Epstein accuser sues estate for $500m claiming he gave her bone disease
Caroline Kaufman, 27, says she was raped by disgraced financier and convicted sex criminal Jeffrey Epstein and is now suing his estate for half a billion dollars, claiming that his attack left her with a serious bone disease.
Ms Kaufman said last year that she became suicidal after being raped at Epstein’s Manhattan mansion when she was 17. Epstein died by suicide in prison in 2019. After being lured into taking part in a fake model casting at his New York home and subsequent abuse by Epstein, she developed osteomyelitis, she told The Sun.
The sickness causes pain and muscle spasms. Ms Kaufman told the paper that she thinks the disease began to form after Epstein hit her in the face during the attack.
Ms Kaufman said she was approached by a woman at a horse show in Lake Placid in upstate New York who later called to invite her to Epstein’s home in New York City. She said she was forced to perform a sex act at a party attended by Prince Andrew, according to The Sun. She has not accusing the royal of any wrongdoing.
Ms Kaufman added that she thinks that Ghislaine Maxwell took nude images of her at the mansion.
Ms Maxwell is being held at the Brooklyn Metropolitan Detention Centre on charges of grooming and trafficking underage girls for Epstein. She has denied any wrongdoing.
Ms Kaufman said last year that she had launched a lawsuit against Epstein’s estate, but the proceedings were halted as she applied to the victim’s fund set up to compensate those affected by Epstein’s crimes.
But she told The Sun that the offer she received was “offensive" and that she rejected it.
While the victims’ fund received $87m to pay those affected, Epstein was estimated to be worth more than $600m, prompting Ms Kaufman’s lawyer, Spencer Kuvin, to sue for $500m.
“It’s been difficult the past few months. I was going to go with the fund but the offer was too low, it’s not enough to cover surgery, I’m quite offended by the offer,” Ms Kaufman told The Sun.
“The amount of money the fund had, I don’t believe it was distributed fairly. We’re going to go ahead and go to court,” she added.
“The jaw issue is caused by an injury in the past, and when I had an encounter with Epstein, he pinned me down and went to grab my arm,” Ms Kaufman said.
“He forced my arm and as he did that he nicked my jaw, it’s the only thing I can think of” which could have caused her disease, she said. “I didn’t tell anyone at the time because I didn’t want to explain what happened.”
While having grappled with her jaw problem for years, it has recently become worse. She is set to have surgery later this month.
“It’s extremely painful, I’ve been to the emergency room for it, my face is swollen and I’m on medication,” Ms Kaufman told The Sun.
“I’ve lost days of work, I ride horses, I feel physically exhausted because of it, and I’ve had difficulty eating,” she said.
“I want to get the money for my surgery but also start a charity and give money to other victims out there,” Ms Kaufman added. “The girls who have come forward have made a difference to my life, without them I thought I’d die without ever telling anybody.”
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