Donald Trump's break with Jeffrey Epstein can be traced back to allegations from an 18-year-old spa worker, former employees say. According to ex-staffers from both Mar-a-Lago and Epstein's Palm Beach estate who spoke to the Wall Street Journal, Trump's club spent years sending mostly young female spa employees to Epstein's nearby home for massages and other services—despite internal warnings that he behaved in sexually inappropriate ways, including exposing himself. Epstein wasn't a dues-paying club member, the sources say, but Trump directed staff to treat him as one, with Epstein's companion Ghislaine Maxwell managing his spa account and booking in-home visits.
The sources say those visits stopped in 2003, when an 18-year-old beautician returned from Epstein's house and told managers he had pressured her for sex. Several former employees say a manager faxed Trump a letter outlining the allegation and recommending Epstein be banned from the spa; Trump reportedly replied it was a "good" letter and ordered Epstein booted. The woman reported the incident to the club's HR department, but staffers say it never went to police. Palm Beach authorities didn't open a case on Epstein until two years later, when the parent of a 14-year-old came forward to accuse Epstein of child molestation.
The White House now frames the episode as exculpatory, with Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt accusing the Journal of "fallacies and innuendo" and insisting Trump "did nothing wrong and he kicked Jeffrey Epstein out of Mar-a-Lago for being a creep." Trump has offered shifting public explanations over the years, most recently saying Epstein was banned for poaching employees. Trump and Epstein continued to cross paths after the 2003 ban, even competing over a Palm Beach mansion the following year. See the Journal's full story for more, including Marla Maples' warnings to Trump about Epstein.
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
