Just days after releasing a large amount of documents related to late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, the Justice Department released more files Tuesday that included some that mention President Donald Trump.
The DOJ was facing a deadline to release the files last Friday after Trump signed a bill last month to trigger their release. The bill cleared both chambers of Congress and instructed Attorney General Pam Bondi to release its full investigation into Epstein.
Trump has not been accused of doing anything illegal in connection with Epstein and the new documents do not include any that indicate illegal activity.
Thousands of documents have now been released, with identifying information of victims redacted. The release comes after months of public pressure on Trump to turn over the files.
It was known that Epstein and Trump were associates at one point, but apparently had a falling out. Tuesday’s release of documents provides more insight into Trump’s relationship with the late financier.
The DOJ released a statement with the files Tuesday, noting that nearly 30,000 more documents were made public.
The department said despite some false statements in the documents, it is committed to transparency and is complying with the law. The department had until Friday to release the entirety of the Epstein files, but was unable to turn around the redacted information on a short timeline and said more documents would be following the first batch.
“Some of these documents contain untrue and sensationalist claims made against President Trump that were submitted to the FBI right before the 2020 election,” the statement said. “To be clear: the claims were unfounded and false, and if they had a shred of credibility, they certainly would have been weaponized against President Trump already.”
In 2021, a subpoena was sent to Mar-a-Lago for records related to Epstein’s former girlfriend and accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell’s federal case.
Included was information about how many times Trump flew on Epstein’s private plane, including a trip where the president, Epstein and a 20-year-old woman were passengers.
A federal prosecutor wrote in a January 2020 email to an undisclosed person that they “wanted to let you know that the flight records we received yesterday reflect that Donald Trump traveled on Epstein’s private jet many more times than previously reported.” Other passengers on various flights included his children, Trump’s former wife Marla Maples and women who could be “possible witnesses in a Maxwell case.”
The files also show that the FBI received several tips about Trump’s involvement with Epstein and their parties in the early 2000s at their properties.
Another file released was a note written by Epstein addressed to Larry Nassar, the sports doctor convicted of sexually abusing many young girls including some on the U.S. Olympic gymnastic team.
The letter, addressed to L.N., began, “As you know by now, I have taken the ‘short route’ home. Good luck!”
Epstein said he and Nassar share one thing, “our love and caring for young ladies and the hope they’d reach their full potential.”
Trump has maintained he did not know about Epstein’s criminal actions. While the files mention Trump include mentions of Trump, they do not indicate criminal wrongdoing.
The president is spending the holiday week at Mar-a-Lago and told reporters on Monday that everyone was “friendly” with Epstein. He noted that in the first release on Friday, former President Bill Clinton was shown in several photos. Trump also reiterated a previous remark that he “threw” Epstein out of Mar-a-Lago once.
“I don’t like pictures of Bill Clinton being shown. I don’t like the pictures of other people being shown. I think it’s a terrible thing,” he said. “Bill Clinton’s a big boy. He can handle it, but you probably have pictures being exposed of other people that innocently met Jeffrey Epstein years ago. Many years ago. And they’re you know, highly respected bankers and lawyers and others.”
Epstein was convicted in 2008 of soliciting prostitution of a minor and procuring a minor for prostitution. He was later arrested on federal charges in 2019 and was not convicted because he died in a federal New York City jail. His death, ruled a suicide, has been the source of many conspiracy theories.
The release comes after months of public pressure and stress for the Trump administration. The president promised to release information about Epstein while campaigning last year, but Bondi later said there was “no client list” from Epstein, sparking more pressure for the DOJ to release the truth.
The House Oversight Committee has been investigating the case and has begun releasing several smaller batches of photos. Top Democrats say they’ve received more than 95,000 photos from the Epstein estate and many are “incredibly disturbing.”
When asked for comment, the White House referred the Deseret News to the Justice Department’s statement on X.