Jeffrey Epstein's associate Ghislaine Maxwell and Donald Trump(L), A view of drawers and framed photos, including of Donald Trump, in Jeffrey Epstein's Manhattan home
Credit: Reuters Photo
A new batch of Jeffrey Epstein files released on Tuesday contains several references to US President Donald Trump. They include documents detailing flights Trump took on his then friend Epstein's private jet, and other claims that the US Department of Justice (DOJ) described as "untrue and sensationalist".
The latest files contain several previously unseen material from the investigation into Epstein, a wealthy US financier who died by suicide in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial for sex trafficking underage girls.
Trump figures prominently, however, in the thousands of these documents, underlining his close ties to the disgraced financier who was a convicted sex offender when the more serious trafficking case began.
A first collection of heavily redacted files made public on December 19 sparked off criticism that the DOJ was deliberately excluding references to Trump.
On Tuesday, the DOJ issued a statement defending the President shortly after the files dropped, and said some documents "contain untrue and sensationalist claims made against President Trump".
An email discussing Jeffrey Epstein's private jet flight records mention Donald Trump in this image released by the Department of Justice in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Tuesday,
Credit: Reuters Photo
Trump, who is not accused of any wrongdoing, fought for months to prevent release of the vast trove of documents about Epstein.
But a rebellion inside Trump's Republican Party forced him to sign off on a law mandating release of all the documents.
The unusual move reflected intense political pressure to address what many Americans, including Trump's supporters, have long suspected to be a cover-up to protect rich and powerful men in Epstein's orbit.
Private jet trips
The latest documents add to evidence that Trump was close to Epstein. They include a January 2020 note from New York federal prosecutors who were investigating Epstein's associate, Ghislaine Maxwell, detailing Trump's repeated travel — eight trips between 1993 and 1996 — on the financier's private jet.
"Records we received yesterday reflect that Donald Trump traveled on Epstein's private jet many more times than previously has been reported (or that we were aware)," it says.
One flight reportedly had just three passengers: Epstein, Trump and an unidentified 20-year-old.
Photo with Trump and Maxwell
One newly disclosed email says someone reviewing data obtained from close Trump ally Steve Bannon's cellphone found an "image of Trump and Ghislaine Maxwell." The DOJ released the reference while redacting the photo itself.
Swiftly disputed as 'fake'
One of the references to Trump was swiftly disputed by the DOJ. A handwritten letter released in Tuesday's tranche was purportedly written by Epstein, while in jail, to Larry Nassar, the former US gymnastics doctor who was imprisoned over rampant abuse of female athletes.
Epstein is shown complaining to Nassar that they are incarcerated while the "president shares our love of young, nubile girls. When a young beauty walked by he loved to 'grab snatch'".
In its statement, the DOJ said the FBI "has confirmed this alleged letter from Jeffrey Epstein to Larry Nassar is FAKE", saying it was postmarked three days after Epstein's death, and entered the mail system in Virginia, despite him being jailed in New York.
The DOJ explicitly warned that certain claims against Trump in documents submitted to the FBI shortly before the 2020 election were "untrue and sensationalist".
The batch of newly released files describes FBI "tips" collected about Trump and Epstein-era parties in the early 2000s, with no clear indication in the documents of follow-up or corroboration.
10 unidentified 'co-conspirators' of Epstein
There are at least two emails in the latest cache mentioning 10 unidentified "co-conspirators" of Epstein, and Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called for the DOJ to look into potential Epstein accomplices.
"The Department of Justice needs to shed more light on who was on the list, how they were involved, and why they chose not to prosecute," the senator said.
Maxwell, Epstein's former girlfriend, remains the only person convicted in connection with his crimes.
(With agency inputs)