The file
Jeffrey Epstein
Photo: State of Florida, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
person

Jeffrey Epstein

Financier who pleaded guilty in Florida in 2008, was charged with sex trafficking in New York in 2019 and died in jail before trial

Entries
56
On the record
18
Stories
1
Latest entry
Nov 2026

The record

Compiled by the MrScandal desk from the documents below ยท Desk editor Laima ฤ’rkลกฤทe-Kreicberga ยท Nov 12, 2026

"The Epstein files" are the records the Justice Department and FBI hold on Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell: the Florida and New York investigations, the Maxwell prosecution, the inquiries into his 2019 death, flight logs, contact books and internal memos. The department released a first set of binders in February 2025. In July 2025 an unsigned DOJ-FBI memo said there was no incriminating "client list" and that no further disclosure was warranted. Congress then passed the Epstein Files Transparency Act, 427-1 in the House on November 18, 2025 and by unanimous consent in the Senate. It was signed on November 19 and gave the department 30 days to publish.

The department began publishing on December 19, 2025, missed the deadline for most of the material and on January 30, 2026 said it had complied: nearly 3.5 million pages, more than 2,000 videos and 180,000 images, from over 6 million pages first collected. Victims' identifying details, child abuse material, images of death or injury and privileged material were withheld or redacted. The House Oversight Committee separately released 33,295 DOJ pages and about 20,000 pages from Epstein's estate in 2025, took depositions in 2026 and posted a majority report in November 2026. The DOJ inspector general is auditing how the law was applied.

The case itself: a 2008 Florida guilty plea after a federal non-prosecution agreement, a 2019 federal sex-trafficking indictment in Manhattan, and his death in custody on August 10, 2019, ruled a suicide. Maxwell was convicted in 2021 and is serving 20 years. Banks and the estate paid hundreds of millions in settlements. A name appearing in the files is not a finding of wrongdoing; this file names people only where a court, regulator, police force or Congress took a recorded action about them.

Questions people ask

What are the Epstein files?

The term covers the unclassified records the Justice Department, FBI and U.S. Attorneys' offices hold on Jeffrey Epstein. The Epstein Files Transparency Act listed nine categories to publish: the Epstein investigations and prosecutions, Ghislaine Maxwell, flight and travel records, people and entities named in connection with his crimes or settlements, immunity and plea deals including the 2007 non-prosecution agreement, internal DOJ decisions on whether to charge, any destruction of records, and records of his detention and death. source

When were the Epstein files released, and by whom?

The Justice Department released a first phase on February 27, 2025, then published under the Transparency Act in batches from December 19, 2025. Its largest release, over 3 million pages, came on January 30, 2026, when it said total production under the Act was nearly 3.5 million pages, more than 2,000 videos and 180,000 images, all hosted in its online Epstein library. The House Oversight Committee separately released DOJ and estate records in September and November 2025. source

Is there an Epstein client list?

The Justice Department and FBI said no. Their July 2025 memo said the review of more than 300 gigabytes of data and physical evidence revealed no incriminating "client list", no credible evidence that Epstein blackmailed prominent people, and no evidence that could support investigating uncharged third parties. The Transparency Act later required the department to list government officials and politically exposed persons named anywhere in the released files; the department said those names appear in a wide variety of contexts, including unrelated press clippings. source

What was redacted in the Epstein files, and why?

In its February 14, 2026 report to the Judiciary Committees, the department said it redacted victims' names and identifying information, child sexual abuse material, material that could jeopardise an active investigation, and images of death, abuse or injury, as the Act allows, plus a limited amount covered by deliberative-process, work-product and attorney-client privilege. It said nothing was withheld as classified and nothing was redacted to avoid embarrassment. Members of Congress can inspect unredacted versions at the department. source

How did the Epstein Files Transparency Act pass?

The House passed H.R. 4405 under suspension of the rules on November 18, 2025 by 427 to 1, with five members not voting; the only no vote was Representative Clay Higgins of Louisiana. The Senate passed it by unanimous consent the next day and the President signed it on November 19, 2025, making it Public Law 119-38. The Act set a 30-day deadline for publication and a 15-day deadline after that for a report to Congress. source

What did the House Oversight Committee release?

Under subpoenas issued in August 2025, the committee released 33,295 pages received from the Justice Department on September 2, 2025, then estate records: 356 pages on September 8 (the production that included the so-called birthday book), 70 more pages on September 12 and about 20,000 pages on November 12, 2025. In 2026 it deposed or interviewed witnesses including Les Wexner, Bill and Hillary Clinton and the estate's co-executors, and posted a majority staff report in November 2026. source

How did Jeffrey Epstein die?

