Thousands of files pertaining to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein were released by the Justice Department on Friday, but the incomplete document dump did not significantly advance the ongoing criminal investigations against the financier or his connections to influential and affluent people.
They include a 1996 account of a criminal complaint against the late convicted sex offender and never-before-seen photos of former US President Bill Clinton with Epstein.
Some candid photos of Clinton, who flew on Epstein’s plane and invited him to the White House in the years prior to the financier’s alleged misconduct, were among the pictures of prominent individuals who spent time with Epstein in the years before he was suspected of wrongdoing.
However, there was little information about another longtime Epstein friend, US President Donald Trump, sparing the White House from having to deal with new concerns regarding ties the administration has made fruitless attempts to downplay.
The records, which mostly consisted of photographs but also included call logs, grand jury testimony, interview transcripts, and other documents, were received with great anticipation that they would provide the most comprehensive look to date at the nearly two decades of government investigation into Epstein’s sexual abuse of young women and underage girls.
However, considering the number of documents that had not yet been released and the fact that some of the materials had already been made public, the release, complete with redactions, appeared unlikely to quell the demand for information.
While White House officials enthusiastically touted a picture of Clinton in a hot tub with a woman whose face was blacked out on social media, Democrats and some Republicans took advantage of the limited release to accuse the DOJ of missing a deadline set by Congress to produce the data.
Despite DOJ’s announcement months ago that no further documents would be released, the Trump administration celebrated the release as evidence of its commitment to transparency. Congress then passed a law mandating it.
In a letter to Congress, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche wrote that the DOJ was still reviewing files in its possession, that some papers were being withheld under victim protection exemptions, and that more disclosures were anticipated by the end of the year.
For months, Trump, who had known Epstein for years prior to their falling out, attempted to keep the records confidential.
However, Trump last month signed a bill granting the Justice Department 30 days to release most of its records and correspondence pertaining to Epstein, including details regarding the inquiry into his death in a federal prison, in response to political pressure from fellow Republicans. The deadline was established for Friday by the law.
The few images of Trump that are included in the archives seem to have been in the public domain for many years. During an event at his Mar-a-Lago property in February 2000, Trump and Epstein are seen in two of those photos posing with Melania Trump, the first lady.
Although Trump’s relationship with Epstein is widely known, he has tried to distance himself from the sex offender. He has frequently denied knowing about Epstein’s activities and claimed to have severed relations with him after the financier hired young women from Mar-a-Lago.
Trump backed the FBI and DOJ’s sudden announcement in July that they would not be releasing any more documents. But when it became apparent that congressional action was unavoidable, the US president changed his mind. He maintained that disclosing the information was the proper course of action because the Epstein issue had become a diversion from the Republican agenda.
Meanwhile, the White House has taken steps to divert attention from Trump’s relationship with Epstein. Last month, Attorney General Pam Bondi announced that she had directed a federal prosecutor to investigate Epstein’s relationships with Trump’s political rivals, including Clinton.
The mere fact that someone’s name appears in the investigation’s files does not suggest that either Trump or Clinton has ever been charged with anything related to Epstein.
British royal, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, who wears a tuxedo and is seen on the laps of what appear to be many seated women wearing formal attire, is one of Epstein’s other prominent acquaintances. The photo was released on Friday. Even Michael Jackson can also be seen in several pictures, one of which features him standing next to a beaming Epstein.
In contrast to Trump, Clinton is prominently featured in the files; nevertheless, the records did not explain the context of the former president’s photos or how they are related to any investigations.
In response to a picture of Clinton in the hot tub, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt took to X and wrote, “Oh my!” and included an emoji of a surprised expression.
Meanwhile, Clinton’s spokesperson Angel Ureña said in a statement on X, “They can release as many grainy 20-plus-year-old photos as they want, but this isn’t about Bill Clinton.
“There are two types of people here. The first group knew nothing and cut Epstein off before his crimes came to light. The second group continued relationships after that. We’re in the first. No amount of stalling by people in the second group will change that.”