Epstein files release live updates: Trump administration publishes thousands of documents

From 2h agoTrump administration begins releasing long-awaited Epstein filesThe US justice department has begun releasing the long-awaited “Epstein files”, after months of political wrangling, a popular furor and repeated attempts to deflect scrutiny over Donald Trump’s links to the late sex offender and financier Jeffrey Epstein.The release comes after deputy attorney general Todd Blanche said that the justice department would release “several hundred thousand documents” from the Epstein files on Friday but hinted that some may be held back – at least temporarily – citing the need to protect victims.“I expect that we’re going to release more documents over the next couple of weeks,” he added.House Democrats, led by Robert Garcia and Jamie Raskin, condemned the Trump administration’s delay to release all of the Epstein files as a violation of federal law and vowed to pursue legal options.The scandal has dominated Washington for months, dogging the US president since his return to the White House for a second term, splintering his conservative base and spurring accusations of an attempted “cover-up” from across the political spectrum.Some of the most sought-after material will pertain to the president’s relationship with Epstein, who killed himself in a Manhattan jail while awaiting trial on federal sex-trafficking charges in 2019. Trump and Epstein were close friends for years before falling out.Trump is not accused of any wrongdoing. But concerns have been raised about how, why and when his relationship with Epstein broke down, and how much Trump knew about Epstein’s conduct. Trump and his allies have denied that he knew about Epstein’s conduct, and no evidence has suggested that he took part in Epstein’s trafficking operation.A projection on to a building near the White House demanding that Trump release the Epstein files. Photograph: Allison Bailey/NurPhoto/ShutterstockKey events11m agoAndrew Mountbatten-Windsor pictured in new files17m agoWhat had already emerged about Trump's links to Epstein?18m agoGroup photos including Trump seen in latest Epstein file release37m agoA quick recap: how did we get here?45m agoEx-Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson seen in photos released by DoJ50m agoMick Jagger and Bill Clinton appear in photos released by DoJ55m agoSchumer decries 'heavily redacted' files as 'just a fraction of the whole body of evidence'1h agoMore files to be released on rolling basis, deputy attorney general says1h agoPhotos: files release includes celebrities pictured in with Epstein2h agoMore than 1,200 victims and their relatives identified, says Blanche2h agoWhite House says release demonstrates Trump administration's transparency2h agoDOJ says reasonable efforts taken to protect victims2h agoTrump administration begins releasing long-awaited Epstein filesShow key events onlyPlease turn on JavaScript to use this featureAndrew Mountbatten-Windsor pictured in new filesAnother photo shows Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew, lying across five people whose faces are redacted. The only other identifiable person is Ghislaine Maxwell, who is standing behind them.Andrew has been under scrutiny for many years over his friendship with Jeffrey Epstein. He has denied all accusations against him. In a statement from October after he was stripped of his royal titles, Andrew said he stood by his decision to step back from public life as the “accusations about me distract from the work of His Majesty and the Royal Family”. “With His Majesty’s agreement, we feel I must now go a step further. I will therefore no longer use my title or the honours which have been conferred upon me.”Ghislaine Maxwell and former Prince Andrew in a partially redacted photo released by the Department of Justice. Photograph: Department of JusticeWhat had already emerged about Trump's links to Epstein?Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein were friends for 15 years, with Epstein at one point believing himself to be Trump’s “closest friend”.“I’ve known Jeff for 15 years. Terrific guy,” Trump told New York magazine in 2002. “He’s a lot of fun to be with. It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side.”The relationship eventually broke down, with the men falling out over a bidding war on a property in Florida. After Epstein was convicted of child sex offences in Florida in 2008, Trump distanced himself from the financier, claiming he was “not a fan”.The most recent explanation of the relationship breakdown from Trump is that the friendship ended because Epstein repeatedly “stole” employees from the spa at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, which Trump deemed an “inappropriate” tactic. He has suggested one of the employees was Epstein’s most high-profile accuser Virginia Giuffre, who died by suicide in April.Virginia Giuffre, who died earlier this year. Photograph: Everett Collection Inc/AlamyOther reports suggest that Trump barred Epstein from Mar-a-Lago after Epstein behaved inappropriately toward a club member’s teenage daughter, according to journalists from the Miami Herald and Wall Street Journal.After the president spent the summer batting away questions over his relationship with Epstein, on 8 September a 238-page scrapbook given to Epstein for his 50th birthday was made public by House Democrats.Featuring letters suggesting the sex offender’s lecherous exploits were an open secret, the book included a message bearing Donald Trump’s signature.Inside a sketch of a woman’s torso, the message depicts an imagined conversation between Trump and Epstein, concluding: Happy birthday – and may every day be another wonderful secret. Trump’s name and distinctive signature appear below.The White House claimed the signature was not Trump’s, despite it appearing identical to numerous public examples. Trump dismissed the letter as “FAKE”.