He was found hanged in his cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Manhattan on August 10, 2019, and the New York City medical examiner ruled the death a suicide. The DOJ inspector general found in June 2023 that staff left him without a cellmate, skipped required rounds and counts and falsified records, and that nearly all cameras around his unit were not recording. The FBI's 2025 review reached the same conclusion of suicide. source

What happened to Ghislaine Maxwell?

A federal jury in Manhattan convicted her of sex trafficking and related charges in December 2021, and she was sentenced to 20 years in June 2022. The Second Circuit upheld the conviction in September 2024, rejecting her argument that Epstein's Florida non-prosecution agreement protected her. The Supreme Court declined to hear her appeal on October 6, 2025. In July 2025 she was interviewed by the Deputy Attorney General and later moved to a minimum-security camp in Texas. source

Roles and honours on the record

  • until 2019 Financier with residences in Palm Beach, New York City and abroad source
  • 2008-2019 Registered sex offender after his 2008 Florida guilty plea source

Stories in this file

Jamie Dimon: PROBEBusiness ยท 6d ago

๐Ÿฆ Senate Democrats plan JPMorgan-Epstein probe, report says

Finance Democrats reportedly eye the bank's Epstein ties after $290M and $75M settlements. JPMorgan says it regrets any association. ๐Ÿ—ฃ๏ธ

The record, entry by entry

The Epstein files releases

  1. 2025-02-27 Official Attorney General Pam Bondi released a "first phase" of declassified Epstein files: an evidence list, flight logs already filed in the Maxwell case, a redacted contact book and a redacted list of masseuses. The department said most of it had leaked before. Bondi said the FBI had given her about 200 pages and ordered the rest delivered by the next morning. DOJ Office of Public Affairs press release
  2. 2025-07-07 Official An unsigned two-page DOJ-FBI memo said a review of more than 300 gigabytes of data found no incriminating "client list", no credible evidence of blackmail and no basis to investigate uncharged third parties, concluded he died by suicide, and said no further disclosure was warranted. The department released jail video from the night of his death alongside it. DOJ-FBI memorandum, Review of Investigative Holdings Relating to Jeffrey Epstein
  3. 2025-08-22 Official The Justice Department published the transcripts and audio of Blanche's interviews with Maxwell, redacting only victims' names. She said she never saw Donald Trump or Bill Clinton in an inappropriate setting; her lawyer said she answered every question. NPR report
  4. 2025-11-18 Official The House passed the Epstein Files Transparency Act, H.R. 4405, by 427 to 1 under suspension of the rules, with five members not voting. Representative Clay Higgins of Louisiana cast the only no vote. Clerk of the House, roll call 289
  5. 2025-11-19 Official After the Senate passed it by unanimous consent, the President signed the Act. It required all unclassified DOJ records on Epstein and Maxwell to be published in searchable form within 30 days, barred withholding for embarrassment or political sensitivity, and allowed redactions only for victims' privacy, child abuse material, active investigations, images of death or injury and classified material. White House statement
  6. 2025-12-19 Official On the deadline day the department began publishing hundreds of thousands of pages. Deputy Attorney General Blanche told Congress that more than 200 attorneys had reviewed the material, that some was withheld under legal privilege, and that review of the rest would take about two more weeks. Deputy Attorney General letter to Congress (December 19, 2025)
  7. 2025-12-23 Official The department posted further batches on December 20, 22 and 23. The Oversight majority report counts 30 files on December 20, 11,034 on December 22 and nearly 30,000 on December 23. House Oversight Committee majority report (November 2026)
  8. 2025-12-24 Reported The department said Manhattan prosecutors and the FBI had found over a million more documents potentially related to the case and that releasing them could take a few more weeks. It did not say when it learned of them. AP report
  9. 2026-01-05 Official Department lawyers told a federal court that about 125,000 pages had been released and that over two million documents were still in review. House Oversight Committee majority report (November 2026)
  10. 2026-01-30 Official The department published over 3 million more pages, more than 2,000 videos and 180,000 images, bringing the total to nearly 3.5 million pages from more than 6 million collected, and said this completed its duty under the Act. Withheld material was duplicates, privileged records, depictions of violence and unrelated items. It warned that tips sent in by the public could include fake material. DOJ Office of Public Affairs press release
  11. 2026-02-14 Official The department sent its required report to the Judiciary Committees listing categories released and withheld, the legal basis for redactions, and the government officials and politically exposed persons named in the files. It said names appear in many contexts, some only in unrelated press clippings, and that nothing was withheld as classified. DOJ Section 3 report to Congress (February 14, 2026)
  12. 2026-02-25 Reported The committee's ranking Democrat, Robert Garcia, asked the department why some FBI interview records were not in the public library, and Comer said Republicans would look into it. A DOJ spokeswoman said unpublished documents were privileged, duplicates or tied to an ongoing investigation, and the department said any improperly tagged records would be published. NPR report
  13. 2026-04-23 Official The DOJ Office of the Inspector General opened an audit of the department's compliance with the Act, covering how it identified, redacted and released records and how it handles concerns raised after publication. DOJ Office of the Inspector General, ongoing work

