Former Ford model Lisa Phillips recalled how Jeffrey Epstein allegedly helped her secure a contract with the prestigious modelling agency after allegedly sexually assaulting her, describing the opportunity as the fulfilment of her biggest ambition: 'He gave me the exact thing I wanted: my big, huge goal.'
It was the career break she had been chasing. Phillips alleges Epstein had already sexually assaulted her on his private island in 2000 and continued abusing her after arranging the introduction that changed her modelling career.
Watch here: Lisa Phillips recounts her experience on Jeffrey Epstein's private island and the alleged sexual abuse she endured.
Her account, detailed in an investigation published on 2 October 2026, describes how a chance to join one of fashion's best-known agencies became part of Epstein's alleged manipulation. Phillips says she had tried to get signed by Ford Models twice before and been rejected. Epstein knew about that ambition because she had told him herself.
How Did Epstein Get Lisa Phillips Into Ford Models?
Phillips was 21 when another model took her to Little St. James, Epstein's private island in the US Virgin Islands, during a Caribbean photo assignment in 2000. She says he questioned her about her family, her relationship with her father and her ambitions in fashion. Her biggest goal, she told him, was to work for Ford Models.
According to Phillips, Epstein told the two women they would have to stay overnight, then sexually assaulted her during a massage. After returning to New York, she says she avoided him despite repeated calls from his assistants. About four months later, Epstein contacted her himself with an offer: an introduction to Katie Ford, then chief executive of Ford Models.
Phillips says she met Ford at the agency's SoHo office and secured a contract. In a separate interview, she remembered wondering whether she had misjudged Epstein: 'Maybe he's not a bad guy.' For a young model whose previous attempts to join Ford had failed, the introduction appeared to deliver exactly what she had wanted.
Signing With Ford Did Not End the Alleged Abuse
Phillips says she assumed the deal would be the end of her contact with Epstein. Instead, she alleges he repeatedly summoned her to his New York home and sexually assaulted her there. She also claims he arranged encounters with powerful men, some of whom sexually assaulted her.
The professional opportunity complicated how she understood the man who had assaulted her, she has explained. In an earlier interview, Phillips recalled thinking he had done something terrible to her and then something helpful. She says she did not then recognise the pattern of manipulation she now describes.
At a survivors' rally in Washington on 3 September 2025, Phillips said Epstein's influence extended far beyond helping her get signed. She said Epstein could make a model's career but could also 'destroy my career' if she did not do what he wanted. She says she eventually got away from his circle in 2004, after years of abuse.
Watch here: Lisa Phillips reveals how Jeffrey Epstein allegedly used her dream of joining Ford Models to manipulate her and continue abusing her.
Phillips Raises Questions About Fashion Industry Gatekeepers
Phillips alleges young models were sent to charity events, industry parties and other gatherings attended by wealthy, older men. She says some were assaulted at those events or during photo shoots. Her account describes the risks young women faced when career opportunities depended on introductions to influential figures.
Phillips alleges that Katie Ford and other agency staff helped organise some of these events, which brought newcomers in the modelling industry into contact with wealthy, older men. The investigation published in October reported that Katie Ford had not issued a public response to allegations linking her and Ford Models to Epstein's network.
Now the host of the survivor-focused podcast From Now On, Phillips continues to speak about how abuse can be disguised by offers of access and career advancement. She has described how Epstein's ability to open doors in fashion made it difficult to understand what was happening to her at the time. Her account traces how the career opportunity she had wanted most became intertwined with years of alleged abuse.
