The Woman at the Center: Dana Burns and Her Dual Role in the Epstein-Maxwell Operation

In the catalog of names that orbit the Epstein case -- the billionaires, the politicians, the royals -- Dana Burns barely registers. She has never been interviewed on television. She has never been charged with a crime. Her name does not appear in most media accounts.

But the documentary record tells a different story. Across flight logs, corporate filings, JPMorgan bank records, deposition transcripts, and Palm Beach police surveillance files, Burns emerges as something more significant than an assistant: the operational bridge connecting the Maxwell and Brunel sides of the Epstein network.

Who Is Dana Burns?

Dana M. Burns was born May 17, 1985, according to a credit card application found in the EFTA document trove (EFTA00186431). She attended Harding High School in Marion, Ohio, appearing in the 2003 yearbook. By 2004, at age 19, she was living in New York and working within the Epstein-Maxwell orbit.

Her credit card application was for NES LLC, one of Epstein's corporate entities, through Palm Beach National Bank & Trust Co. The authorized signatory was Richard Kahn -- Epstein's longtime accountant. The billing address was 9 East 71st Street, New York: Epstein's Manhattan mansion.

She later married Joshua Perry, a construction manager for Fluor Corporation. In late 2018, she sold her New Jersey home and relocated to Michigan.

She has never spoken publicly about her time in the Epstein network.

The Dual Role: Maxwell and Brunel

Multiple depositions establish that Burns simultaneously served Ghislaine Maxwell and Jean-Luc Brunel, the French modeling agent convicted of sex trafficking in 2022 before his death in a Paris jail cell.

Maritza Vasquez, Brunel's bookkeeper, testified under oath on June 15, 2010 that she recognized the name Dana Burns. When the questioning attorney stated: "She works up in New York and I believe she works for Jeffrey Epstein in some capacity," Vasquez replied: "I believe so" (DC-25966082).

Larry Visoski, Epstein's chief pilot who flew the "Lolita Express" for decades, was asked directly during his October 15, 2009 deposition: "Do you know Dana Burns?" His answer: "I know the name, yes... I've seen her on the airplane a couple times." When asked whether Burns was "somebody that you know to be involved romantically or sexually with Jeffrey Epstein," Visoski answered: "I don't know that" (DC-6391672).

The Daily Beast confirmed in November 2021 that Burns was "a former assistant to Maxwell in New York" and "listed in public records as an officer of the socialite's company, Ellmax, and her charity, the Max Foundation."

Three Maxwell Entities

Burns served as corporate officer or board member of at least three Maxwell-associated entities:

Ellmax LLC -- Maxwell's private company. Burns was listed on corporate filings and appeared to function as the U.S.-based operational contact.

Max Foundation -- Maxwell's charity. Burns served as a trustee.

TerraMar Project, Inc. -- Maxwell's ocean conservation nonprofit, later dissolved after Maxwell's arrest. Burns was on the original board.

A UBS Financial Services wire confirmation dated April 4, 2014 was sent directly to Dana Burns from UBS wealth strategy associate Juliana Shkreli, confirming receipt of $17,220.40 for the Max Foundation and $63.61 for TerraMar Project, Inc. (EFTA00236034). The document, numbered UBSTERRAMAR00000315, establishes Burns as the person receiving wire confirmations for both Maxwell foundations.

A separate UBS account statement shows Maxwell's IRA (valued at $56,227.11 as of February 2014) listing Burns on the beneficiary contact records.

Follow the Money: JPMorgan Chase Records

FBI-subpoenaed JPMorgan Chase records from the Maxwell investigation reveal multiple direct payments to Burns from Maxwell's private bank accounts (EFTA01661868):

• August 22, 2013: Check #2426 for $1,062.54 to Metrobox Company LLC, 351 37th Street, Brooklyn, NY -- notation: "Dana Burns"
• November 2011: Check for $1,497.70 payable directly to "DANA BURNS," drawn on JPMorgan Private Bank
• February 18, 2011: Check for $490.42 to Conexis, P.O. Box 14235, Orange, CA -- notation: "Dana Burns Account"
• Additional check for $351.53 from Maxwell's accounts (EFTA01596205)

These are not large amounts. What matters is the pattern: Maxwell was paying Burns directly from her own JPMorgan Private Bank accounts and covering bills on Burns' behalf over a period of years.

The Apartment on East 65th Street

Burns shared the apartment at 116a East 65th Street with Adriana Ross -- born Adriana Mucinska, also known as Adriana Marcinkova. Ross was one of four women named as co-conspirators in Epstein's 2008 Non-Prosecution Agreement who received immunity from federal prosecution.

The apartment had previously been Maxwell's, purchased from Lynn de Rothschild circa 2000 for approximately $5 million. That Epstein's network housed a young assistant from Ohio alongside a named co-conspirator in Maxwell's former residence is, at minimum, a significant detail in the operational geography of the network.

