Amanda Ungaro, a Brazilian former model, has leveled fresh accusations about first lady Melania Trump and alleged ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein during an interview that published Saturday.
Towards the end of the interview, Ungaro stated that while Melania never threatened her directly, the first lady “know that I witnessed highly compromising interactions” over the two decades she was married to Paolo Zampolli, President Donald Trump’s former business partner and current Special Envoy for Global Partnerships.
“Melania felt threatened, and while she did not threaten me directly, she knows that I witnessed highly compromising interactions over the course of 20 years,” Ungaro said. “She does not know the full extent of what I know—for I lived with Paolo for 20 years.”
She did not specify what those interactions might be, but when asked if she would testify before the House Oversight Committee, Ungaro said: “Absolutely.”
When Ungaro’s story first surfaced last month, a spokesman for the first lady told the New York Times that Melania Trump “has no knowledge of, nor involvement in, the personal affairs of Mr. Zampolli and Ms. Ungaro.”
Newsweek reached out to the Office of the First Lady by email on Saturday evening for comment.
Why It Matters
In early 2026, the Justice Department’s continued release of enormous tranches of Epstein–related records intensified political and legal pressure on President Trump, even as he insisted the disclosures proved nothing criminal. Newly released files repeatedly mentioned Trump, revived scrutiny of his past social ties to Epstein, and fueled bipartisan frustrations over how his administration handled transparency around the case – even though they do not raise any grounds for accusations of criminal wrongdoing by the president.
The fallout complicated Trump’s position with both Democrats and parts of his own base, as critics accused the White House of slow‑rolling or mismanaging the releases while conspiracy theories continued to swirl. Trump and his allies responded by attacking the credibility of the controversy, but the steady drip of documents kept the Epstein issue alive as a political headache well into 2026.
The controversy also widened after Melania Trump made a high‑profile public statement distancing herself from Epstein and supporting greater transparency. Her remarks prompted renewed attention to Ungaro, whose comments about Epstein and later public experiences drew fresh focus as lawmakers cited both women while pushing for hearings and fuller disclosures.
What To Know
The new interview, published Saturday by the Courier’s expanded Epstein coverage, called The Cover-Up, covers a number of questions sent to Ungaro and to which she provided written responses translated from Portuguese.
Ungaro was deported to Brazil in 2025 following her arrest in June of that year for overstaying her visa and operating an unlicensed clinic, although she has alleged her ex-partner Zampolli had a hand in orchestrating the deportation due to their ongoing custody battle.
Zampolli has denied this and all other allegations leveled against him by Ungaro.
Ungaro detailed her relationship with Zampolli, whom she accuses of “harassing” her “in an attempt to pursue an intimate relationship” when she was 15, and with Melania Trump. Zampolli and Ungaro remained in a relationship for 20 years until their separation in 2023.
Specifically, Ungaro alleged Zampolli did not introduce Melania to Donald, calling that claim a “false narrative” that may have been part of a “specific agreement.”
“I don’t know what the specific agreement was behind the creation of this narrative, but Paolo was an associate of Epstein, and they did business together,” Ungaro said.
She said Melania Trump worked for a time as undocumented in the U.S., which Zampolli would have handled as part of his duties, according to Ungaro: Zampolli oversaw negotiating visas to legalize models working in the U.S. and helping them with their money while undocumented.
Ungaro admitted that “everything” regarding Melania Trump and Epstein had “already taken place” by the time she arrived in the U.S., but argued that “the whole thing felt strange and made no sense.”
“It always seemed to me that Paolo held some hidden leverage over Melania’s life—something that kept her in his thrall,” Ungaro said. “It was a business arrangement, it seems to me—an agreement from which both parties stood to benefit. Just look at how things have turned out today.”
“It was as if their relationship had been pre-programmed – like a specific project that Paolo had meticulously architected, solely to claim the power and credit for having orchestrated their meeting,” Ungaro continued. “Everything that is unfolding now was, in fact, part of that original plan. Paolo Zampolli had business dealings with Epstein; he was a recruiter of girls for Epstein. It was all always a plan.”
Zampolli has, again, denied being involved with Epstein either socially or in business.
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