French modeling agent (born September 18, 1946) who ran Karin Models in Paris from the late 1970s before co-founding MC2 Model Management in Miami in 2005 with financial backing from Jeffrey Epstein. Financial records show Epstein made a 1 million dollar wire transfer to Brunel offshore bank account in September 2004, just as MC2 was being established. A former bookkeeper testified that young girls brought to Epstein worked for MC2.
Connected with Epstein through Ghislaine Maxwell in the 1980s. Appears on at least 25 Epstein flight logs traveling between New York, Palm Beach, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Paris.
Multiple former models accused Brunel of drugging and sexually assaulting them while they were minors, alleging he used his modeling agencies as a pipeline to supply young women to Epstein. Virginia Giuffre testified that Brunel provided girls as young as 12 to Epstein. A 1999 BBC MacIntyre Undercover investigation examined abuse in the fashion industry linked to Brunel.
In January 2015, Brunel sued Epstein, claiming the criminal case had cost him millions in business. French authorities documented approximately 70 visits by Brunel to Epstein at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in 2019. Arrested December 16, 2020, at Charles de Gaulle airport while attempting to board a flight to Senegal and charged with rape of minors, sexual assault, and sex trafficking of minors.
Found dead by hanging in his cell at La Sante prison on February 19, 2022, at age 75. A 2023 prosecutorial inquiry confirmed the death was suicide, characterizing it as a reaction to his indictment and incarceration. His death drew immediate comparisons to Epstein August 2019 death in custody, with both dying before trial.
In February 2026, following the DOJ release of approximately 3.5 million Epstein-related pages, French prosecutors announced they were reopening probes into Epstein-linked networks and re-examining the Brunel case. A 2026 DOJ document identified Brunel as one of the individuals the FBI once designated as co-conspirators of Epstein.
| Date | From | To | Aircraft | Passengers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007-01-27 | Le Bourget, Paris, France | EWR Airport | N908JE (Boeing 727) | |
| 2005-03-25 | Palm Beach International, FL | Paris Le Bourget, France | N908JE (Boeing 727) | |
| 2005-02-03 | John F. Kennedy International, NY | John Glenn Columbus International, OH | N908JE (Boeing 727) | |
| 2005-02-03 | John Glenn Columbus International, OH | Palm Beach International, FL | N908JE (Boeing 727) | |
| 2005-01-01 | TIST Airport | TQPF Airport | N909JE (Gulfstream G-II) | |
| 2005-01-01 | TPQF Airport | Palm Beach International, FL | N909JE (Gulfstream G-II) | |
| 2004-12-15 | Teterboro Airport, NJ | Paris Le Bourget, France | N908JE (Boeing 727) | |
| 2004-07-15 | Teterboro Airport, NJ | Palm Beach International, FL | N909JE (Gulfstream G-II) |