Democrats release midterms ad featuring family of Epstein victim Virginia Giuffre

The campaign arm working to elect House Democrats released a political advertisement on Monday featuring the family of Virginia Giuffre , who was the first victim of Jeffrey Epstein to go public with allegations of abuse.

The advertisement was released in support of Democratic candidate Jessica Killin, who is facing incumbent Republican Rep. Jeff Crank in Colorado’s 5th Congressional District.

It features a brother and sister-in-law of Giuffre, who died by suicide last year, speaking directly to camera and criticizing Crank for not meeting with them while lawmakers were considering votes to release files related to the late sex offender.

“My sister, Virginia, was one of Jeffrey Epstein’s victims,” Giuffre’s brother Sky Roberts said in the ad. “She spent her life trying to expose the truth. After she died, we promised to carry on her fight.”

Giuffre’s sister-in-law, Amanda Roberts, continued: “But our own congressman, Jeff Crank, refused to meet with us. Then, when he had the chance to expose the truth and release the Epstein files, he repeatedly voted to cover them up.”

The ad ends with the two meeting with Killin over cups of coffee.

Crank’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment. He last year had declined to sign a bipartisan discharge petition, which would have forced a vote to release thousands of files related to Epstein on the House floor. Later, joining nearly every other member of Congress, Crank voted to pass the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which compelled the government to release extensive files pertaining to its investigations into Epstein.

“I have consistently supported transparency and accountability regarding the business dealings, investigation, and prosecution of Jeffrey Epstein,” Crank said in a statement at the time.

Giuffre accused Epstein of trafficking her and forcing her to have sex with his friends. She alleged Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor sexually assaulted her when she was a teenager. Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly Prince Andrew, has repeatedly denied claims of abuse.

Epstein died by suicide while facing sex trafficking charges in 2019, spurring conspiracy theories and continuing intrigue related to his relationships with powerful men, including President Donald Trump and former President Bill Clinton. Both Trump and Clinton have said they cut off their relationships with Epstein years ago and denied having knowledge of his crimes.

Colorado’s 5th Congressional District, which is made up of Colorado Springs and its suburbs, was once considered a reach for Democrats but may now be in play. Crank is serving in his first term after winning in 2024 by about 13 points.

致力于帮助民主党人赢得众议院席位的竞选机构周一发布了一则政治广告，广告中出现了弗吉尼亚·朱弗雷的家人。弗吉尼亚·朱弗雷是杰弗里·爱泼斯坦第一个公开指控其虐待的受害者。

该广告旨在支持民主党候选人杰西卡·基林，她正在科罗拉多州第五国会选区挑战现任共和党众议员杰夫·克兰克。

影片中，去年自杀身亡的吉弗雷的兄弟和嫂子直接对着镜头，批评克兰克在立法者考虑投票决定是否公布与这位已故性犯罪者有关的档案时，没有与他们会面。

“我的妹妹弗吉尼亚是杰弗里·爱泼斯坦的受害者之一，”吉弗雷的哥哥斯凯·罗伯茨在广告中说道。“她一生都在努力揭露真相。她去世后，我们承诺会继续她的斗争。”

吉弗雷的嫂子阿曼达·罗伯茨继续说道：“但我们自己的国会议员杰夫·克兰克拒绝与我们见面。然后，当他有机会揭露真相并公布爱泼斯坦的档案时，他却一再投票掩盖真相。”

广告结尾是两人与基林一起喝咖啡的场景。

克兰克的竞选团队尚未对此事作出回应。去年，他拒绝签署一份两党共同提出的解除审查请愿书，该请愿书本可迫使众议院就公开数千份与爱泼斯坦有关的文件进行投票。后来，克兰克几乎与所有其他国会议员一道，投票通过了《爱泼斯坦文件透明法案》，该法案强制政府公开大量与爱泼斯坦调查相关的文件。

“我一直支持对杰弗里·爱泼斯坦的商业交易、调查和起诉保持透明和问责，”克兰克当时在一份声明中说。

吉弗雷指控爱泼斯坦贩卖她，并强迫她与他的朋友发生性关系。她还声称安德鲁·蒙巴顿-温莎在她十几岁时性侵了她。蒙巴顿-温莎（原名安德鲁王子）多次否认这些指控。

2019年，爱泼斯坦在面临性交易指控期间自杀身亡，这引发了各种阴谋论，也让人们持续关注他与包括唐纳德·特朗普总统和前总统比尔·克林顿在内的权势人物之间的关系。特朗普和克林顿都表示，他们多年前就已与爱泼斯坦断绝关系，并否认知晓他的罪行。

科罗拉多州第五国会选区由科罗拉多斯普林斯及其郊区组成，曾被认为是民主党难以拿下的选区，但现在可能成为民主党争夺的目标。克兰克在2024年以约13个百分点的优势赢得该选区，目前正在担任他的第一个任期。