Dr. Karyna Shuliak, Jeffrey Epstein’s girlfriend and the last person he called before his 2019 death, stands to inherit up to $100 million from his estate. Newly released federal investigative records reveal intimate details of their eight-year relationship, property management, and professional ties.
From a Downtown Brooklyn Dental Office to a Massive Estate
Working as a part-time dentist in an unremarkable office in Downtown Brooklyn, Dr. Karyna Shuliak attempted to forge a normal life wearing a Columbia University fleece jacket, according to dentists who work or used to work at the practice. That attempt was shattered when the Justice Department released three million pages of investigative files and emails in late January. The documents brought their nearly eight-year relationship into vivid public view, according to a trove of investigative records released by federal authorities.
Dr. Shuliak was the last person Jeffrey Epstein called before he killed himself in his jail cell in 2019. According to federal records, she stands to inherit as much as $100 million from his estate, a figure that includes a 33-carat diamond ring. Now 37, she emerges as a complicated and unusual figure in Epstein’s world, having maintained a close relationship with the notorious sex offender after meeting him at age 21.
An Eight-Year Relationship Documented in Millions of Files
The Justice Department files included thousands of intimate emails between Dr. Shuliak and Epstein, alongside dozens of photographs of them together. The correspondence captured various facets of their dynamic, including discussions about sex, birth control pills, and acne medications. She periodically sent him links to graphic pornographic videos and placed orders to a sexual wellness company for couples.
Epstein controlled the relationship, once calling her his “favorite” and frequently telling her he loved her. Yet Dr. Shuliak clearly benefited professionally, personally, and financially. She had free use of a credit card to buy whatever she wanted, and Epstein funneled payments totaling nearly $1 million to her over the years, alongside sending tens of thousands of dollars to her parents in Belarus.
Immigration Assistance and Columbia University Admission
He assisted her in gaining admission to Columbia University’s dental school and helped her obtain U.S. citizenship by asking one of his female victims to marry her. In one email, Epstein suggested that the fastest way to a green card was through a same-sex marriage.
This year, congressional Democrats criticized Epstein for exploiting the immigration system, specifically calling out Dr. Shuliak’s marriage to an American woman—which eventually ended in divorce—as a potentially illusory arrangement. Despite congressional scrutiny, U.S. immigration authorities have not challenged the process through which she obtained her citizenship.
Property Management and the Path From Belarus
Over the years, Dr. Shuliak earned enough of Epstein’s trust to help manage his properties and staff. She even played a critical role in his effort to buy a Moroccan palace just weeks before his 2019 arrest. Her journey began when she arrived in New York in late March 2011 from Belarus on a temporary student visa to study English at a school in Manhattan. Initially making about $15 an hour as a dental assistant, she was introduced to Epstein by a young woman from Siberia, the files show.
Federal authorities have not considered Dr. Shuliak a co-conspirator in Epstein’s sex trafficking, and she has not identified herself as a victim. There is no indication that the Federal Bureau of Investigation ever interviewed her, and lawyers for hundreds of his victims have never deposed her.
Current Residence and Future Outlook
As of this spring, Dr. Shuliak had been living in an Upper East Side condo building where Epstein’s brother, Mark, has a financial stake. Through her lawyer, she declined to comment on the disclosures.
In a brief interview with Mark Epstein, he stated, I only wish that woman the best.
Meanwhile, a friend from Belarus who once shared an apartment with Dr. Shuliak in Brooklyn and requested anonymity to protect her privacy said she believed Dr. Shuliak truly loved Jeffrey Epstein.
