Jeffrey Epstein's former assistant Lesley Groff interviewed by House panel

Cnbc · Jun 09, 2026 · 511 words · By Dan Mangan

Congressional Oversight Epstein investigation Government Transparency

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Lesley Groff, the former executive assistant to notorious sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, began a transcribed interview on Tuesday morning by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee behind closed doors.

Claims checked 17

Techniques found 1

Topics 3

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left12%

Center76%

Right12%

8 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Why it matters

Groff's appearance before the committee comes a day before Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates is due to speak to the same panel, which for months has interviewed a range of high-profile people connected to Epstein.

Common ground

"I never saw anything improper," Groff told the committee, according to a source familiar with the matter who was cited by MS NOW.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

Follow-up questions

What new context would change how readers understand this Congressional Oversight story?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that Lesley Groff, the former executive assistant to notorious sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, began a transcribed interview on Tuesday morning by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee behind closed doors?
How does this story connect Congressional Oversight with Epstein investigation over the next few days?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/06/09/epstein-lesley-groff-house-oversight-committee.h…

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 1 propaganda technique in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning

Loaded Language 70% confidence

Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.

Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.

Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 17 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

schedule Pending 7

check_circle Corroborated 6

info Single Source 3

help Insufficient Evidence 1

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Claim 1: “Lesley Groff, the former executive assistant to notorious sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, began a transcribed interview on Tuesday morning by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee behind closed doors.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple web search results from June 2026 confirm that Lesley Groff, Epstein's former assistant, was scheduled for and attended a closed-door transcribed interview with the House Oversight Committee on a Tuesday (June 9, 2026).

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Epstein files are a partially released collection of millions of documents, images, videos, and emails related to the activities of American financier and convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epst…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epstein_files

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The American financier and child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein ran a ring of female sex traffickers, who were tasked with recruiting underage females into his orbit for his sexual gratification. His cl…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Litigation_involving_Jeffrey_E…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Donald Trump, the 45th and 47th president of the United States, developed a social and professional relationship with financier and child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein that began in the late 1980s and …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Relationship_of_Donald_Trump_a…

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 2: “Bondi... said she had assigned Blanche to handle the release of the files.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

info

Claim 3: “Groff's interview was attended... by House Chaplain Margaret Grun Kibben”

SINGLE SOURCE

The provided web search results for this claim are completely irrelevant, returning Zillow and real estate listings for Bakersfield, CA, with no mention of Margaret Grun Kibben or the interview.

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web search NEUTRAL — Zillow has 1657 homes for sale in Bakersfield CA. View listing photos, review sales history, and use our detailed real estate filters to find the perfect place.
https://www.zillow.com/bakersfield-ca/

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web search NEUTRAL — Zillow has 1653 homes for sale in Bakersfield CA. View listing photos, review sales history, and use our detailed real estate filters to find the perfect place.
https://www.zillow.com/bakersfield-ca/5_p/

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web search NEUTRAL — Realtor.com® has 2,423 homes for sale in Bakersfield, CA. The median listing price is $419,900. Browse the latest listings and find your dream home today.
https://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-search/Bakersfiel…

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Claim 4: “Trump fired Bondi in April over displeasure with her handling of the controversy over the Epstein files.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 5: “Congress in November passed a bill over Trump's objection that required the DOJ to release all of its documents related to Epstein.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 6: “Groff worked for Epstein for nearly 20 years”

CORROBORATED

Two independent web search results confirm the duration of employment: one states she worked for him for 'nearly 20 years' and another specifies the period from '2001 to July 2019'.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein cultivated connections with influential individuals and institutions across the globe. Epstein was personally connected with many figures in internatio…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connections_of_Jeffrey_Epstein

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+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 7: “Neither Groff nor Gates has been charged with any wrongdoing in connection with Epstein”

CORROBORATED

Web search results explicitly state that Bill Gates has not been accused of any crimes in relation to the inquiry and that lawyers for Lesley Groff claim she will not face criminal charges.

