Dutch ex-model: "I have been raped by the girl supplier from Epstein"

hysia Huisman, a former Dutch model, says that she was raped at the age of 18 by a Frenchman who appears to be an important link in the sex network of American multi-millionaire Jeffrey Epstein. The alleged perpetrator, Jean-Luc Brunel, would have been an important 'supplier' of young girls.

According to Huisman, now 46, the rape took place in 1991 after being drugged. Brunel was a big name in the Paris fashion world at the time. Huisman kept the story to himself for years, but now comes out with it in the hope that he will still be fined for his actions. She is not the only woman who accuses the Frenchman. "I am one of many."

For Huisman, the story started in September 1991. "I worked for a modeling agency in Brussels. I was 18. Brunel regularly came by. He was lyrical and wanted to get me to Paris immediately. I make you a superstar, he said. I was sober, but at the same time it was a great opportunity. And my agent in Brussels just didn't push me into the train. "

" I came to stay at Brunel's house, in a large apartment near the Arc de Triomphe. That felt strange: why did I have to sleep in his house? Brunel wanted me to sleep in his bed. I refused. I made myself a bed in the room of a different model. Brunel kept talking to me. I am in love with you, he said, I will still get you in my bed. At the same time he also arranged things for me. I got a test shoot with a good photographer. "

Smooth talk

"He was in his early 40s and had smooth talk. But he was super charming. It was always a party with him, kind of fun. Every evening people came to his apartment. Types from the fashion world, and older, wealthy businessmen. In my memory I also saw Epstein there. When I saw his photo in the media, I immediately thought: I know that man. I think I even know what he was wearing. "

"The men all had girls, models, often from Russia, Ukraine, or what was then called Czechoslovakia. I don't know exactly how old they were, but they were really very young. They told me that they could not go back, that they earned money for their family here. I was not happy there, but tried to hold my ground. I wanted to become a model. "

"One evening, I think I was there for about ten days, we went out with the whole group. When we were back at Brunel's house, I received a mixed drink. Then I became dull. It is all very blurry , my memories were very vague. He pulled me into his bedroom. I remember that he tore my shirt and I tried to defend myself. He then tried to penetrate me. "

"The next morning I woke up in his bed. I was totally disoriented. My arms and legs felt heavy. I only wore a kimono that wasn't mine. Brunel himself was talking to his butler in another room. I left like a thief in the night and took the train to Brussels. On the street it seemed that the buildings were approaching me. I felt so strange. "

Close ties

Without realizing it, Huisman seems to have become acquainted with an unparalleled sex network. The precise ties between Brunel and Epstein are still being investigated, but at least they were close. The scandal surrounding the latter is making America shake to its foundations. Epstein was found dead in his cell this weekend. Many big names had connections with the multi-millionaire accused of extensive abuse, from Prince Andrew to Bill Clinton to Donald Trump.

In 1991 Huisman knew nothing about this. She was also unaware of girls or young women being brought to America. However, the vulnerable position of young models was well known. "It annoys me afterwards how they dealt with me. In Brussels they were surprised when I returned. I think I said Paris wasn't my world or something, but they didn't ask. While I was on my way, and yet they knew that I ended up in Brunel's apartment. The CBS documentary was already a few years old at the time, the stories about him must have been known. They just looked away. "

"I was very embarrassed. For a long time I thought it was my own fault. That I shouldn't have been so naive. It sounds fierce to say that it has determined my life, but the fact is that I have armored myself for a long time, had trouble feeling things. Eight years ago I met my current friend, I told him what happened. At first not everything, and a bit distant. As if it was about someone else. Two years ago I was extensively in therapy: then I completely threw it out. I think the processing only started then. "

Declaration

The reason that Huisman comes out is that she hopes that the 'bastards' who have done this to her and others will still be punished. She considered filing a complaint against Brunel, but she didn't feel embarrassed. Now it's too late. "Lawyers in France say the case is out of date. They did advise me to approach the FBI, because they are now checking all the Epstein corridors. I had telephone contact two weeks ago. "

She is certainly not the only one who accuses Brunel. Already in 1988 a number of models told the American channel CBS that Brunel had drugged them and in one case raped them. In 2017, a New Zealand woman stated that Brunel tried to go to bed with her at the age of 17.

Brunel himself is unreachable for commentary, also for French media. The Brussels and Parisian offices for which Huisman worked did not answer questions about the case on Wednesday. Huisman himself has been trying to get in touch with Brunel for two years. "I also know that he does not immediately agree with me and says sorry. But I just want to be able to look him in the eye and tell him what he did to me. And that I am still here. "