There were tears, accusations and anger as a Congressional committee investigating the sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein heard from local victims and their representatives at the West Palm Beach City Hall — less than three miles from the mansion where many of the crimes took place.
The field hearing on Tuesday saw Democrats from the U.S. House Oversight Committee continuing their inquiry into the disgraced late financier.
Officials said the goal is to give key witnesses a public platform in a region where the cases first drew scrutiny — years after Epstein's 2008 plea deal allowed him to avoid federal charges.
The closed hearing, led by ranking member Representative Robert Garcia, included emotional testimony from people like Roza, a former model who broke down after testifying she was also harmed by the Department of Justices' inadequate redactions of her files.
"I kept my identity protected as Jane Doe. I woke up one day with my name mentioned over 500 times," she said. "While the rich and powerful remained protected by these actions, my name was exposed to the world."
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Epstein served just over a year in a county jail and participated in work-release. In 2019, he died by suicide in federal custody, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ).
As part of the Epstein Files Transparency Act, the DOJ released part of the Epstein files on Dec. 19, 2025, with a much larger follow-up release on Jan. 30, 2026. The DOJ said Epstein sexually abused more than 1,200 women and girls, with much of the grooming and abuse taking place at his Palm Beach mansion.
More than two dozen victims' names were left unredacted in the controversial DOJ release.
Eight people testified at the hearing, including two prosecutors and Sky Roberts, the brother of Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein's most prominent accusers, who died by suicide last year.
" Virginia gave sworn testimony exposing this for what it truly was: a global sex trafficking operation enabled, protected, and funded by powerful people," Roberts said. "For years, survivors have been asked the same question: who were the names?"
"The truth is, many survivors stay silent because many of these individuals still hold power, wealth, and influence in our society," he said. "Point-blank, period, that is dangerous."
Spencer Kuvin, a Florida attorney who represented early Epstein victims in Palm Beach, also testified. He advocated for survivors during the original Florida case and pushed for plea deal transparency.
Kuvin highlighted critical gaps in the justice system that undermine victims' rights. He called for reforms to ensure victims are protected and given a voice in proceedings that affect their lives.
"First, Congress should amend the Crime Victims' Rights Act to make it explicit that victims must be notified and given a meaningful opportunity to confer before any non-prosecution agreement or deferred prosecution agreement is finalized," he said.
The act provide victims of federal crimes a set of enforceable rights in the criminal justice process.
Kuvin also called for more "enforceable remedies."
" Victims should have standing to challenge agreements reached in violation of the act, and courts must have the authority to review and, where appropriate, void those agreements."
"Transparency must be the rule, not the exception," he said.
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