(Here is our explainer of who is in the “birthday book” and what they said.)Jeffrey Epstein and Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago in 1997. Photograph: Davidoff Studios Photography/Getty ImagesThen in November, Democrats released three of Epstein’s email exchanges that suggest Trump knew about the disgraced financier’s conduct.In a message sent to Ghislaine Maxwell on 2 April 2011, Epstein described Trump as “that dog that hasn’t barked”. Epstein wrote that Trump “spent hours at my house” with one of his sex-trafficked victims, and noted that Trump had “never once been mentioned” in connection with his crimes. Maxwell replied: “I have been thinking about that … ”In a separate message, sent to the journalist Michael Wolff in January 2019, Epstein wrote: “of course [Trump] knew about the girls as he asked Ghislaine to stop.”The third released email exchange, from December 2015, shows Wolff advising Epstein that if Trump claimed to have not visited Epstein’s house or flown on his plane, “then that gives you a valuable PR and political currency”.Maxwell, the daughter of the media tycoon Robert Maxwell, was Epstein’s one time girlfriend and was convicted of sex trafficking crimes as his accomplice.Group photos including Trump seen in latest Epstein file releaseWe’re very much still combing through all the files, but one image so far has featured Donald Trump. On a desk with many photographs of Epstein and various people including Bill Clinton and Mohammed bin Salman, is a photo in which Trump stands with several women and another that has been previously released with Melania Trump, Ghislaine Maxwell and Epstein.A photograph released as part of the Epstein files. Photograph: Department of JusticeA quick recap: how did we get here?Trump and his allies long stoked conspiracy theories around Epstein and he and vice-president JD Vance promised the release of the files on the campaign trail. Pam Bondi also told Fox News in February that a list of Epstein’s clients was “sitting on my desk ready to review”.The Department of Justice gave a group of conservative commentators binders labeled “The Epstein files: phase one” later in February. But the files contained little new information, leaving conspiracy theorists disappointed, prompting Bondi to describe the documents as the “first phase of files”. In a statement, the DoJ said it “remains committed to transparency and intends to release the remaining documents upon review and redaction to protect the identities of Epstein’s victims”.But in an abrupt U-turn in July, the DoJ walked that back, announcing there was no client list and that it would not be making public any more files related to the sex-trafficking investigation.The fallout was significant, with the saga dramatically plunging Trump’s Maga base into turmoil and igniting an intense backlash amid accusations of a “cover-up”.Trump and Epstein depicted in a work of protest art by free speech advocates on the National Mall. Photograph: J Scott Applewhite/APRepublican lawmakers moved to block a Democratic effort to force the release of the Epstein files on 14 July. But the next day, House speaker Mike Johnson, a fierce Trump ally, called for the Epstein documents to be released.“It’s a very delicate subject, but we should put everything out there and let the people decide it,” Johnson told a rightwing podcaster, joining a small but growing number of Republicans demanding the documents be made public. Chip Roy, Thomas Massie and Ralph Norman, Republican members of the House, demanded more information be released.Trump, meanwhile, dismissed the uproar and went on the attack, calling the issue a “hoax” and railing against those who wanted to make the documents public. The Epstein files, he said, were “boring” and anyone who cared about them – though many of them are his own supporters – were “bad people”.As the issue refused to go away, four dissident Republicans in the House, and all Democrats, banded together to force a vote on a bill to release the files, over Johnson’s objections.The House overwhelmingly approved the bill on 19 November in a 427-1 tally. The Senate agreed to pass the bill, and it was sent to Trump’s desk to be signed into law.The law required the justice department to release the files within 30 days, though it is permitted to hold back records that identify victims, including images of child sexual abuse, or documents that have been deemed classified.It also has discretion to withhold records that could prejudice a federal investigation. Trump last month ordered a criminal investigation into Epstein’s links with prominent Democrats, including former president Bill Clinton.Ex-Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson seen in photos released by DoJSarah Ferguson, the former Duchess of York, can also be seen sitting on a sofa next to a person whose identity has been shielded, and standing next to a woman in another photo whose face is also redacted.There is no context provided and there is no suggestion of wrongdoing.Sarah Ferguson in a partially redacted photo released by the Department of Justice. Photograph: Department of JusticeTrump administration begins releasing long-awaited Epstein filesThe US justice department has begun releasing the long-awaited “Epstein files”, after months of political wrangling, a popular furor and repeated attempts to deflect scrutiny over Donald Trump’s links to the late sex offender and financier Jeffrey Epstein.The release comes after deputy attorney general Todd Blanche said that the justice department would release “several hundred thousand documents” from the Epstein files on Friday but hinted that some may be held back – at least temporarily – citing the need to protect victims.“I expect that we’re going to release more documents over the next couple of weeks,” he added.House Democrats, led by Robert Garcia and Jamie Raskin, condemned the Trump administration’s delay to release all of the Epstein files as a violation of federal law and vowed to pursue legal options.The scandal has dominated Washington for months, dogging the US president since his return to the White House for a second term, splintering his conservative base and spurring accusations of an attempted “cover-up” from across the political spectrum.Some of the most sought-after material will pertain to the president’s relationship with Epstein, who killed himself in a Manhattan jail while awaiting trial on federal sex-trafficking charges in 2019. Trump and Epstein were close friends for years before falling out.Trump is not accused of any wrongdoing. But concerns have been raised about how, why and when his relationship with Epstein broke down, and how much Trump knew about Epstein’s conduct. Trump and his allies have denied that he knew about Epstein’s conduct, and no evidence has suggested that he took part in Epstein’s trafficking operation.A projection on to a building near the White House demanding that Trump release the Epstein files. Photograph: Allison Bailey/NurPhoto/Shutterstock