Epstein’s Former Secretary, Named Potential Co-Conspirator and Accused by Victims of Scheduling Abuse Massages, Testifies She Knew Nothing

Lesley Groff told the House Oversight Committee on Tuesday that Jeffrey Epstein was a master manipulator and that she was unaware of his crimes, according to multiple sources familiar with her closed-door testimony. Groff worked for Epstein in New York for more than 18 years after being hired in 2001.

Her duties included scheduling Epstein's meetings with celebrities, scientists and politicians, booking his daily massage appointments when he was in New York, and arranging travel for women linked to Epstein.

Epstein once described her as an extension of my brain. Federal prosecutors stated that numerous victims indicated Groff was responsible for scheduling massages during which they were sexually abused. Groff was one of four women listed as potential co-conspirators in Epstein's 2007 non-prosecution agreement.

Groff testified that she never had a romantic or sexual relationship with Epstein. She said the massage appointments she scheduled were with massage therapists and that she could not recall scheduling massages for anyone other than Epstein and former Goldman Sachs chief counsel Kathy Ruemmler at a spa. She testified that the masseuses were both male and female.

Groff said she received the names of the massage therapists from Epstein and that he instructed her to schedule the massages. She scheduled most of the massages for Epstein's New York residence. Groff testified that she never witnessed or knew of any sexual abuse and never met a single massage therapist in person.

Groff testified that she believes Epstein or Bella Klein would pay the massage therapists with petty cash and that she would occasionally send cash via couriers. She said Epstein told her he was blackmailed when he was arrested in 2006 and again after the 2008 plea deal. Groff told lawmakers she did not know she was tied to the 2008 non-prosecution agreement as a listed co-conspirator.

She described being listed as a co-conspirator as a scarlet letter she wears to this day. She described her relationship with Epstein as strictly business.

Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell told Groff she should not associate with their friends or colleagues and insisted their business was none of her business. Groff told lawmakers that Epstein had a lot of people in his circle and she did not find it odd that he had a large massage list for individuals across the world.

She said she was initially paid $60,000 a year, which was doubled to $120,000 four years later.

Banking records show she received three payments of $100,000 and one payment of $110,000 from Epstein companies between 2016 and 2018. House Oversight Chairman James Comer stated he believed Groff has information that is very valuable to our investigation.

Comer said the committee is conducting the most thorough investigation ever of Epstein and is bringing in the most important people in the whole Epstein criminal enterprise that are still alive.

U.S. Capitol, alleging that Groff had called her so many times to go to Epstein's place for a massage that she dropped out of high school before the ninth grade. Lacerda told ABC News that Groff was the conduit to Epstein and that anything that had to do with Jeffrey Epstein had to go through Lesley Groff.

Michael Bachner previously told ABC News that Groff never knowingly booked travel for anyone under the age of 18 and had no knowledge of the alleged illegal activity whatsoever. After Epstein's arrest in July 2019, federal prosecutors included Groff in a list of potential co-conspirators and sent her a subpoena.

Four days after the arrest, Bachner informed the government that Groff would invoke her Fifth Amendment privilege against compelled self-incrimination if called to appear before a grand jury.

Federal prosecutors in 2021 informed Groff that she would not be charged, according to a statement from her attorneys.