning over documents and electronic evidence were responsive of
• 12:33
  Speaker 1: the subpoena, and pressured her to delay her appearance before
• 12:36
  Speaker 1: the federal grand jury in the Southern District of Florida.
• 12:40
  Speaker 1: Do you have any memory of mister Epstein applying pressure
• 12:43
  Speaker 1: to keep you from complying with the subpoena or warning
• 12:46
  Speaker 1: you against turning over documents and evidence. Answer none, No,
• 12:52
  Speaker 1: All right, folks, we're gonna wrap up right here, and
• 12:54
  Speaker 1: in the next episode dealing with the topic, we're gonna
• 12:56
  Speaker 1: pick up where we left off all the information that
• 12:59
  Speaker 1: goes but if this episode can be found in the
• 13:02
  Speaker 1: description box.