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web search NEUTRAL — A former Jeffrey Epstein assistant who was accused of aiding his sex-trafficking scheme will not face criminal charges for her alleged role in his crimes, her lawyers claim.
https://nypost.com/2021/12/31/ex-epstein-assistant-wont-face…

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web search NEUTRAL — Jeffrey Edward Epstein was an American financier and child sex offender. He began his career as a math teacher at the Dalton School in New York City, before entering the banking and finance sector.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeffrey_Epstein

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web search NEUTRAL — Lesley Groff, Jeffrey Epstein’s longtime assistant, denied knowledge of her former boss’s crimes in her transcribed interview with the House Oversight Committee on Tuesday, the latest witness to testi…
https://www.ms.now/news/lesley-groff-epstein-assistant-testi…

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Claim 8: “President Donald Trump on Monday formally nominated Blanche as attorney general”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in the provided search results to support the claim that Donald Trump nominated Todd Blanche as Attorney General.

info

Claim 9: “Rep. James Comer, the Kentucky Republican who chairs the committee, told MS NOW the panel has referred two names of individuals to the Department of Justice.”

SINGLE SOURCE

While James Comer is confirmed as the chair of the committee, the specific claim that he told 'MS NOW' about referring two names to the DOJ is not corroborated by the other provided search results.

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web search NEUTRAL — The committee's broad jurisdiction and legislative authority make it one of the most influential and powerful panels in the House. Its chair is one of only ...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_House_Committee_…

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web search NEUTRAL — Our mission statement is to ensure the efficiency, effectiveness, and accountability of the federal government and all its agencies.
https://oversight.house.gov/

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web search NEUTRAL — 5 days ago ... How about issuing subpoenas for people actually accused and named in the files? Regardless of party affiliation.
https://www.facebook.com/ABCNews/posts/house-oversight-commi…

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Claim 10: “Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates is due to speak to the same panel”

CORROBORATED

Web search results from June 24, 2026, mention transcripts released by the House Oversight Committee involving Bill Gates, and another result from June 10, 2026, mentions the committee continuing to interview people like Bill Gates.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Epstein Files Transparency Act (EFTA) is a law passed by the 119th United States Congress and signed by President Donald Trump on November 19, 2025. It requires the U.S. attorney general to "make …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epstein_Files_Transparency_Act

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — William Henry Gates III (born October 28, 1955) is an American businessman and philanthropist. A pioneer of the microcomputer revolution of the 1970s and 1980s, he co-founded the software company Mic…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Gates

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The estate of financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was established following his death on August 10, 2019, for the purpose of administering his property and settling his legal issues. …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estate_of_Jeffrey_Epstein

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 11: “her name appears more than 150,000 times in the Epstein files released by the Department of Justice”

SINGLE SOURCE

The specific figure of '150,000 times' appears in one web search snippet. Other search results discuss the Epstein files generally but do not corroborate this specific count.

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+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 12: “Blanche is Trump's former criminal defense lawyer.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 13: “Trump quickly signed that bill into law”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 14: “Epstein... killed himself in August 2019 in a federal jail in New York, weeks after being arrested on child sex trafficking charges.”

CORROBORATED

Three independent cross-references from CNBC confirm that Epstein died by suicide in a New York federal jail in August 2019 following his arrest on child sex trafficking charges.

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cross reference SUPPORTS — Epstein died by suicide in a federal jail in New York City in August 2019, weeks after he was arrested on child sex trafficking charges.
https://www.cnbc.com/2026/04/28/jeffrey-epstein-doj-gao-cong…

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cross reference SUPPORTS — Epstein, a former friend of President Donald Trump, died from a jailhouse suicide in New York in August 2019, weeks after being arrested on federal child sex trafficking charges.
https://www.cnbc.com/2026/05/31/jes-staley-jeffrey-epstein-i…

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cross reference SUPPORTS — Epstein killed himself in August 2019, while in a New York City federal jail, weeks after his arrest on child sex trafficking charges.
https://www.cnbc.com/2026/04/21/gates-foundation-jeffrey-eps…

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Claim 15: “Blanche said on Jan. 30 that the DOJ had withheld about 2.5 million more and would not release any more.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 16: “Trump was a longtime friend of Epstein before the two men had a falling out in early 2000s.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 17: “Groff was responsible for arranging Epstein's meetings with prominent people and scheduling massages for him from women”

CORROBORATED

Multiple web search results confirm Groff's role in arranging meetings (specifically with Donald Trump) and scheduling 'massages' for victims as alleged in DOJ files.

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+ 3 more evidence sources

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.