Attorney General Pam Bondi’s office has released a first batch of files related to the Justice Department’s investigation into Jeffrey Epstein, including flight logs and names of people who were associated with the late sex offender.
In a news release, Bondi said these files largely contain documents that had previously been available to the public via leaks, but never formally released.
“This Department of Justice is following through on President Trump’s commitment to transparency and lifting the veil on the disgusting actions of Jeffrey Epstein and his co-conspirators,” Bondi said in the release. “The first phase of files released today sheds light on Epstein’s extensive network and begins to provide the public with long overdue accountability.”
Bondi had been under pressure from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle to release information related to the federal investigation into Epstein. The attorney general told Fox News on Wednesday that the delay was due to efforts from her office to protect the identity of the victims, but said that she planned to release “a lot of flight logs, a lot of names, a lot of information” from the case as soon as Thursday.
Epstein was arrested in 2019 on sex trafficking and conspiracy charges over extensive allegations that he paid girls as young as 14 for sex and coerced them to recruit other young girls. In August that year, while awaiting trial in federal custody, he was found dead in a jail cell from what officials said was suicide, though his cause of death remains the subject of intense speculation. A wealthy financier, Epstein ran in the same circles as many prominent figures in politics, entertainment and business. Most of those people have not been accused of wrongdoing. In the DOJ’s news release, FBI Director Kash Patel said in part: “The FBI is entering a new era — one that will be defined by integrity, accountability, and the unwavering pursuit of justice.”
Clarissa-Jan Lim is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW. She was previously a senior reporter and editor at BuzzFeed News.
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