The Democratic Party on Wednesday (3) released unprecedented photos showing the luxurious mansion of Jeffrey Epstein, convicted of sexual assault and accused of a vast sex trafficking scheme, on the island of Little St. James, in the US Virgin Islands, in the Caribbean. Pictures and videos show large, well-furnished rooms and bathrooms that appear to be new.
Epstein, who was close to US President Donald Trump, was arrested in 2019 on charges of running a sex trafficking scheme that, among other crimes, allegedly took minors to the remote island, where they were allegedly raped. The American press reported that one of the victims, who was 15 years old, tried to swim away. Epstein died in prison in an episode classified as a suicide.
“These new photos offer a disturbing look into the world of Jeffrey Epstein,” Democratic Representative Robert Garcia, a member of the House committee that published the material, said on Wednesday. “We are publishing these photos and videos to ensure transparency in our investigation that seeks to understand the scope of Epstein’s horrific crimes. We will not stop fighting until we get justice for the survivors.”
This release comes after months of attrition and resistance, and two weeks after President Donald Trump yielded to pressure from the Republican Party base and published the investigation files into the alleged sex trafficking scheme run by Epstein.
Trump said that on October 19 he signed the law, which Congress had passed almost unanimously the day before, ordering the Justice Department to release all unclassified documents about the investigation. He had ten days to approve or object to the text.
The president announced the signing in a post on his network, Truth Social, in which he repeated accusations that the case was linked to Democrats, not Republicans, and that his opponents were using the “Epstein case” to “try to divert attention” from what he called his “astonishing victories.”
He added, “This latest trick will backfire on the Democrats like all the other tricks!” Trump wrote.
The legislation stipulates that the ministry has 30 days – thus, until December 19 – to publish the material in a searchable and downloadable form on the Internet.
There is a paragraph in the text that states that disclosure of any part of the material may not be prevented due to “embarrassment, reputational damage or political sensitivity.”
On the other hand, in the paragraph where the law lists reasons why a portion of documents may be redacted, there is a provision that allows for temporary censorship of materials that could “harm an active federal investigation or ongoing judicial process.”
In addition to Trump, the papers mention other well-known figures in American politics, such as former President Bill Clinton, on whose basis Trump ordered an investigation into the case, in addition to other names linked to the party, such as the former dean of Harvard University and former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers.
In the Truth post, the president again mentioned Clinton and other Democrats, linking them to the financier.
Trump wrote: “Epstein, who was indicted by the Trump Department of Justice in 2019 (not by the Democrats!), was a long-time Democrat, donated thousands of dollars to Democratic politicians, and had strong relationships with many well-known party figures such as Bill Clinton (who flew on his plane 26 times), Larry Summers (who just resigned from several boards, including Harvard), (…) and many others.”