The Justice Department’s long-awaited release of the Epstein files on Friday offered a deeper look at the jet-setting lifestyle of the late sex offender and financier Jeffrey Epstein — but few major revelations.
The data dump included thousands of files, mostly images, many of which were heavily redacted. The Justice Department released the documents to comply with the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which President Donald Trump signed into law last month.
The department, citing the task of ensuring no information included in the release could be used to identify victims, did not make public its entire database on Friday, as the law required. The department said it would turn over more files in the coming weeks.
In 2008, Epstein pleaded guilty to solicitation of prostitution and solicitation of prostitution with a minor under the age of 18. Nine years later, the financier was charged with the sex trafficking of minors. He died by suicide in 2019 while in federal custody.
Business Insider has been reviewing the latest files, which continued to roll out late Friday evening. Here are our biggest takeaways.
Department of Justice
1. Lots of famous faces
The files contained numerous images of celebrities and politicians, including former president Bill Clinton, pop star Michael Jackson, and British billionaire Richard Branson.
The photos are not evidence of wrongdoing.
Not all of the celebs were pictured with Epstein, and at least one photo — of Diana Ross with Bill Clinton and Michael Jackson — can be found on the professional photography service, Getty Images, suggesting it was not Epstein’s personal photo.
The context of many of the photos is also unclear, lacking dates, locations, and other identifying information.
Clinton featured prominently in the latest round of files, including several previously unseen photos.
Angel Ureña, a spokesperson for Clinton, said on X that the former president was unaware of Epstein’s criminal activity.
“There are two types of people here,” he wrote. “The first group knew nothing and cut Epstein off before his crimes came to light. The second group continued relationships with him after. We’re in the first. No amount of stalling by people in the second group will change that.”
Other famous figures seen in photos in the documents include actors Kevin Spacey and Chris Tucker, The Rolling Stones front man Mick Jagger, and Sarah Ferguson, the former Duchess of York. Business Insider reached out to them for comment.
Spacey had earlier called for the release of the Epstein files and said in a post on X in July that he has “nothing to fear.” In multiple interviews before the latest release, Tucker has denied any knowledge of criminal activity. Jagger has not responded publicly. Ferguson has said she cut ties with Epstein after his conviction.
Department of Justice
2. Redactions draw criticisms
The Justice Department’s release drew criticism from some victims and Democrats for its heavy redactions and limited initial release.
In some cases, entire documents were obscured by black boxes, including one 119-page file. The DOJ has attributed its delay in producing all the documents by the December 19 deadline in part to its duty to safeguard the personal information of victims and other individuals.
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3. 1996 complaint
The files shed some light on how long young women have been accusing Epstein of wrongdoing.
Among the thousands of documents was a 1996 FBI memo included in a complaint filed against Epstein by a woman whose name the Justice Department redacted. Business Insider confirmed the accuser was Maria Farmer, who has previously said publicly that she reported Epstein to the authorities.
In her original complaint, Farmer says Epstein stole pictures of her 16-year-old sister and is “believed to have sold them to potential buyers.” She says he once asked someone to take photos of young women at swimming pools.
“I feel redeemed. This is one of the best days of my life,” Farmer said in a statement to Business Insider shared by her lawyer.
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4. More files to come
The Justice Department was required by law to release the documents by December 19, but US Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said Friday that the files would be released in batches over the coming weeks. Four sets of files were released on Friday evening. The Justice Department posted an additional three sets late Friday, which included photos of evidence files.
The Justice Department’s delay in releasing all the files at once has led to criticism from lawmakers. Republican Rep. Thomas Massie said the move “grossly fails to comply with both the spirit and the letter of the law.”
Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna told CNN that he and Massie were now drafting articles of impeachment against US Attorney General Pam Bondi following the release.
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Trump stays quiet
Trump is known to have socialized with Epstein in the 1990s and 2000s, and photos of the pair together have been well publicized in recent years.
He didn’t feature prominently in Friday’s document release. There was a photo of a messy desk that contained a photo of Trump inside a drawer. Trump has previously said he ended his ties with Epstein years ago.
Blanche told ABC News on Friday that there had been “no effort to hold anything back because there is the name Donald J Trump.”
Trump had not commented publicly on the files as of Saturday afternoon.
