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Lesley Groff, who worked for Epstein for nearly 20 years until he was arrested in 2019, reportedly told the committee she never saw anything improper.
Lesley Groff, Jeffrey Epstein’s longtime assistant, denied knowledge of her former boss’s crimes in her transcribed interview with the House Oversight Committee on Tuesday, the latest witness to testify in the panel’s sprawling Epstein investigation.
“I never saw anything improper,” Groff told members of the committee, a source familiar with the matter told MS NOW.
Groff, who worked for Epstein for nearly 20 years until he was arrested in 2019 on sex trafficking charges, began her testimony before the Republican-led committee around 10 a.m. ET.
Rep. Stephen Lynch, D-Mass., told reporters during a break that Groff denied that she and Epstein were close, and that her characterization of their relationship was “highly inconsistent.”
“He was a registered sex offender, and she arranged young women for massages with a registered sex offender, and I just question whether … she can rightfully and truthfully maintain that she saw nothing improper in that,” he said.
Groff told lawmakers that she was not aware that some of the women she arranged to massage Epstein were minors, according to Lynch.
“There are young women who say she knew, and that they told her that [they were] under age, and then she maintains that she was not fully aware of that,” he said.
Groff also said she arranged phone calls between Epstein and Donald Trump, according to Lynch. Groff did not say what year that happened, but it was before Trump became president, Lynch said. (Trump has said he cut ties with Epstein in the 2000s, and he has not been charged or officially accused in court of crimes related to the Epstein files.)
Notably, House Chaplain Margaret Grun Kibben was also in attendance for the first nearly 1.5 hours of Groff’s interview. The chaplain has not been seen at the committee’s previous hearings on Epstein.
When asked why she was there, Kibben told MS NOW: “Pastoral care is confidential.”
Groff’s name appears more than 160,000 times in the Epstein files released by the Justice Department. She was one of the most present people in Epstein’s orbit, arranging his meetings with prominent figures and setting up massages for him with women.
Marina Lacerda, who was abused by Epstein as a minor, said at a news conference in September 2025 that Groff “would call me and tell me that I needed to be at the house so often that I ended up dropping out of high school before ninth grade.”
Rep. Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the committee, told MS NOW on Monday that he believes Groff “has a lot of important information” that lawmakers are trying to get answers to.
“I mean, anyone that was that close in Epstein’s circle that made scheduling decisions — worked, obviously, as an assistant as well. There’s a lot of information there,” the California Democrat said. “Who was Epstein meeting with? Who was in Epstein’s orbit? Who was she scheduling these appointments for?”
Groff does not face any criminal charges related to the late financier. Her attorney, Michael Bachner, previously said in a statement that “she had no criminal involvement with Epstein.”
“Lesley is simply disgusted by Epstein’s conduct and is heartbroken by what his victims endured,” Bachner said.
Groff is the latest Epstein witness to appear before the panel as part of its investigation into the late sex offender, with billionaire Bill Gates scheduled to testify before the committee on Wednesday. Like the other interviews, Groff’s will be transcribed and made public at a later date.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Mychael Schnell
Mychael Schnell is a reporter for MS NOW.
Clarissa-Jan Lim
Clarissa-Jan Lim is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW. She was previously a senior reporter and editor at BuzzFeed News.
Lillie Boudreaux
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