It also said he had ‘photographic evidence’ and ‘doesn’t want to implicate himself’.
On May 3, 2016, Epstein emailed Kathy Ruemmler, an attorney he corresponded with regularly, telling her Brunel was planning to visit the US Attorney’s Office the following week and that one of Brunel’s friends “had asked for 3 million dollars so that Jean Luc would not go in”, the Justice Department files show.
When asked about the emails, Jennifer Connely, a spokeswoman for Ms Ruemmler, told the Wall Street Journal it “was another instance of Epstein attempting to engage Ms Ruemmler on a matter about which she had no knowledge, and she appropriately directed him to his legal counsel.”
Brunel was named alongside Ghislaine Maxwell when Epstein was finally arrested in 2019.
Documents show he travelled on Epstein’s private jet, visited his island and the pair exchanged hundreds of emails.
“He found in Jean-Luc a like-minded predator with whom he could conspire on a daily basis to recruit and control the lives of countless young women,” said Brad Edwards, a lawyer who represented more than 200 Epstein victims.
When Epstein was found dead in 2019, Brunel went into hiding while French authorities launched an investigation and raided his home and offices. He was arrested in December 2020 as he attempted to board a plane to Senegal.
Paris prosecutors have opened two new investigations into potential sex crimes and financial wrongdoing linked to Epstein.
They want victims to come forward, and will base the prosecutions on the Department of Justice files and new complaints from victims.
One investigation will focus on sex abuse crimes, the other on financial wrongdoing.
