Jean-Luc Didier Henri René Brunel (
French:
[ʒɑ̃ lyk didje ɑ̃ʁi ʁəne bʁynɛl], 18 September 1946 – 19 February 2022) was a French
model scout and alleged
sex trafficker. He gained prominence by leading the international
modelling agency Karin Models, and founded MC2 Model Management with financing by
Jeffrey Epstein.
[1] The subject of a
60 Minutes investigation in 1988,
Brunel faced allegations of pimping and sexual assault spanning three decades.
[2][3][4]
Brunel came under scrutiny for his ties to Epstein, with whom he worked from the early 2000s to 2015, after being introduced to him through Ghislaine Maxwell.
[5] He was accused by
Virginia Giuffre of
grooming girls including herself and of taking part in an alleged
sex trafficking operation involving Epstein, but denied involvement in any illegal activities with Epstein.
[6]
In 2019, the
French National Police launched an investigation on Brunel after he went into hiding following
Epstein's death.
[6] He was arrested on 16 December 2020, and French prosecutors charged him with the rape of minors.[7] However, before his trial could proceed, Brunel "was found hanged in his cell", in
La Santé Prison, conclusions regarding which await results of a formal investigation,[
needs update] but described by a prison officer union representative and Brunel's legal representation as a suicide.
[8][9][10][
needs update] In the 2026 release of the
Epstein files, Brunel was listed in a 2019 document as one of the people "the
FBI once called co-conspirators" of Epstein.
[11][12]