Melania Trump has demanded that Hunter Biden retract comments linking her to the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, threatening legal action if he fails to do so.
Biden, the son of former US President Joe Biden, claimed in an interview earlier this month that Epstein had introduced the First Lady to Donald Trump.
In a letter to Biden, Melania Trump’s lawyer, Alejandro Brito, described the remarks as false, defamatory and “extremely salacious”. He said the comments had been widely circulated on social media and reported internationally, causing her “overwhelming financial and reputational harm”.
The disputed statements were made during a lengthy interview with American journalist Andrew Callaghan, in which Biden criticised “elites” and figures within the Democratic Party whom he accused of undermining his father before he withdrew from last year’s presidential race.
“Epstein introduced Melania to Trump. The connections are, like, so wide and deep,” Biden said, attributing the claim to author Michael Wolff. Donald Trump has previously accused Wolff of fabricating material to sell books.
How Donald Trump and Melania met
Melania Trump and her husband have long maintained that they first met at a New York Fashion Week party in 1998, introduced by modelling agent Paolo Zampolli.
The letter, dated 6 August, was first reported by Fox News Digital on Wednesday. Abbe Lowell, Biden’s lawyer in his criminal cases and the recipient of Brito’s letter, has not commented.
The threat of legal action mirrors a common tactic employed by Donald Trump, who has frequently used litigation against critics. Legal experts note that public figures such as the Trumps face significant hurdles in pursuing defamation claims.
