WASHINGTON - US First Lady Melania Trump on Thursday lashed out at what she described as false allegations linking her to the late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

"I am not Epstein's victim," Melania said in a speech at the White House. "Epstein did not introduce me to Donald Trump."

"I have never had any knowledge of Epstein's abuse of his victims," she said. "I was never involved in any capacity. I was not a participant."

"Fake images and statements about Epstein and me have been circulating on social media for years now," Melania said, adding that "these images and stories are completely false."

Her speech came months after the US Department of Justice released millions of documents related to its investigation into Epstein, who was arrested in July 2019 on federal charges of sex trafficking and died in jail on Aug 10, 2019, before trial.

The documents released in recent months include references to prominent figures such as former US President Bill Clinton, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, as well as US President Donald Trump and several members of his inner circle. According to multiple US media reports, Trump's name appears more than 1,000 times.