Thousands of documents released by the US Department of Justice relating to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein named many prominent figures, including former President Bill Clinton, but notably did not include President Donald Trump.
The department released only a limited batch of records related to Epstein on Friday, with large sections redacted, citing the time-consuming review process and the need to protect the privacy of Epstein’s victims.
The release was part of the Trump administration’s push to comply with a law overwhelmingly passed by Congress in November requiring the release of all Epstein files, despite Trump’s earlier months-long push to keep the records, Reuters reported.
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The extensive redactions and the small volume of records released have frustrated some Republicans and failed to calm the rift that has loomed over the party ahead of the 2026 election.
The lack of references to Trump stood out in particular because photos and documents associated with him had appeared in earlier Epstein revelations over the years. For example, Trump’s name appeared in the flight logs of Epstein’s private jet that were included in the initial set of Epstein-related materials released by the Justice Department in February.
What does the release include?
The statement also included other notes, including a complaint accusing Epstein of engaging in “child pornography” that was filed with the FBI in 1996, long before law enforcement began looking into his misconduct.
Celebrities featured in the photos released as part of Friday’s edition include the late news anchor Walter Cronkite, singers Mick Jagger, Michael Jackson and Diana Ross, British businessman Richard Branson and the former Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson.
Ghislaine Maxwell and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor are seen in this photo released by the Department of Justice in Washington, DC, US, on December 19, 2025, as part of a new series of documents from its investigation into late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. US Department of Justice / Source via REUTERS THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED TO THE AREA EDITED BY A THIRD PARTY FROM A SOURCE.(via REUTERS)
Many of the photos were undated and provided without context, and none of the figures have been accused of any wrongdoing in connection with Epstein.
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor also appears in one photograph lying on the laps of several women. The former Duke of York, who was stripped of his royal title over links to Epstein, has denied any wrongdoing, Reuters reported.
Heavy redactions and missing file
The Epstein scandal has become a political blow for Trump, who has spent years promoting conspiracy theories about Epstein to his supporters.
The documents released this week contained material from many of the Epstein investigations, including photos of Bill Clinton, a longtime target of Republican criticism. But they appear to have contained few, if any, photos of Trump or records referring to him, despite a well-documented friendship between Trump and Epstein in the 1990s and early 2000s, before the two split before Epstein’s first conviction in 2008.
Trump has not been charged with wrongdoing and has denied knowledge of Epstein’s crimes.
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One file containing a photo of Trump appears to have been removed from a data file released by the Justice Department on Saturday. His absence was noted online by House Democrats, who demanded an explanation from the administration.
Later Saturday, the image was among up to 16 photos that were deleted from the Justice Department’s website, according to The New York Times, NPR and the Associated Press.
The Justice Department and the White House did not immediately respond to questions about the missing files.
It was not immediately clear how substantial the new materials were, given that many documents related to Epstein had previously been made public since his death in prison in 2019, which was ruled a suicide, Reuters reported.
Many of the files were heavily redacted — several documents of 100 pages or more were completely blacked out — and the Justice Department acknowledged it was still reviewing hundreds of thousands of other pages for possible release.
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One of Epstein’s victims, Marina Lacerda, reacted angrily on Saturday to a large number of redactions and unreleased documents.
“We were all infuriated. It’s another slap in the face. We expected a lot more,” Lacerda told MS NOW.
Last month, House Democrats released thousands of emails obtained from Epstein’s estate, including one in which Epstein wrote that Trump “knew about the girls” without explaining what that meant. In response, Trump accused Democrats of promoting the “Epstein hoax” as a distraction.
The Justice Department has sought to draw attention to Clinton, with two spokespeople for the agency posting pictures on social media that they say show her with Epstein’s victims.
Clinton’s deputy chief of staff, Angel Urena, said in a statement that the White House was trying to “shield” itself from scrutiny by targeting the former president.
“They can release as many grainy 20-year-old photos as they want, but this is not about Bill Clinton,” he wrote.
The White House said in a statement that the release demonstrated its transparency and commitment to justice for Epstein’s victims. But the disclosure came only because Congress forced the administration’s hand after Trump officials said earlier this year that no more Epstein files would be released, Reuters reported.
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The disclosure law required the Justice Department to turn over information about its handling of the Epstein investigation, including internal memos and emails. None of that material appears to have been in the batch of documents released by the government on Friday.
The law allowed the Justice Department to withhold personal information about Epstein’s victims, as well as material that would jeopardize an active investigation.
(With input from agencies)
