Dani Bensky on Jeffrey Epstein, the FBI and a System That Failed (9/7/26)

0:00What's up everyone and welcome to another episode of the Epstein Chronicles. One of the Epstein's survivors that has taken center stage over the last year so is Danny Benzki. And she has a lot of things to say about the DOJ and the way that the DOJ has handled this whole entire scandal. And as you can imagine, she's not exactly the DOJ and Todd Blanche big as fan. So today we have an article from L. Pius and the headline, Danny Benzki Epstein's survivor, The United States, has fell spectacularly in this case. This article was authored by Hannah Slack. Since she was a child, Danny Benzki 39 dreamed of stepping onto a stage and performing. Ballet was her passion, but at 17, her path crossed with the financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who died by suicide in prison seven years ago, allegedly. Now following the Justice Department's controversial handling of the Epstein files and the

1:04appointment of Todd Blanche as Attorney General, the official responsible for overseeing their release, Benzki is fighting to obtain justice for herself, and for the financiers, thousands of survivors. The United States has failed spectacularly in this case. She says in a video interview from New Jersey where she lives. And there's not even a debate, is there? The United States has failed and not just this administration, multiple administrations since the first Clinton administration. This should have been going on since then, but we're going to forget about Maria's report. We're going to forget about Maria telling the FBI what was happening and then ignoring her. Epstein ran what is widely regarded, one of the largest known networks for the sexual abuse and trafficking in girls and young women. Last year, both chambers of Congress unanimously passed the Epstein Files Transparency Act, requiring the Justice Department to release on classified documents related to the case.

2:06Since then, nearly half of the six million files held by the government have been made public. Revealing Epstein's ties to numerous public figures from current US President Donald Trump, to Norway's now Queen Consort, Mette Marit, and everybody else in between. And you know it's so funny, everybody always leaves out George Mitchell and Bill Richardson. I wonder why? They were both credibly accused of sexually assaulting Virginia Roberts. Is that a conversation anybody wants to have? Is anybody going to talk about that? All these big partisans that come running in and love pointing fingers? How about you clean up your own yard? Any comments about Stacey Plaskett by any chance? Or is it only one way fire? And this is what I'm talking about. If you can't call this story fair, if you can't call the balls and strikes, go find something else to talk about because this story requires nuance. And if you go into this story thinking that one side is bad and the other side is good, then you're going to miss the whole entire point. For Benzki, it all goes back to 2004.

3:12She had left her family home and was looking for ways to continue pursuing ballet. You should go see Jeffrey suggested a girl that she had met. He's an older guy on the upper east side. You can make 200 or 300 for just giving him a massage. Benzki remembers every detail. At first, I was very worried, confused, and I asked what I had to do, she said. You just have to go and give him a massage. And you know how to work the body really well because you're a dancer. It won't feel strange. Unaware of what would happen behind closed doors, Benzki decided to meet him. She visited Epstein's mansion at 9E 71st Street with a friend. The first time we went, it was really a massage. He wouldn't stop talking. He bombarded us with questions about where our families were, who we live with, what our dreams were. That was how he was trying to get in. Find a weak spot. And then he would try to utilize that weak spot as something that he could hold over these girls. Oh, your mom's sick. Let me help her with her bills. But now you have to do

4:14X, Y, and Z. And that was part and parcel for what this comeback was up to. To the young Benzki, who had grown up attending private ballet lessons where her body was often scrutinized, there seemed to be no reason to be suspicious. He would tell me to undress and then examine me. But it was always like a lesson. Then came the massages, which were also like a lesson and ended in quite inappropriate ways. I always thought it's Jeffrey doing what Jeffrey does. Imagine thinking like that if somebody was abusing you. Because it was so normalized in that dude's world. And then, of course, you have the people who say, well, she went back. Why did she go back? Well, I don't know, maybe because it was normalized. And she didn't think anything was wrong at the time. That could be possible, right? She returned home when her mother was diagnosed with a brain tumor. I knew Jeffrey had been involved in medicine. I thought his money came from that. In the mansion, a sculpture of a brain caught my eye. I thought maybe he was a neurosurgeon. She brought her mother's test

5:14results to him, believing the man she trusted then could help. He wanted me to recruit more girls for him, which I never did. And he threatened my mother. He said he could make sure the best specialist would take care of her. He recalls. And that's what he would do. How many girls have we heard this story from? Their mother, their father might not have been in the picture or might have been on drugs or sick. And then Epstein says, look, if you do this for me, I'm going to fill in those gaps. And then once he does that, he feels like he has ownership, right? If they want to keep the money coming, if they want their mom to be taken care of, if they want the right medicine, well, you better do what Epstein wants. What she remembers about their next encounter is his aggression. He assaulted me. He grabbed me hard. When she turned 18, Epstein intensified the threats. He told me, now you're a prostitute. Bingo, that was the plan. That's what they did. Once he had you caught up, he could say, look, you've already been involved in this, you're a

