'Wow, what a hot piece of a**': Melania Trump denies Epstein and Maxwell ties, but THESE emails complicate that story | FACT CHECK

US First Lady Melania Trump, in a public statement on Thursday (Apr 9), denied any meaningful relationship with paedophile Jeffrey Epstein or his associate Ghislaine Maxwell. She insisted that she "never had" any relationship with the sex offenders and said that she had "no knowledge" of Epstein's criminal activity when they met. However, within hours of her surprise statement, a 2002 email released in the Justice Department's final tranche of Epstein documents was circulating widely online, raising questions about at least one of those claims. Here's a fact check.

Disclaimer: WION is only reporting the names that have been mentioned in the Epstein files and is not accusing anyone of any wrongdoing. Readers are advised to use their discretion on this article.

What Melania Trump said

The First Lady was unequivocal. "The lies linking me with the disgraceful Jeffrey Epstein need to end today," she said, adding that "fake images and statements" about her and Epstein had been spreading on social media for years. She denied that Epstein had introduced her to Donald Trump and claimed that she met her husband two years before she ever encountered Epstein. Reports suggest that the two met independently in September 1998 at a New York Fashion Week party at the Kit Kat Club in Manhattan, hosted by Paolo Zampolli.

She also stated she had never been on Epstein's plane, never visited his private island, did not know about his abuse of victims, and was never involved "in any capacity." On Maxwell, she said she had no relationship with her either.

Melania did not specify what prompted the statement or which particular allegations she was responding to, though photographs of Donald and Melania Trump alongside Epstein and Maxwell at Mar-a-Lago have circulated for years. She also called on Congress to hold public hearings allowing Epstein's survivors to testify under oath.

Internet fact check's Melania's 'never had' a relationship with Epstein or Maxwell claim

Almost immediately after the statement went public, users online pointed to a document from the Justice Department's Epstein file release: a 2002 email addressed to "Dear G", widely interpreted as Ghislaine Maxwell, with the sender's identity redacted.

The email reads: "Dear G! How are you? Nice story about JE in NY mag. You look great on the picture. 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! Love, Melania."

The tone, "dear G," a request to call, and the sign-off "love" struck many as inconsistent with Melania's claim of having no relationship with Maxwell.

It must be noted that the sender's ID in the email is blacked out. It has not been independently verified that the email was sent by Melania Trump rather than some other Melania. No official attribution has been confirmed.

A damning second email emerges

A separate email is also making the rounds on X. The email is addressed to Jeffrey Epstein's Gmail account and is dated November 9, 2016, coincidentally the day after Trump's first presidential election victory.

The sender, also redacted, writes about being surprised by the result and then adds: "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.'"

The email, if authentic, could potentially contradict the account of how Trump and Melania met, though again, the sender's identity is unverified.

So, did Epstein introduce the POTUS and FLOTUS?

If rumours are to be believed, yes. However, for now, Melania insists, "Epstein did not introduce me to Donald Trump".