The law signed by US Donald Trump last month ordering the release of the Epstein files set Friday (today AEDT) as the deadline for the Justice Department to release most of its files.
Ahead of the release, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche told Fox News he expected several hundred thousand files to be released today, along with several hundred thousand more to come later.
But the number of files that actually landed on the Justice Department’s website at 8am today (AEDT) seemed to be a thin slice of the total number expected. Blanche acknowledged in a letter to Congress that the production of files was incomplete. The department said it expected to complete its production of Epstein documents by the end of the year.
Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell in one of the photos released today.US Justice Department
Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell in one of the photographs released today.US Justice Department
Among the documents made public are about 4000 files – mostly photographs – under a subset the Justice Department described as “DOJ Disclosures”.
The vast majority of the photographs were taken by the FBI during searches of Epstein’s homes in New York City and the US Virgin Islands.
Also included were images of envelopes, folders and boxes containing investigative materials from various probes related to Epstein. Many records are redacted and anything containing a victim’s personally identifiable information, including materials depicting sexual and physical abuse, isn’t authorised for release.
Various other files released by the Justice Department today include court records, public records and disclosures to House committees. At least some of that material has already circulated in the public domain after years of court action and investigations.
AP