Grand jury records in court

  1. 2025-07 Ruled U.S. District Judge Robin Rosenberg in Florida denied the Justice Department's request to release grand jury records from the 2005-2007 federal investigation, ruling that Eleventh Circuit law did not allow it. NPR report
  2. 2025-07-18 Filed A day after the President asked the Attorney General to produce pertinent grand jury testimony subject to court approval, Bondi said the department had filed motions to unseal grand jury records in Florida and New York. House Oversight Committee subpoena cover letter to the estate
  3. 2025-08-11 Ruled U.S. District Judge Paul Engelmayer refused to unseal the grand jury materials from Maxwell's case, finding they held virtually nothing not already public and would not identify others who abused minors or shed light on Epstein's death. NPR report
  4. 2025-08-20 Ruled U.S. District Judge Richard Berman refused to unseal grand jury materials from the 2019 Epstein case, noting they were about 70 pages, mostly hearsay from one FBI agent, against roughly 100,000 pages of investigative files the government could release itself. AP report
  5. 2025-12-05 Ruled U.S. District Judge Rodney Smith in Florida ordered the release of grand jury transcripts from the abandoned federal investigation there, ruling that the new Act overrode grand jury secrecy rules. AP report
  6. 2025-12-10 Ruled Judge Berman granted the department's renewed motion for the 2019 Epstein grand jury materials, a day after Judge Engelmayer did the same in the Maxwell case. Berman said the Act's plain language required release and stressed victim privacy. ABC News report

House Oversight Committee investigation

  1. 2025-08-05 Official The House Oversight Committee subpoenaed the Justice Department for the Epstein and Maxwell case files and records on his death, and subpoenaed six former attorneys general, two former FBI directors and Bill and Hillary Clinton for depositions. Former Attorney General William Barr was deposed on August 18. House Oversight Committee majority report (November 2026)
  2. 2025-08-25 Official Committee chair James Comer subpoenaed the estate's co-executors for documents including unredacted cash ledgers, message logs, calendars and flight logs, due by September 8, 2025. House Oversight Committee subpoena cover letter to the estate
  3. 2025-09-02 Official The committee released 33,295 pages of records the Justice Department produced under its August 5 subpoena, saying the department had committed to redact victims' identities and any child sexual abuse material and would produce more. House Oversight Committee press release
  4. 2025-09-08 Official The committee released 356 pages from the estate's first production, which included the so-called birthday book, and a further 70 pages on September 12. Majority staff said committee Democrats had published two pages of the birthday book first; Comer accused Democrats of selective release. House Oversight Committee majority staff memorandum
  5. 2025-11-12 Official The committee released about 20,000 more pages produced by the estate under its August subpoena. House Oversight Committee press release
  6. 2026-01-07 Official The committee authorized by voice vote subpoenas for Les Wexner and the estate's co-executors, Darren Indyke and Richard Kahn. Kahn and Indyke were deposed on March 11 and March 19, 2026, and the report says both testified they never saw Epstein abuse anyone. House Oversight Committee majority report (November 2026)
  7. 2026-02-18 Official Les Wexner was deposed under subpoena. He testified that Epstein ran his family office from about 1987 and that he learned Epstein had once posed as a Victoria's Secret talent scout. The committee's report found Wexner had not authorised that and called his inquiry into it inadequate. House Oversight Committee majority report (November 2026)
  8. 2026-02-27 Official Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and former President Bill Clinton, subpoenaed in August 2025, sat for depositions on February 26 and 27, 2026. House Oversight Committee majority report (November 2026)
  9. 2026-11 Official The committee's majority posted its report. It found the non-prosecution agreement an inappropriate end to the Florida case, called his 2008 work release an abuse of discretion, said prosecutors failed to keep victims informed, and said its evidence did not disprove the finding that he died by suicide. It referred two associates named in testimony to the Justice Department. House Oversight Committee majority report (November 2026)