Burns' own address, per the NES LLC credit card application, was 301 East 66th Street, Apt 11P, New York, NY 10021 -- one block away.

At Least a Dozen Flights

Our database contains three flights with Dana Burns as a named passenger:

• September 22, 2006: Newark to Miami, then Miami to St. Thomas, USVI, aboard the Boeing 727 (N908JE) with Epstein, Igor Zinoviev, and Tatyana Simanava
• October 2, 2006: Hanscom Field (Bedford, MA) to Teterboro, NJ, aboard the Gulfstream (N909JE) with Epstein, Nadia Marcinkova, Sarah Kellen, Andrea Willis, and Larry Visoski

The Palm Beach Police surveillance spreadsheet tracked additional flights. A June 8, 2005 entry logged the Boeing 727 arriving at Palm Beach International Airport with passengers including "Jeffrey Epstein, Sarah Kellen, David Mullen, Andreana Muncinska, Dana Burns, Mark Zeff" (EFTA00178778).

Community researchers have identified over a dozen flight appearances under the name variations "Dana Burns," "Kimberly Burns," and "DB."

Critically, a January 2015 court filing in Jane Doe #1 and #2 v. United States noted that "the March 18, 2005 flight from New York to Florida, taken by Maxwell, Epstein and Dana Burns are missing altogether from the Rogers logs" -- cited as evidence that flight records had been "heavily sanitized" (EFTA01081228).

Attorney Bradley Edwards listed "Flight information for Dana Burns" as Exhibit #103 in his case against Epstein (EFTA01140114).

The 17-Year-Old Roommate

A 2006 Palm Beach police report alleged that Burns brought her 17-year-old former roommate to Epstein's mansion. The roommate, identified in community research as Melissa Eaton (later Owens), told investigators that Burns said she and Epstein "have been dating each other and he has been paying all of her bills."

The PBPD surveillance spreadsheet contains a notation at the top: "Burns 17 years old" -- indicating Palm Beach police were specifically tracking Burns and the ages of individuals in her orbit in relation to Epstein (EFTA00178778).

Burns herself was born in 1985, making her 19-20 during the 2004-2005 period of heaviest documented contact. She was 17-18 when Maxwell claims to have first met her in 2002-2003. The PBPD notation may refer to Burns herself being under 18 when she entered the Epstein orbit, or to the roommate allegation.

Deposition Scheduled, Then Dropped

Virginia Giuffre's legal team sought to depose Burns as part of the Giuffre v. Maxwell case. In a motion to exceed the standard deposition limit, Burns was listed as witness #9 with a 3.5-hour allocation, alongside Jean-Luc Brunel, Sarah Kellen Vickers, Nadia Marcinkova, Emmy Taylor, and Jeffrey Epstein himself (DC-24253264).

The motion stated that Burns was relevant because of her roles within the Epstein-Maxwell network and her proximity to the alleged conduct.

But a later Maxwell counsel filing from October 22, 2020 noted: "Plaintiff represents that she... no longer seeks depositions of witnesses Emmy Taylor, Dana Burns, JoJo Fontanilla, and Michael Reiter" (DC-20398696).

Burns was never deposed. Whether she was uncooperative, whether testimony was obtained through other means, or whether the decision was strategic remains unclear.

The Imperia Party Photograph

On September 7, 2005, Burns was photographed "arm to arm" with Epstein at the Imperia U.S. launch party on Liberty Island in New York Harbor. The party was a high-profile Manhattan social event. Days later, the PBPD surveillance spreadsheet shows an Epstein message pad entry in which Burns declined an event invitation.

The photograph places Burns not in a back office or on a flight manifest, but at Epstein's side at a public social event, contradicting any characterization of her role as purely administrative.

FOIA Requests Outstanding

On September 8, 2025, two Freedom of Information Act requests were filed by The Riford Family via MuckRock:

• FBI FOIA #1680414-000: Requesting records relating to Maxwell's use of the alias "Dana Burns" and Ellmax. One document was released September 15, 2025. Further response pending.
• A parallel CIA FOIA request was filed on the same day.

That FOIA requests were filed to both the FBI and CIA regarding a single assistant suggests community researchers believe Burns' story intersects with intelligence questions surrounding the Epstein network.

Assessment

The documentary evidence places Dana Burns in a unique structural position within the Epstein-Maxwell operation. She was not a victim. She was not a billionaire. She was the connective tissue.

She received wire confirmations for Maxwell's foundations. She was paid directly from Maxwell's JPMorgan accounts. She had credit cards established through Epstein's accountant. She shared an apartment with a named co-conspirator who received immunity. She flew on Epstein's aircraft to his private island. Her flight records were found to be missing from official logs. She was deemed important enough to depose alongside Epstein himself.

And a police report alleges she brought a minor to his mansion.

Burns has never been charged. She has never testified publicly. She has never told her story.

The documents are waiting.