Former French model scout and modeling agency manager, Jean-Luc Brunel, age 75 has been formally charged with raping a teenager in the 1990s. On December 16, 2020, Brunel was arrested and taken into custody by the National Police on the suspicion of criminal conspiracy, of providing underage girls to Epstein, and several charges of sexual assault. Brunel was arrested, on the morning of December 16th, at the Charles de Gaulle airport, after he was attempting to board a flight to Dakar, Senegal to flee from the National Police. Prior to his attempt to flee the country, he had gone into hiding after the National Police had started to investigate his connections with Epstein in 2019. After his arrest in 2019, one of Epstein’s accuser’s and also a victim of Brunel, Virginia Roberts Giuffre had testified against the former modeling agent this year, stating that: “I wanted Brunel to know that he no longer has the power over me, that I am a grown woman now and I’ve decided to hold him accountable for what he did to me and so many others,” Giuffre said (Fitzpatrick et al., 2021). Due to Virginia Roberts Giuffre and other victims of Brunel testimonies, as of September 16, 2021, Jean-Luc Brunel was formally charged with raping a minor. However, it is still unclear how many years he will be sentenced to in prison.
First and foremost, I just wanted to say how content I am that the women, that had suffered at the hands of Jean-Luc Brunel are getting the much-needed justice that they deserve. With that being said I found it rather shocking that although there have been allegations against Jean-Luc Brunel since the late 1980s, no one but the victims had taken it upon themselves to get the justice that they need. I just think that it isn’t right that, sexual assault allegations against Brunel were being ignored and never taken seriously until incidents such as the sexual assault cases of Jeffery Epstein were being revealed and televised. I just hope that one day issues such as sexual assault are taken much seriously even if the person may be well known in the fashion, music, business, or entertainment industry.
Resources:
Fitzpatrick, S., Ing, N., & Smith, S. (2021, June 17). Jeffrey Epstein accuser Virginia Roberts Giuffre testifies against modeling AGENT Jean-Luc Brunel. NBCNews.com. Retrieved September 19, 2021, from https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/jeffrey-epstein-accuser-virginia-roberts-giuffre-testifies-against-modeling-agent-n1270959.
https://www.the-sun.com/news/3673917/epstein-pal-jean-luc-brunel-prince-andrew-sex-slave/
It’s always so deeply bittering and saddening to see the fallout around many high profile predatory cases such as the Jeffrey Epstein case. Those higher-up whitest white collar of pearls men likely felt safe in doing just about anything they wanted, and so this in their circles, did, as they *knew* (or so they thought) they’d get away with it.
Just like with the Andrew Cuomo case, there always seems to be rather shocking and disappointing fallout out those entangled in the case through either active participation, being a knowing bystander, or by being an enabler of some sort. It’s so frustrating and disheartening that those at the top seem to feel no fear in doing these things, as if they are above the law due to their social status and circles.
The question of why did the modeling, film, entertainment, fashion, or etc., industry did not take action is the same as why United States of America Gymnastics (USAG), United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC), did not do more to protect and warn Simone Biles and the over 265 victims of Larry Nassar: because they are businesses, at heart, meant for making money and increasing standing and reputation in the US and on the global athletic state, not for caring and protecting. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), FBI and the United States Government, and the Olympic and Paralympic Committee, need to push to protect their athletes at-home and abroad from both those inside and outside of their organizations. We must protect and take action on behalf of our athletes, instead of forcing the victims to be the martyrs and suffer extreme and prolonged emotional distress due to trying to keep it quiet.
The organizations should be working to protect the victims, not themselves. All the work and visibility should not be placed on any victim.