New Mexico lawmakers launch probe into Epstein’s Zorro Ranch

The ‘truth commission’ will interview victims who say they were abused at the sprawling property south of Santa Fe.Published On 17 Feb 2026Lawmakers in the US state of New Mexico have approved the first fully-fledged investigation into Zorro Ranch, a sprawling property where the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein is alleged to have trafficked and sexually assaulted girls and women.The legislation, which passed New Mexico’s House of Representatives by a unanimous vote on Monday, forms a bipartisan “truth commission”.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4Logistics giant DP World replaces chief named in Epstein fileslist 2 of 4Former Israeli PM Barak responds to criticism over close Epstein linkslist 3 of 4Hyatt Hotels chairman Thomas Pritzker steps down over Epstein tieslist 4 of 4UK’s Mandelson asked to cooperate in Epstein probe by US Congressend of listIts four members will seek testimony from victims and local residents about the ranch, located about 55km (34 miles) south of the state capital, Santa Fe.Members are slated to begin work on Tuesday, with an initial update to be delivered in July and a full report by the end of this year.The move comes in the wake of the release of more than three million previously unpublicised files related to the disgraced financier, who died by suicide in a New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges.State Representative Melanie Stansbury said in a video posted after the vote that the commission will “help to bring forward a full picture of what happened here in New Mexico”.“The crimes that were reported to federal and state authorities were never fully investigated,” Stansbury said. The probe seeks to “ensure we have safeguards in place not only to hold those individuals accountable, who were complicit, but to ensure that this can never happen again”.Epstein bought the 7,600-acre (3075-hectare) property, which included a hilltop mansion and private runway, from former New Mexico Democrat Governor Bruce King in 1993.