6:18co-conspirator. Now you better do what I tell you, or you're going to get in trouble too. That's basically the implied threat, right? And nothing could have been further from the truth. Because everything that was happening to these women, besides the core four, and maybe a handful of others, was coercion. They were all coerced into doing this. They didn't do this of their own volition. They didn't wake up one day and say, hey, look, I want to be part of Jeffrey Epstein's sex trafficking ring, and to cheer as easy for people that have never been poor, to say things like, whoa, it was only $200? Oh, when you're a poor? $200 is a lot of money. The young woman clung to ballet as way out of her nightmare, but the emotional burden soon became unbearable, and she eventually gave it up. The abuse continued for a year until 2005, when her mother underwent surgery. He no longer had any power over me. I stopped answering his calls, and he simply disappeared. She recounts three years past without her hearing from him. Then in 2008, after Epstein's

7:21first arrest, the FBI summoned her to appear as a victim. It was an interrogation more than a friendly interview. I did not have a lawyer specialized in victims rights or any legal counsel with me. There was no support system either, and there never will be, unfortunately. They don't really care. I hate to say it, but the FBI doesn't give a shit about this. Look at their track record when it comes to dealing with scumbags, like Jeffrey Epstein. How they do with Larry Nasser? How about the other doctor, from down at Ohio State? Time and time again, they fumbled the ball. At first, she testified, but warnings from her friend that Epstein had been following her made her deny everything in the end. Even so, Benzky never truly escaped her abuser. A visit from FBI agents, to her home in 2019, before sex trafficking charges were brought against Epstein, dragged her back into the past. Later that year, the billionaire sex offender died by suicide in prison, according to the authorities. In 2024, Benzky filed a lawsuit against two of Epstein's

8:22man associates, his lawyer Darren Indyke and his accountant Richard Khan, who managed the financier Petal Files estate after his death. Both men remain at large. Benzky says the Epstein Files Transparency Act signed by Trump, who is also a friend of Epstein, has not led to any further investigations in the U.S. And the only one of Epstein's co-conspirators behind bars is his ex-girlfriend, co-conspirator, fellow child abuser, bipedal serpent, Glade Maxwell. Three million documents of the six million existing have been made public and there's not a single investigation or charge, she laments. I mean, there's really not much else to say, is there? Those are just the facts. The Justice Department's handling of the Epstein Files has only reopened wounds for victims by disclosing their personal information. The Epstein case happened a long time ago, and there's a lot to investigate, without a doubt. There are people who should be in jail, but there's another crime being committed right now, which is the Department of Justice's conduct,

9:25the survivor says. Well, yeah, it's a cover-up. And Todd Blanche is the one managing it. Her full name, among other personal details, appeared in public nine times, while the names of some members of Epstein's web are still redacted. Other victim reports appearing up to 500 times. Blanche, who recently became Attorney General, but was Deputy Attorney General when the documents were released, oversaw the process. Yeah, he's the shepherd. It's been his job from the very beginning to handle all of this. That's what Pam Bondy told us to, right? And when all the ships are down, and when there's a new administration and a real investigation, does Todd Blanche think that Donald Trump's going to protect them? Does Todd Blanche think that he's not going to be the fall guy here? Because he is? Then I promise you, I won't forget his name. Our government has basically spread pornographic material around the world, and someone must be held accountable for that, in Cisbenzki, who testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

10:27When asked about Trump's involvement, she says she has conflicting views. I was never his victim, but I do believe he must know something, and the fact that so many steps were taken to protect his name is really problematic. He needs to speak about what he knows. Both parties, democratic and Republican seem to understand that this is a human rights issue, not a political one. Benzki argues. Blanche's own party is saying, yes, there are things that need to be addressed. Now, together with her survivor sisters, as she calls some of Epstein's victims, she's pushing for change. We want the Virginia law, which honors the late Virginia Roberts, the most high profile survivor, in the financier's case, to be passed. The bill would guarantee victims' access to justice, regardless of how much time has passed, since the alleged abuse. Meanwhile, Benzki, now a mother of a young son and a contemporary dance instructor, is slowly healing her wounds. I hate that I met many of my dearest people through Epstein, but these girls are magical. I hope a time comes when everything falls into place. Man, I hope so too, and all I can tell you is

11:31from my personal experience, how horrible this was, for people like Virginia. I mean, her and I talked about it numerous times, and the path that Virginia was walking is not a path that I would wish on anyone. I can't even imagine, and there's no doubt that she blazed the trail. Without Virginia coming forward, forget it, none of this stuff would have been in the public eye ever, so if they're going to name a law after somebody that has to do with human trafficking, I think Virginia is the perfect choice. Because if anybody is a symbol, against human trafficking and scumbags like Epstein, it's most certainly her. All the information that goes with this episode can be found in the description box.