By Annie Grayer, Jake Tapper, Nicky Robertson, CNN
(CNN) — Lawmakers investigating the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein are turning their attention to three men who Epstein’s longtime assistant accused of sexual abuse in closed-door testimony this week, sources familiar with the matter told CNN.
In an interview with the House Oversight Committee on Thursday, former Epstein assistant Sarah Kellen accused the three men of wrongdoing and identified them by name, House Oversight Chair James Comer said.
Sources told CNN that Kellen named Frederic Fekkai, a French celebrity hairstylist; Philip Levine, the former mayor of Miami Beach and cruise industry entrepreneur; and Patrick Demarchelier, a French fashion photographer.
Kellen accused Fekkai and Levine of sexually assaulting her and testified that Demarchelier exposed himself to her, one of the sources familiar with the matter said. Another source said Kellen asserted that Fekkai assaulted her in the early 2000s – before she met Epstein – when the two were alone together in a hotel room while on a trip to Hawaii to meet with modeling agents.
A media representative for Fekkai disputed that Fekkai had done anything wrong.
“Mr. Fekkai was astonished to read of Ms. Kellen’s testimony. Mr. Fekkai never abused anyone. He never participated in any illegal behavior. He knew nothing about Epstein’s repugnant depravity or trafficking. He did nothing wrong,” the representative, Mark Herr, said in a statement.
Herr also specifically denied the allegation of assault: “That is categorically false. Mr. Fekkai never assaulted anyone.”
CNN attempted to reach Levine and representatives of Demarchelier, who died in 2022, through phone calls and emails, as well as direct messages on social media. Earlier this year, Levine told WLRN in a statement that he had only met Epstein “a few times” and regretted it.
“As I have stated previously, my only connection to Jeffrey Epstein arose solely through my former friendship with Ghislaine Maxwell. I met Epstein only a few times. I never conducted business with him, never visited his island and never flew on his aircraft. I regret ever meeting him,” he said at the time.
Kellen testified that Demarchelier introduced her to Epstein, who he characterized as a scout for possible Victoria’s Secret models, another source familiar with the matter told CNN.
None of the men have been charged with a crime in connection with Epstein, and Comer said the committee had not previously known of allegations of sexual abuse against them.
A CNN review of the Epstein files released by the Department of Justice showed that Levine and Fekkai had ties to the late convicted sex offender dating back years. The files, however, do not appear to reveal any direct interaction between Demarchelier and Epstein, according to CNN’s review. There is no indication in the publicly available Epstein files reviewed by CNN that any of the three men had been interviewed by federal investigators.
Kellen is a polarizing figure in Epstein’s orbit whose work with the disgraced financier provided her access to significant information on his activities. In 2007, she was labeled by law enforcement as one of Epstein’s potential co-conspirators. But she has described herself as a victim of Epstein’s abuse, and some observers acknowledge her experience is complicated, even if law enforcement did investigate her for possibly aiding Epstein. Comer said she was not interviewed by law enforcement until 2019; her lawyer declined to comment.
“He groomed me, sexually and psychologically abused me, controlled me, manipulated me, dominated me, and gaslit me until I could no longer tell which thoughts were mine and which were his