A trauma therapist who has treated numerous Jeffrey Epstein survivors is speaking out against President Donald Trump’s latest comments about the convicted sex trafficker, calling his remarks “dehumanizing” and emotionally devastating for the women still trying to heal.
Trump, aboard Air Force One returning from Scotland, offered a new explanation for why he severed ties with Epstein, saying simply: “He stole her.” Asked to clarify, the president claimed Epstein had poached employees from him, including at least one woman who was later identified as a victim of Epstein’s trafficking ring—Virginia Giuffre.
“He took people that worked for me, and I told him don’t do it anymore,” Trump said. “He did it again, and I threw him out.”
The vague phrasing—“he stole her”—and Trump’s omission of any direct condemnation of Epstein’s crimes struck a nerve with Randee Kogan, a trauma therapist certified in domestic and sexual violence who has worked with Epstein survivors for over a decade.
“When they hear that they’re not being humanized—even by the president—they feel defeated,” Kogan said in an emotional interview. “They are women who are trying to put their lives together and move on past this victimization, and nobody’s letting them.”
Giuffre, one of Epstein’s most vocal accusers, died by suicide earlier this year. Her death sent shockwaves through the community of survivors, Kogan said, and Trump’s use of her as an anecdote in a bizarre explanation about business rivalry only deepened the pain.
“She represented a voice that they didn’t have,” Kogan said of Giuffre. “It was quite impactful when Virginia took her life.”
Kogan said her clients have felt repeatedly re-traumatized by the unending media cycle around Epstein and his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell. From the sweetheart plea deal in Florida, to Epstein’s 2019 arrest and death in custody, to Maxwell’s trial and recent bid to testify before Congress in exchange for immunity, the public attention has rarely centered survivors.
“They’re feeling violated again. They’re not given the opportunity to heal in private,” Kogan said. “Everywhere they look, it’s on their phone, in a headline, on social media. There’s nowhere to escape.”
Kogan warned that the public discourse—especially from powerful figures like Trump—can directly harm her clients’ mental health. Asked how they would react if Maxwell were granted a pardon or deal, Kogan didn’t hesitate.
“One of my clients said, ‘If Ghislaine Maxwell gets out and is given immunity, I have no more faith,’” she said.
For Kogan, the core issue is respect and recognition. Survivors of Epstein’s abuse, she said, are not simply symbols in a political narrative. “They are human beings,” she said. “And they deserve peace.”
