A model scout who was expected to be questioned by French prosecutors over his links to Jeffrey Epstein was found dead this week in a residence near Paris, according to French officials.
The individual, Daniel Siad, maintained regular contact with Mr. Epstein roughly a decade ago, per documents released by the Justice Department in January. Text messages indicate that Mr. Siad repeatedly attempted to introduce Mr. Epstein—a disgraced financier charged with operating a sex‑trafficking ring—to several women he identified as models, including a 15‑year‑old and others under 18.
Mr. Siad later acknowledged his work for Mr. Epstein but denied any wrongdoing. His body was discovered on Monday in a house in Colombes, a northwestern suburb of Paris, according to the local prosecutor’s office. Authorities remain uncertain about the cause of his death, they said.
He was listed in February by Laure Beccuau, Paris’s chief prosecutor, among those potentially subject to questioning as part of two broader investigations into individuals associated with Mr. Epstein launched that month. Ms. Beccuau noted in May that no one had yet been questioned because the probe remained in its early stages.
During a televised interview that same month, Mr. Siad denied the accusations and stated he was awaiting justice.
In the interview, Mr. Siad said he had served as a model scout for three decades and first encountered Mr. Epstein in the early 2000s.
Over a span of 15 years, Mr. Siad linked Mr. Epstein with roughly a dozen models, he said. He emphasized that none of the women ever expressed negative feedback about Mr. Epstein, adding, “My relationship with Jeffrey Epstein was strictly professional.”
Mr. Siad’s lawyer, Ménya Arab‑Tigrine, stated on Wednesday that her client had consistently maintained his innocence.
Separately, prosecutors reported this year that they had received a complaint from a Swedish woman alleging that Mr. Siad committed “sexual acts she describes as rape” in 1990 in France.
The woman, former model Ebba P. Karlsson, wrote on a website she co‑founded to highlight abuse survivor testimonies that Mr. Siad “raped me in a pool house behind a villa on the French Riviera.” In the May interview, Mr. Siad responded, “I have never raped a woman in my life.”
Mr. Siad is the second individual linked to Mr. Epstein who has been found dead in France. In 2022, Jean‑Luc Brunel, a French modeling agent and associate of Epstein who faced charges of raping minors, was discovered dead in his jail cell.
