Epstein Files Release: At least 16 files have reportedly disappeared from the Justice Department's public webpage for documents related to Jeffrey Epstein-
including a photograph showing President Donald Trump- less than a day after they were posted, with no explanation from the government and no notice to the public. Files Vanish from DOJ Website According to a report by news agency PTI, the missing files, which were available Friday and no longer accessible by Saturday, included images of paintings depicting nude women, and one showing a series of photographs along a credenza and in drawers. In that image, inside a drawer among other photos, was a photograph of Trump, alongside Epstein, Melania Trump and Epstein's longtime associate Ghislaine Maxwell. The Justice Department did not say why the files were removed or whether their disappearance was intentional. A spokesperson for the department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Public and Political Reaction Online, the unexplained missing files fuelled speculation about what was taken down and why the public was not notified, compounding long-standing intrigue about Epstein and the powerful figures who surrounded him. Democrats on the House Oversight Committee pointed to the missing image featuring a Trump photo in a post on X, writing: "What else is being covered up? We need transparency for the American public." Broader Concerns with the Document Release The episode deepened concerns that had already emerged from the Justice Department's much-anticipated document release. The tens of thousands of pages made public offered little new insight into Epstein's crimes or the prosecutorial decisions that allowed him to avoid serious federal charges for years, while omitting some of the most closely watched materials, including FBI interviews with victims and internal Justice Department memos on charging decisions. Some of the most consequential records expected about Epstein are nowhere to be found in the Justice Department's initial disclosures, which span tens of thousands of pages. Missing are FBI interviews with survivors and internal Justice Department memos examining charging decisions records that could have helped explain how investigators viewed the case and why Epstein was allowed in 2008 to plead guilty to a relatively minor state-level prostitution charge. The gaps go further. The records, required to be released under a recent law passed by Congress, hardly reference several powerful figures long associated with Epstein, including Britain's former Prince Andrew, renewing questions about who was scrutinized, who was not, and how much the disclosures truly advance public accountability, the PTI report said. New Insights from Released Files Among the fresh nuggets: insight into the Justice Department's decision to abandon an investigation into Epstein in the 2000s, which enabled him to plead guilty to that state-level charge, and a previously unseen 1996 complaint accusing Epstein of stealing photographs of children. The releases so far have been heavy on images of Epstein's homes in New York City and the US Virgin Islands, with some photos of celebrities and politicians. Ongoing Release Process Despite a Friday deadline set by Congress to make everything public, the Justice Department said it plans to release records on a rolling basis. It blamed the delay on the time-consuming process of obscuring survivors' names and other identifying information. The department has not given any notice when more records might arrive. (With AP, PTI reports)
