Ghislaine Maxwell Trial: The Butler Did It
“‘Never look at his eyes": Jeffrey Epstein's former butler reveals the late financier's dirty secrets
The testimony of Juan Alessi, who worked for Epstein from 1991 to 2002, reminded me of the scene from the 2002 movie Dirty Pretty Things when the hero, an immigrant hotel cleaner who is forced into the world of underground organ trafficking in London, says: “We are the people you don’t see. We drive your cabs. We clean your rooms. We suck your cocks.”
Alessi’s testimony revealed the ugly reality of the things that he was required to do when cleaning up after Jeffrey Epstein.
He said that Ghislaine Maxwell played a central role in the running of the house. Alessi described Maxwell as the “lady of the house” and said that she was in charge of the “Household Manual” - a 58-page manual and set of rules that Epstein’s staff had to follow.
Alessi used the word “slavery” to describe his job, and said that he regularly worked from 5 a.m. to 9 or 10 p.m.
He testified that Maxwell told him that he should “never look Epstein in the eyes” when he was talking to him. The ex-house manager said he typically worked from 5 a.m. to 9 or 10 p.m.—a job he later described as “slavery.”
Juan Alessi testified, in graphic detail, that he was being paid not just for his attention to detail- but in many cases, to look the other way. He was the one who cleaned up Epstein’s massage rooms, rinsed off the sex toys and put them back into a wicker basket - in Ghislaine Maxwell’s bathroom.
And Alessi had another key responsibility: He testified that he was the one in charge of making sure that Epstein had plenty of hundred-dollar bills (the ones that victims stated he paid in cash with) inside his vehicles.
Alessi testified that he saw “many, many females” visit Epstein’s Palm Beach home - including and said that he knew that two of Epstein’s young visitors were underage at the time, including “Jane.”
The booklet contained directives such as “Remember that you see nothing, hear nothing, say nothing, except to answer a question directed at you.”
Alessi testified that he understood the house rules to mean that he should be “blind, deaf and dumb, to say nothing of their lies.”