President Donald Trump is shedding new light on his past with Jeffrey Epstein, and his story is not what you’d expect. During a recent press stop at his Turnberry golf resort in Scotland, Trump told reporters that he was the one who ended the friendship, and not because of the scandals that later surfaced—but because Epstein “stole” his staff.
According to Trump, Epstein began recruiting young women who worked at the spa inside Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort.
“He stole people that worked for me. That’s bad,” Trump said. “I threw him out. He became persona non grata.”
One of those staffers? Virginia Giuffre, who later became a key figure in the Epstein scandal, accusing Prince Andrewof abuse. When asked if Giuffre was one of the “stolen” staff, Trump responded:
“I think so. He stole her.”
Trump emphasized that Giuffre never complained about her time at Mar-a-Lago and used this incident as proof that he cut ties with Epstein long before the legal cases exploded.
“I was the only one who did something about him,” Trump added.
He also denied ever visiting Epstein’s private island, saying:
“I never had the privilege. That’s a hoax, a political witch hunt.”
Trump’s comments come as Epstein’s former associate Ghislaine Maxwell serves a 20-year sentence for sex trafficking. Trump said no one has approached him about a potential pardon, and he wouldn’t consider it anyway.
The Bigger Picture
Trump’s retelling of events shifts the focus away from guilt by association to a story of betrayal—suggesting he took action before the public knew about Epstein’s crimes. But critics aren’t fully convinced.
Some point out that Trump and Epstein were photographed together on several occasions in the early 2000s and that Trump once praised Epstein as “a terrific guy” who “likes beautiful women… on the younger side.”
The remarks have reignited debate about which powerful people knew what—and when—about Epstein’s criminal network.