Melania Trump reignited fervent speculation over her alleged ties to Jeffrey Epstein on Thursday with an out-of-the-blue address denying she had any real connection to the pedophile.
The First Lady referred to fake images and documents circulating online, but did not give specifics on who was trying to 'smear' her.
It followed years of unsubstantiated rumors and gossip about her past with Epstein, including allegations that the pedophile was the one who introduced her to President Trump in the 1990s.
Melania outright denied that claim in her fiery speech on Thursday as she declared from the White House: 'Epstein did not introduce me to Donald Trump. I met my husband by chance at a New York City party in 1998.'
'I've never been friends with Epstein,' she continued. 'I am not Epstein's victim.'
It is unclear why Melania chose to publicly slam alleged links to Epstein but it appeared to be an attempt to tamp down rumors sparked by the Epstein Files release earlier this year.
Buried in the tranche of millions of documents from the Department of Justice was an email the First Lady sent in 2002, where she complimented Ghislaine Maxwell and signed off the message, 'Love, Melania.' The First Lady insisted she only sent the message to be 'polite'.
A search of Melania's name in the Epstein Files yields 124 results, although many appear to be duplicates. References to her or any individual in the files are not an indication of wrongdoing.
In the First Lady's case, many citations were merely passing references in Epstein's email inbox or in news articles.
Melania Trump issued a stunning speech on Thursday, fighting back against claims she was linked to the pedophile Jeffrey Epstein
The First Lady's address followed years of unsubstantiated rumors and gossip about her past with Epstein, including allegations the sex trafficker was the one who introduced her to President Trump in the 1990s, which she denied
The 2002 'Love, Melania' email had the names of the sender and recipient redacted, but it appeared to be a direct message between Maxwell and the future First Lady.
The message begins: 'Dear G! How are you? Nice story about JE in NY mag. You look great on the picture.'
That week, New York Magazine ran a now-infamous story headlined: 'Jeffrey Epstein: International Moneyman of Mystery.'
The article featured a full-page color illustration of Epstein grinning alongside Bill Clinton in front of his private jet, as the actors Kevin Spacey and Chris Tucker boarded the aircraft.
The piece included a photo of Maxwell with Epstein at a black-tie event, as well as a photo of Donald Trump and the financier chatting to Belgian supermodel Ingrid Seynhaeve at a Victoria's Secret party.
The email continues: 'I know you are very busy flying all over the world. How was Palm Beach? I cannot wait to go down. Give me a call when you are back in NY. Have a great time!'
It is signed affectionately: 'Love, Melania.'
In her speech on Thursday, Melania appeared to clarify this email, saying that her response was to be polite and that it did not indicate a close relationship.
Melania with Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, Gwendolyn Beck and Epstein at a party at Mar-a-Lago in February 2000
The piece referenced in the 'Love, Melania' letter included a photo of Maxwell with Epstein at a black tie event, as well as a photo of Donald Trump and the financier chatting to Belgian supermodel Ingrid Seynhaeve at a Victoria's Secret party
Melania's defiant speech on Thursday also contradicted an account from a model included in the Epstein Files, which contained unproven claims that she was introduced to her husband by Epstein.
In a 2019 interview with FBI investigators, the unnamed model recounted their experience working for a New York modeling agency in early 2006.
During the interview, the model stated that 'Epstein introduced Melania Trump to Donald Trump,' per the document. The document offered no evidence to prove this.
Another email from November 2016, sent to Epstein from a redacted sender, detailed the author's surprise over Trump's 2016 presidential victory and reminisced about when he met Melania.
The sender wrote: 'I remember flying back with Donald on his plane the first weekend I went to visit you in Florida, was the weekend he met Melania and he kept on coming out of the bedroom saying "wow what a hot piece of ass"... Nuts.'
As with many of the millions of documents released from the Epstein Files, Melania's name being found in documents is not an indication of wrongdoing. Several references include newspaper clippings or screenshots of media outlets.
In one example, a Daily Mail article about Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre was seen in a screenshot from Epstein's computer - with Melania mentioned in a separate article headline on the same website.
As with many of the millions of documents released from the Epstein Files, Melania's name being found in documents is not an indication of wrongdoing, and is often merely a reference to her name being cited - including above where her name was on a separate article headline on the Daily Mail homepage
In her speech on Thursday, Melania also slammed the prevalence of fake images of herself with Epstein, as she told the public to 'be cautious about what you believe.'
'These images and stories are completely false. I'm not a witness or unnamed witness in connection with any of Epstein's crimes,' she said.
The First Lady did not detail which 'fake images' were floating, however, her name in the Epstein Files sparked a wave of altered and fictitious pictures of her with Epstein to circulate on social media.
This included one showing Epstein giving Melania a kiss on the cheek and embracing her behind a desk, which spread across social media earlier this year.
Other mentions of Melania in the Epstein Files included a diary entry showing she and Epstein appeared to be on a list of dinner party guests for an event held by businessman William Astor.
Another file contained a Tatler article about Maxwell, which included an image of Melania partying with Maxwell, Trump and supermodel Naomi Campbell in New York City in 2002.
In one image from the Epstein Files, Melania was seen partying with Maxwell, Trump and supermodel Naomi Campbell in New York City in 2002
In one filing from 2019, an alleged Epstein victim told investigators that she had met the sex trafficker in 2000, who then introduced her to Trump and Melania.
The alleged victim said she was flown to Epstein's Florida mansion by private jet in 2002 and taken to Mar-a-Lago, where she met the presidential couple and 'shook hands with Trump and his wife, Melania.'
A separate email from 2017 showed that the financier told journalist Michael Wolff that 'some journalists (are) working on a lead on a Melania boyfriend.'
There is no evidence to support this claim from Epstein's email.
Another email contained a woman's claim to investigators that she met Melania and Barron Trump in 2016 through her role as a tutor.
She claimed she heard someone close to the First Lady would 'dish' about her marriage to the president negatively.
The tranche of documents released by the DOJ also features an alleged victim's explosive claim that he was raped by Epstein during a yacht trip in 2000, which Trump and Melania were also present on.
There is no evidence to support this and neither has been formally accused of wrongdoing.
Another 2018 email from journalist Michael Wolff to Epstein appeared to show him referring to the Stormy Daniels controversy, which he described as Trump's 'Achilles heel.'
He wrote that Melania was 'focused on the dates' surrounding Trump's alleged tryst with the porn star - which he denies - saying that Melania was figuring out if it was 'before the birth of Barron, or after.'
Trump was convicted on 34 felony counts related to hush payments to porn star Stormy Daniels after a seven-week trial in May 2024.
The Daily Mail has contacted the White House for comment.
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