Donald Trump says he never had the ‘privilege’ of visiting Jeffrey Epstein’s island

President Donald Trump has given more details on his relationship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, stating that he never had the ‘privilege’ of visiting Epstein’s island.

Trump and his administration continue to face international scrutiny on the president’s friendship with Epstein, an influential financier who pleaded guilty to soliciting prostitution from a minor in 2008. Epstein, then 66, died by suicide in 2019 while in jail awaiting trial on federal sex-trafficking charges.

Trump has been attempting to distance himself from his administration’s handling of files related to Epstein’s case, and to downplay his personal relationship with Epstein. The pair’s association dates back to the 1980s, with the pair appearing together at many social events.

Speaking to reporters 28 July at a bilateral meeting with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Scotland, Trump claimed that he never had the “privilege” of visiting Epstein’s private Caribbean island, where the financier reportedly entertained prominent figures from the celebrity world.

Prosecutors have alleged he used the compound to conceal the sex trafficking and abuse of underage victims.

Speaking about the island, Trump told reporters: “I never had the privilege of going to his island, and I did turn it down. A lot of people in Palm Beach were invited to his island. In one of my very good moments, I turned it down. I didn’t want to go to his island” (via CNN).

Trump also disclosed why he and Epstein’s relationship soured, though did not offer specifics apart from implying Epstein poached some of Trump’s staff.

“For years, I wouldn’t talk to Jeffrey Epstein. I wouldn’t talk — because he did something that was inappropriate. He hired help, and I said, ‘Don’t ever do that again.’ He stole people that work for me,” Trump claimed.

“I said, ‘Don’t ever do that again.’ He did it again, and I threw him out of the place, persona non grata. I threw him out, and that was it. I’m glad I did.”

The Trump administration has recently faced growing pressure to release more information on Epstein’s investigation by the Justice Department. Trump promised to release files related to the late paedophile’s activities in his campaign trail last year.

Attorney General Pam Bondi initially promised to “release additional materials related to possible Epstein clients and the circumstances surrounding his death,” earlier this year, according to Reuters, but “the Justice Department reversed course this month and issued a memo concluding there was no basis to continue investigating and no evidence of a client list.”

In Monday’s bilateral meeting, Trump called the story a “hoax that’s been built up way beyond proportion.”

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