New Epstein document release includes multiple Trump mentions

The US justice department has released tens of thousands more documents related to Jeffrey Epstein, a tranche that included multiple mentions of President Donald Trump but added little new revelatory information to the long-anticipated public file on the late financier and convicted sex offender.

The release is the most voluminous so far and comes after a massive public campaign for transparency into the US government’s Epstein investigations.

Many of the mentions of Mr Trump in the file came from news clippings, although it includes an email from a prosecutor pointing out the flights that Mr Trump took on Epstein’s private jet during the 1990s.

The two men were friends for years before a falling out.

Mr Trump has not been accused of wrongdoing in connection with Epstein.

The justice department issued a statement that some documents contain “untrue and sensationalist claims” about Mr Trump made shortly before the 2020 election.

US president Donald Trump spoke during an unrelated event at his Mar-a-Lago home in Palm Beach, Florida, on Monday. PA Media

Among the mentions of Mr Trump in the latest batch of the Epstein files is a note from a federal prosecutor from January 2020 that said Mr Trump had flown on the financier’s private plane more often than had been previously known.

An assistant US lawyer from the Southern District of New York said in an email that flight records the office received on January 6 2020 showed that Mr Trump was on Epstein’s jet “many more times than previously has been reported (or that we were aware)”.

The prosecutor who flagged the Trump mentions in the flight logs said they did so because lawyers “didn’t want any of this to be a surprise down the road”.

His travels on Epstein’s plane spanned the time that would likely be covered in any criminal charges against Epstein’s co-conspirator, Ghislaine Maxwell.

Mr Trump was listed as a passenger on at least eight flights between 1993 and 1996, and on at least four of those flights, Maxwell was also there, according to the email.

On one of those eight flights, in 1993, Mr Trump and Epstein were the only two passengers listed in the flight logs.

A photo released by the US department of justice showing Jeffrey Epstein. PA Media

On another flight, the three passengers listed in records are Epstein, Mr Trump, and a redacted individual, who was 20-years-old at the time.

Two other flights included two women – whose names were redacted in follow-up emails – identified as potential witnesses in a Maxwell case.

Several additional trips made by Mr Trump on Epstein’s plane had been previously disclosed during Maxwell’s criminal proceedings.

An email that was included in the US department of justice release of the Epstein files. PA Media

Asked for comment about the email, the White House pointed to a justice department statement saying Monday’s release contained “unfounded and false” claims against the president submitted to the FBI shortly before the 2020 election, but they were nevertheless being released for full transparency.

The justice department specifically raised questions about the validity of a document mentioning Mr Trump that was styled as a letter from Epstein to Larry Nassar, the sports doctor convicted of sexually abusing Olympic athletes.

The department pointed out that it was processed three days after Epstein’s death.

Mr Trump complained that the files were a distraction from the work he and other Republicans were doing for the country.

Speaking during an unrelated event at his Mar-a-Lago home in Palm Beach, Florida, on Monday, the president blamed Democrats and some Republicans for the controversy.

“What this whole thing is with Epstein is a way of trying to deflect from the tremendous success that the Republican Party has,” Mr Trump said.

A photo released by the US department of justice showing Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. PA Media

He also expressed frustration about the famous people shown with Epstein in photos released by the justice department — people who he said may not have known him but ended up in the shot anyway.

“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,” Mr Trump said.

Well-known people shown in the files include former president Bill Clinton, the late pop star Michael Jackson and singer Diana Ross.

The mere inclusion of someone’s name or images in files from the investigation does not imply wrongdoing.

Mr Trump tried for months to keep the records sealed before relenting to political pressure, including from some fellow Republicans, although he eventually signed a bill mandating the release of most of the justice department’s files on Epstein.

Monday’s release was the biggest dump yet, including nearly 30,000 more pages. The data released by the law’s Friday deadline contained a fraction of that amount, mostly photographs taken during FBI searches of Epstein’s homes.

The new cache includes news clippings, emails and surveillance videos from the New York jail where Epstein was held before taking his own life in 2019, much of which was already in the public domain.

The law called for the files to be released within 30 days, but the justice department has instead released them in stages starting on Friday.

Officials have said they are going slowly to protect victims, although some women assaulted by Epstein have spoken out publicly to call for greater transparency.