‘There was something about the energy of a girl being scared that he liked.’

– Juliette Bryant, Cape Town model and Epstein survivor

As the world gets to grips with sex-trafficker Jeffrey Epstein’s monstrosity, one dimension of his network has remained largely hidden: South Africa. Award-winning investigative journalist Hazel Friedman tracked down South African women whom Epstein had recruited and convinced them to share their stories.

Drawing on extensive research and interviewing sources who had not spoken out before, Friedman searches for answers: What attracted Epstein, notorious for his aversion to ‘dark girls’, to Africa? How did Cape Town become his hunting ground? And why did he want to buy a home in Bantry Bay?

As The Devil Wears Sneakers shows, Epstein’s South African exploits were not confined to luring aspirant models. In his murky world, wealth, espionage and geopolitics intersected with organised crime, and Friedman explores Epstein’s ties with politicians, powerbrokers and covert intelligence.

But this is not solely a story of predation and impunity. It is also about silence, trauma – and survival. The Devil Wears Sneakers is a work of relentless reporting and unflinching courage that proves some truths cannot stay buried.