In April 2026, Amanda Ungaro, a 41-year-old former model from Brazil, publicly threatened legal action against Melania Trump and President Donald Trump in a series of social media posts.
Ungaro, who arrived in the U.S. at age 17 on Jeffrey Epstein’s private aircraft, has accused the Trumps of being part of a “corrupt system” and labeled Donald Trump a “pedophile”.
She claims that her former partner, Paolo Zampolli—the modeling agent credited with introducing the Trumps in 1998—used his influence within the Trump administration to have her deported to Brazil in late 2025 during a custody battle over their teenage son.
Observers have noted that Melania Trump’s rare and sudden White House press conference on Thursday, April 9, 2026, appeared to be a preemptive defense against Ungaro’s public threats.
During the address, the First Lady forcefully stated she was not an Epstein victim, never visited his private island, and was not introduced to Donald Trump through him. She urged Congress to hold public hearings so Epstein’s victims could testify under oath. She described reports linking her to the sex offender as “baseless smears”.
Ungaro has positioned herself as a survivor of the modeling world network associated with Epstein and Jean-Luc Brunel. Ungaro asserts she was once close friends with Melania, claiming they dined together at Mar-a-Lago and that she maintained a relationship with Melania’s parents. Reports from The New York Times suggest Zampolli contacted a high-ranking ICE official to ensure Ungaro was detained on fraud and visa charges before she could post bail.
Ungaro’s recent posts on X (formerly Twitter) warned, “I will tear down the entire system — be careful with me b****,” shortly before Melania’s surprise public statement.
While Melania Trump’s spokesperson has stated the First Lady had “no knowledge of, nor involvement in” Zampolli and Ungaro’s personal affairs, critics argue the timing of the press conference suggests it was a strategic move to manage potential fallout from Ungaro’s threatened revelations.
