Epstein-Related Documents Delayed by Justice Department

Over 2 million documents that may be connected to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein are still with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), nearly two weeks after the deadline for their release passed.

Last month, the DOJ began to release some documents related to its long investigation into the late financier, but it failed to meet the December 19 deadline established by the Epstein File Transparency Act.

According to a letter to a federal judge on Monday, DOJ officials indicated that these documents are “in various stages of review.” So far, they have released approximately 12,285 documents, which amount to over 125,000 pages. However, this represents less than 1 percent of the total documents being reviewed.

On December 24, the Justice Department revealed that it had identified over 1 million files not included in the initial investigation.

Some documents are duplicates, but they still need to go through “processing and deduplication,” as noted in the letter. It emphasized that “substantive work remains.” Over 400 DOJ lawyers will be examining the Epstein files in the weeks ahead, officials stated.

In November, it was reported that the House had passed the Epstein File Transparency Act. This came after a period of relative silence from Democrats on the issue during President Biden’s administration.

While the act may not necessarily lead to new prosecutions, it can be seen as a political win for Democrats, who have renewed their focus on Epstein issues this year after four years of minimal discussion.

Former President Donald Trump has encouraged House Republicans to support the Epstein File Transparency Act, suggesting they focus on the successes of the Republican Party rather than on what he termed “Democratic hoaxes” aimed at distracting from their achievements.