Florida case and non-prosecution deal (2005-2020)

  1. 2005 Official The Palm Beach Police Department opened an investigation after a family complained that Epstein had paid their daughter for a massage, the Justice Department's later review records. DOJ Office of Professional Responsibility, executive summary (2020)
  2. 2006-07-19 Filed A Palm Beach County grand jury indicted him on one count of felony solicitation of prostitution. The police chief and lead detective, who considered the charge too narrow, referred the case to the FBI. DOJ Office of Professional Responsibility, executive summary (2020)
  3. 2007-09-24 Official After a federal prosecutor drafted a 60-count indictment in May 2007, the U.S. Attorney's Office in southern Florida instead signed a non-prosecution agreement ending its investigation in return for a state guilty plea. DOJ Office of Professional Responsibility, executive summary (2020)
  4. 2008-06-30 Admitted He pleaded guilty in Florida state court to felony solicitation of prostitution and to procurement of minors to engage in prostitution, and was sentenced to consecutive terms of 12 and 6 months plus 12 months of community control. DOJ Office of Professional Responsibility, executive summary (2020)
  5. 2008-07-07 Filed A woman who sued under a pseudonym petitioned the federal court in southern Florida, arguing that prosecutors had breached the Crime Victims' Rights Act by resolving the case without consulting victims. DOJ Office of Professional Responsibility, executive summary (2020)
  6. 2009-07-22 Official He was released to a year of home detention and registered as a sex offender. With time off for good behavior he served less than 13 months, much of it on a county work-release program. DOJ Office of Professional Responsibility, executive summary (2020)
  7. 2019-02-21 Ruled The federal court in the victims' rights case granted the petitioners partial summary judgment, ruling that the government violated the act by not telling victims it intended to enter the agreement. DOJ Office of Professional Responsibility, executive summary (2020)
  8. 2020-11 Official The Office of Professional Responsibility found no professional misconduct by the five prosecutors it reviewed, but concluded that then U.S. Attorney Alexander Acosta's choice to resolve the case through the agreement was poor judgment. DOJ Office of Professional Responsibility, executive summary (2020)

2019 federal case and death in custody

  1. 2019-07-08 Filed Federal prosecutors in Manhattan unsealed an indictment charging him with one count of sex trafficking of minors and one of conspiracy, covering conduct from 2002 to 2005 in New York and Palm Beach. He had been arrested on July 6 and pleaded not guilty; the counts carried maximums of 40 and 5 years. U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of New York, press release
  2. 2019-08-29 Ruled After he was found dead in his cell on August 10, prosecutors filed a nolle prosequi and the court dismissed the indictment, so the federal charges were never tried. The city medical examiner ruled the death a suicide. DOJ Office of Professional Responsibility, executive summary (2020)
  3. 2023-06-27 Official The Justice Department inspector general found numerous and serious failures by jail staff, including leaving him without a cellmate and skipping required rounds and counts. Two employees were charged with falsifying records; the charges were dismissed after they met deferred prosecution terms. DOJ Office of the Inspector General, release on report 23-085

Ghislaine Maxwell

  1. 2022-06-28 Ruled Ghislaine Maxwell, convicted by a Manhattan jury on December 29, 2021, was sentenced to 240 months in prison, five years of supervised release and a $750,000 fine for conspiring with Epstein to sexually abuse minors. U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of New York, press release
  2. 2024-09-17 Ruled The Second Circuit upheld Maxwell's convictions, ruling that Epstein's 2007 Florida non-prosecution agreement did not bar prosecution in the Southern District of New York. New York Law Journal report
  3. 2025-07-24 Official Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche interviewed Maxwell over two days in Tallahassee under a limited proffer agreement. Within days she was moved from a federal prison in Florida to a minimum-security camp in Texas; officials gave no reason. NPR report
  4. 2025-10-06 Ruled The Supreme Court denied Maxwell's petition for review (No. 24-1073) without comment. She had argued that the co-conspirator clause in Epstein's Florida non-prosecution agreement barred her prosecution in New York. SCOTUSblog report

