Daniel Siad, 69, was found dead in his home in Colombes, a north-west suburb of Paris, according to the Nanterre prosecutor’s office; the office confirmed the discovery to the BBC on Monday.

Investigation Into Cause of Death Launched

An investigation to determine the cause of death was opened on Monday evening following the discovery, as the Nanterre prosecutor’s office said an autopsy will be carried out to determine the circumstances around Siad’s death.

Siad’s Ties to Epstein and Allegations of Involvement

Siad’s name appeared thousands of times in the Epstein files released by the US government; he had previously denied any knowledge of the threat that Epstein posed. An Epstein victim. Anya (not her real name). Told the BBC that Siad had introduced her to Epstein, describing him as “essentially a professional trafficker.”.

In one e-mail to Epstein, Siad wrote in badly-spelled English: “In This busyness I feel like fisherman some time I cache quick, some time no fish.” This message was among the documents released as part of the Epstein files.

Ahead of a BBC investigation published on 18 July, Siad’s lawyer said he was not available for comment. In a recent CNN interview, Siad said he did not know the women were being abused by Epstein, stating: “I trusted him, I believed this guy is a professional person.”

Allegations and Previous Legal Complaints in France

Siad himself was the subject of several complaints in France, including allegations of rape, with the first filed in February. He denied wrongdoing in multiple recent media interviews. In May, he told BFMTV: “I have never raped anyone in my life.”

A former model who had given a deposition to police in June as part of the investigation into Siad told the BBC that his death meant critical information about Epstein was now lost. She said: “An important link in the chain has just vanished into thin air, without there even having been a chance to recover the information Daniel Siad might have possessed—given that he was never questioned.”

She added: “Too much time has been lost… and it is yet another way for the leads to go cold. I hope we won’t have to wait another seven years to see his home searched, even though I think it is already too late.”

Anne-Claire Le Jeune, part of a group of lawyers from NGO Innocence en Danger which pushed for the start of an investigation into Epstein in Paris in 2019, said victims had been deprived of justice. She said: “My clients found the strength to break a particularly heavy silence, given Daniel Siad’s ties to Jeffrey Epstein. They faced every stage of the proceedings with remarkable courage.”

Le Jeune added: “It is deeply regrettable that the slow pace of the investigation resulted in his death before he could be questioned or taken into police custody, thereby depriving the victims of a central step in their pursuit of truth and justice.”