A French model recruiter who had been facilitating meetings between the deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and numerous models for over ten years was discovered dead at his residence close to Paris on Monday.
The body of Daniel Siad was located in his home in Colombes, a suburb adjacent to the French capital, as confirmed by Marie-Céline Lawrysz, deputy public prosecutor at the Nanterre Judicial Court, in a statement to USdaily on Wednesday.
An autopsy is scheduled to ascertain the cause of death.
In a recent interview with USdaily, Katie Polglase spoke with Siad, who expressed disbelief regarding the accounts of abuse by two women he had referred to Epstein, stating he never thought they were in danger.
Even after Epstein’s 2008 conviction for sex offenses, individuals in the modeling industry, including Siad, continued to pursue business opportunities with him, invited him to fashion events, and permitted him to maintain connections with their enterprises.
Siad mentioned that Epstein had claimed to him that he had atoned for his past actions and assured him that “this would never happen with anyone” Siad referred to him.
“I placed my trust in him, believing he was a professional,” he conveyed to USdaily in a June interview. “I never received any feedback from those I introduced to him indicating they had negative experiences. I believed he was a professional.”
Siad expressed that he thought Epstein was a casting director for Victoria’s Secret and the modeling agency MC2, although USdaily found no supporting evidence for this assertion.
The Paris Public Prosecutor’s office confirmed that the extensive investigations linked to Epstein, launched in February regarding human trafficking and criminal conspiracy allegations, will proceed.
To date, 24 women have come forward or have been identified following a review of information prompted by prosecutors seeking victims. At least 16 of these women have been interviewed by investigators, with more interviews anticipated.
However, the prosecutor’s office stated that they have not yet gathered sufficient evidence to take action against Siad.
“Daniel Siad was under special investigative measures, including phone interceptions, but so far these have not yielded evidence warranting his immediate arrest,” the office reported.
‘Too old’
Documents released by the Department of Justice reveal that Epstein transferred substantial sums to Siad.
In one of the messages, Siad mentioned: “Cute French girl in Marrakesh… She indicated she would be pleased to meet you.”
Siad also stated that Epstein had requested his assistance in finding an assistant.
In an email from 2018, Siad indicated he was searching for a “good looking young assistant” for Epstein.
In another correspondence, Siad sent Epstein a photo of a woman, describing her as “very polite” and with “potential” as a “model” or “assistant.”
“Too old,” was Epstein’s response.
According to the DOJ documents, Siad frequently sent Epstein photos of young women he encountered during his travels, some of which featured provocative poses.
Siad’s name appears over 2,000 times in the Epstein files held by the DOJ, as reported by USdaily affiliate BFMTV.
Svetlana Pozhidaeva, a model with Russian origins, previously told USdaily that Siad was the one who introduced her to Epstein and that she was subjected to abuse by the disgraced financier.
“Had it not been for him, my life would have taken a completely different path,” Pozhidaeva stated to USdaily on Wednesday. She expressed that Siad’s death meant he would not face accountability. “I was hoping for justice to be served, for some form of investigation to take place, and to find closure,” she remarked.
Siad’s attorney, Ménya Arab-Tigrine, stated in a Wednesday announcement that her client was ready to “subject himself to the intense media scrutiny…to reveal the truth.”
“We must wait for the autopsy results to determine if his body simply gave out,” Arab-Tigrine added, asserting that her client was innocent and had not been prosecuted or “formally implicated in any legal actions.”
The connections between Epstein and the modeling industry are part of ongoing inquiries, which include a criminal investigation initiated this year in Paris examining information related to Siad, according to the lead prosecutor of the city.
Siad was also facing allegations of abuse, with one model accusing him of rape while she was in France in 1990. Siad has denied these claims.
USdaily’s Katie Polglase, Barbara Arvanitidis, Elina Baudier Kim, Curt Devine and Isabelle Chapman contributed reporting
