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Trump Pal’s Sex Attack Accuser Files Complaint Against Cops

The woman who alleges Donald and Melania Trump’s matchmaker raped her is taking action over the police handling of her case.

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The woman who alleges she was raped by Donald and Melania Trump’s matchmaker has lodged an official complaint about the police’s handling of her case.

Victoria Drake, 33, claims in her lawsuit that she was drugged and sexually assaulted by the Trumps’ long-standing friend and former presidential special envoy, Paolo Zampolli, at his Manhattan townhouse in October 2023. The NYPD dropped her complaint without explanation soon after she reported it. Drake has consented to being identified by the Daily Beast.

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Zampolli, 56, has vehemently denied the allegations, which are the subject of the civil lawsuit filed in September. The allegations have not been adjudicated, and Zampolli has not been found liable.

Drake has now taken her concerns over the police handling of her allegations against Zampolli to New York City’s Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB), PunchUp reports.

In a letter dated Aug. 27, reviewed by the Daily Beast’s sister Substack, the watchdog confirmed that Drake’s complaint had been forwarded to the police department’s Internal Affairs Bureau because it fell outside the board’s jurisdiction.

The CCRB’s director of case management, Eshwarie Mahadeo, told Drake to expect to hear from someone at Internal Affairs about the complaint who would “explain to you in detail how their process works.”

It is not known whether the NYPD’s Internal Affairs department has opened a formal investigation. Sources say the force had not yet responded to Drake’s complaint at the time of publication. Neither the CCRB nor NYPD responded to a request for comment.

While the specifics of Drake’s CCRB complaint are unknown, separate correspondence from New York’s Office of Victim Services reviewed by PunchUp shows she also submitted an earlier records request to NYPD on Aug. 18 related to her original police report.

The request concerns a recording of a conversation involving Zampolli and Drake that she says took place in the days after the alleged attack. Its contents are unknown, and its existence has not been independently verified.

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PunchUp previously revealed that Drake alleged she was sexually assaulted by Zampolli at his Gramercy Park home after accepting a drink and losing consciousness.

Drake says she reported the alleged attack to police the following day and underwent hospital examinations. The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office has not brought criminal charges against Zampolli over Drake’s allegations, and the case was closed without him ever being arrested.

Drake’s attorney, Jesse Weinstein, has now confirmed that the decision not to arrest or prosecute the former Trump official will form part of their continuing legal efforts.

“We will include in our litigation efforts to answer numerous critical questions relevant to the case,” Weinstein told PunchUp, “as well as the decisions by both the NYPD and the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office not to arrest or criminally prosecute Mr. Zampolli after Ms. Drake’s prompt report of the assault.”

The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

The latest development comes after Zampolli was abruptly removed from his role as Trump’s special envoy for global partnerships. Weinstein previously told PunchUp that the litigation would also seek answers from the White House on whether Drake’s lawsuit against him, and the reporting of its existence, played any role in Zampolli’s firing.

Zampolli’s Italian lawyer, Maurizio Miculan, defended his client and argued that the lack of criminal proceedings demonstrated investigators found no evidence to support Drake’s allegations. He told the outlet that Zampolli had no formal involvement in the NYPD investigation and claimed police had found “no evidence to substantiate Victoria Drake’s claims.” The NYPD has not confirmed that assessment.

Zampolli has denied Drake’s allegations and accused her of attempting to extort him, saying she was “out of her mind” over her “frivolous accusation.” He has also threatened to sue her for $100 million but has not yet done so.

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Miculan told PunchUp that he filed a criminal complaint against Drake with prosecutors in Rome on April 24, 2026, accusing her of extortion, defamation, and making false accusations. He alleged that Drake demanded $650,000 from Zampolli through WhatsApp messages and audio communications in exchange for not publicizing her allegations or approaching judicial authorities. Zampolli refused to pay, Miculan said, maintaining that he had never sexually assaulted Drake.

The lawyer said the Italian investigation was nearing the end of its investigative phase and that Zampolli intended to seek €5 million ($5.57 million) in damages for alleged harm to his reputation. The accusations against Drake have not been established in court.

In response, Weinstein said that Drake “stands by her allegations and intends to pursue accountability through the courts,” adding: “The filing of a criminal complaint does not establish that a crime occurred, just as the absence of criminal charges against Mr. Zampolli does not resolve the allegations against him. Ultimately, these matters should be decided on evidence.”

He has previously accused Zampolli of avoiding attempts to serve him with legal papers.

Zampolli’s departure from the Trump administration was announced on October 15, hours after Politico exposed a vicious feud between Zampolli and Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau—and 10 days after our report about Drake’s lawsuit.

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Zampolli has insisted his departure was amicable and agreed with Trump, and said he had not discussed his lawsuit with the president before PunchUp reported it earlier this month.

Zampolli has long claimed responsibility for introducing the president to Melania at a New York Fashion Week party in 1998. He maintained close ties to the couple before joining the administration in March 2025.

In a bizarre press conference earlier this year, the first lady denied that the late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein had introduced her to Trump. Zampolli then offered to testify before Congress to back up her story.

Tom Latchem exposes the secrets, scandals, and stories that powerful people and institutions want to keep under wraps. Follow all of his reporting at PunchUp on Substack.

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