US lawmakers accuse Bondi of hiding names of Epstein associates

A Republican US lawmaker on Wednesday accused ⁠Attorney General Pam Bondi of concealing the names of powerful associates of the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein as she faced questions about the Justice Department’s handling of investigative files in a charged hearing before a House of Representatives panel.Congressman Thomas Massie, a Republican from Kentucky, who helped lead the effort to require the files’ release, accused the Justice Department of a “massive failure” to comply with the law as he ‌questioned why billionaire Leslie Wexner’s name was redacted in an FBI document listing potential co-conspirators in the sex trafficking investigation into Epstein.Bondi said Wexner’s name appeared numerous times in other files the department released and that the DOJ unredacted his name on the document “within 40 minutes” of Massie spotting it.“Forty minutes of me catching you red-handed,” Massie replied.The exchange was one of a series of heated confrontations Bondi had with members of the House Judiciary Committee who expressed frustration with the amount of Epstein material the department has redacted and withheld despite a federal law requiring the release of nearly all files.Epstein survivors stand and raise their hands as US Attorney General Pam Bondi (front, right) testifies before a House Judiciary Committee oversight hearing in Washington on Wednesday. Photo: APThe ⁠Justice Department released what it called a final tranche of more than 3 million pages of documents late last month, drawing renewed attention to wealthy and powerful individuals who ‌maintained ties with Epstein even after his conviction for soliciting prostitution from a minor.