Photo illustration: Maura Kearns/Axios. Photos: Kypros/Getty Images, Joe Schildhorn/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images
The Justice Department said Friday it was releasing the final tranche of Epstein files after a lengthy review, U.S. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche told reporters at a news conference.
Why it matters: With the release, Blanche said the DOJ’s obligations under the Epstein Files Transparency Act will be completed — more than a month after the congressionally mandated deadline for the department to vet and release materials related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
In total, DOJ will release more than 3 million pages, 2,000 videos and 180,000 images on Friday. Its team sorted through more than 6 million records, Blanche said.
The records went through “multiple layers of review and quality control,” Blanche said.
Zoom in: Members of Congress can request to review un-redacted portions of the files, Blanche said.
All women were redacted from photos and videos, Blanche said. Men were not redacted unless it was necessary in order to protect the privacy of women in the images or footage.
Driving the news: Blanche did not go into details on the contents of the release.
One of the documents released Friday revealed that Howard Lutnick, President Trump’s commerce secretary, planned a trip to Epstein’s island in 2012.
“This is nothing more than a failing attempt by the legacy media to distract from the administration’s accomplishments,” a Commerce Department spokesperson told Axios.
“Secretary Lutnick had limited interactions with Mr. Epstein in the presence of his wife and has never been accused of wrongdoing.”
Zoom out: Blanche said the White House had no oversight of the review.
Asked if all files related to President Trump were being released, Blanche said: “Yes, I can assure that we complied with the statute, we complied with the act. We did not protect President Trump. We did not protect or not protect anybody.”
“I think that there’s a hunger or thirst for information that I do not think will be satisfied by the review of these documents.”
The White House did not comment.
State of play: Blanche said the videos and photos include “large quantities” of commercial pornography seized from Epstein’s devices that were not taken by him or anyone in his orbit.
The Epstein Library includes an age verification question, asking users if they’re at least 18 years old.
Flashback: Files released in December revealed federal prosecutors learned in 2020 that Trump flew on Epstein’s private jet more often in the 1990s than they previously knew.
Trump has not been accused of wrongdoing.
Go deeper: More Epstein files coming soon, DOJ says, a month past deadline
Editor’s note: This story has been updated with new details throughout.
News
Familiar Spot: The four missing divers in the Maldives cave were found in a well-known location just 500 meters from shore, but the depth left everyone horrified
Spokesperson for Indian Ocean island nation says they will try to recover explorers in next couple of days Maldives marine police boats during a search operation in Vaavu Atoll on Saturday, Photograph: Sophia Nasif/EPA Rescuers have located the bodies of four Italian divers deep inside an underwater cave in an atoll in the Maldives, four days […]
B0dies Recovered: The four remaining missing divers from the Maldives diving accident have been found, and all of them shared one chilling detail
Five divers died in the Thursday, May 14 accident, with the first body found hours later Giorgia Sommacal; Monica Montefalcone; Gianluca Benedetti.Credit : Giorgia Sommacal/Instagram; University of Genoa; Fotogramma/ROPI via ZUMA Press The bodies of four Italian tourists who went missing while scuba diving in the Maldives last week have been found. Five divers went missing […]
Day Five Horror: The Maldives cave search has taken a darker turn after reports that the 30-meter depth limit was ignored
Italian pulmonologist says 5 deaths on same dive suggests problem with tanks, not depth After five Italian divers died while exploring a deep underwater cave off the Maldives, families of the victims are demanding answers. Monica Montefalcone, 52, an associate ecology professor at the University of Genoa, and her daughter, Giorgia, 20, were among the […]
Depth Limit Ignored: Chilling new details have emerged in the Maldives cave tragedy as the search enters day five after the 30-meter safety limit was reportedly passed
Italian pulmonologist says 5 deaths on same dive suggests problem with tanks, not depth After five Italian divers died while exploring a deep underwater cave off the Maldives, families of the victims are demanding answers. Monica Montefalcone, 52, an associate ecology professor at the University of Genoa, and her daughter, Giorgia, 20, were among the […]
Fatal Mistake: The five tourists who vanished under the Maldives cave system reportedly d!ed because of one simple action common among travelers
An international dive safety group has sent experts to the Maldives to join the search for four missing Italians from a group of five who drowned while diving in a deep underwater cave (Mohamed Afrah) (Mohamed Afrah/AFP/AFP) An international dive safety group sent experts to the Maldives on Sunday to join a multinational recovery effort […]
D3ath Cause Revealed: The cause of d3ath for five tourists missing inside a Maldives cave has been traced to one action almost every traveler has done before
An international dive safety group has sent experts to the Maldives to join the search for four missing Italians from a group of five who drowned while diving in a deep underwater cave (Mohamed Afrah) (Mohamed Afrah/AFP/AFP) An international dive safety group sent experts to the Maldives on Sunday to join a multinational recovery effort […]
End of content
No more pages to load