Banks, estate and settlements

  1. 2020-07-07 Ruled New York's Department of Financial Services fined Deutsche Bank $150 million under a consent order covering its Epstein accounts and two correspondent banking relationships. The regulator found the bank processed hundreds of transactions worth millions, including over $7 million in settlement payments and more than $800,000 in cash withdrawals, without adequate scrutiny. NY Department of Financial Services press release
  2. 2021-08-09 Official The estate-funded Epstein Victims' Compensation Program closed after paying about $121 million to roughly 150 people. It received about 225 claims; claimants who accepted payment gave up the right to sue the estate. NBC News report
  3. 2022-11-30 Official The U.S. Virgin Islands settled its case against the estate, its co-executors and Epstein-created entities for more than $105 million in cash, half the proceeds of a sale of Little St. James, $450,000 for environmental damage and the return of over $80 million in tax benefits. The estate's lawyer said the deal contained no admission of liability. CNN report
  4. 2023-05-17 Official Deutsche Bank agreed to pay $75 million to settle a proposed class action by a woman who sued over the bank's handling of Epstein's accounts from 2013 to 2018, without admitting liability. Payouts were set at $75,000 to $5 million per claimant. NBC News report
  5. 2023-09-26 Official JPMorgan agreed to pay the U.S. Virgin Islands $75 million to settle the territory's suit over Epstein, without admitting liability: $55 million for charities and anti-trafficking work and $20 million in legal fees. The territory had planned to seek at least $190 million at trial. CNBC report
  6. 2023-11-09 Ruled U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff gave final approval to JPMorgan's $290 million settlement with women who sued over Epstein, after approving Deutsche Bank's $75 million settlement on October 20. JPMorgan did not admit wrongdoing. CNBC report

Others named in official actions

  1. 2023-07-25 Official Senate Finance Committee chair Ron Wyden disclosed that Apollo co-founder Leon Black paid Epstein $158 million in installments from 2012 to 2017, as found by a law-firm review for Apollo's board, and said the committee was examining whether the payments were tied to avoiding gift and estate taxes. Black's spokesman said the transactions were lawful and all taxes were paid. CNN report on the Senate Finance Committee letter
  2. 2025-06-26 Ruled The UK Upper Tribunal upheld the Financial Conduct Authority's ban on former Barclays chief executive Jes Staley from senior financial roles, finding he recklessly approved a misleading letter to the regulator about his relationship with Epstein. It cut the fine from 1.8 million to 1.1 million pounds. Financial Conduct Authority press release
  3. 2026-02-09 Reported NBC News reported that an email chain in the released files appeared to show Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the former Prince Andrew, forwarding trade envoy visit reports to Epstein within five minutes of receiving them in November 2010. Thames Valley Police said it was assessing a report about the claim; he has denied wrongdoing. NBC News report
  4. 2026-02-19 Reported Thames Valley Police arrested Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor on suspicion of misconduct in public office over the claim that he passed confidential trade reports to Epstein in 2010, and released him later that day while the investigation continues. He had not been charged at that point and has denied wrongdoing. AP report
  5. 2026-02-23 Reported London's Metropolitan Police arrested Peter Mandelson, dismissed as UK ambassador to Washington in September 2025, on suspicion of misconduct in public office over messages suggesting he passed government information to Epstein while a minister. He faces no sexual misconduct allegation. AP report
  6. 2026-06-26 Official Leon Black appeared voluntarily before the committee but declined to answer questions about nondisclosure agreements, and Comer subpoenaed him for documents and a deposition. Black did not appear on September 3 and produced one document, the committee says. House Oversight Committee majority report (November 2026)
  7. 2026-09-16 Official The House held Leon Black in criminal contempt of Congress without a recorded vote, a day after the committee approved it unanimously, and referred him to the Justice Department, which decides whether to prosecute. His lawyers called it politically motivated and said he had no knowledge of Epstein's conduct; he has sued the committee. AP report

Documents

Sources behind this file

  1. New York Post report on the Democrats' JPMorgan-Epstein plan ยท Report, Nov 5, 2026

Connected files

  • JPMorgan Chase ยท Largest bank in the United States by assets ยท 1 shared story
  • Jamie Dimon ยท CEO of JPMorgan ยท 1 shared story
  • United States Department of Justice ยท US federal department led by the attorney general ยท named in the record
  • Donald Trump ยท President of the United States (2017โ€“2021; since 2025) ยท named in the record
  • Bill Clinton ยท 42nd President of the United States (1993โ€“2001) ยท named in the record
  • Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor ยท Third child of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born 1960) ยท named in the record