Federal office may take additional weeks to publish wealthy financier’s records.
On Wednesday, the Justice Department said it may need a few more weeks to release all documents related to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The statement came after the discovery of more than one million additional files that could be connected to the case, delaying the department’s compliance with the congressional deadline set for last Friday.
Bipartisan senators—eleven Democrats and one Republican—wrote to Acting Inspector General Don Berthiaume demanding an audit of the department’s handling of the records. The group stated that victims deserve full disclosure and called for an independent review. Their letter followed hours after the new document discovery was announced.
Earlier, the department had claimed an exhaustive review had found no additional evidence. Manhattan federal prosecutors and the FBI, however, identified a large volume of new documents. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche confirmed that prosecutors already had more than 3.6 million records from investigations into Epstein and Maxwell, many duplicates of FBI material.
The Justice Department said its lawyers are working around the clock to review the files and remove names of victims and other identifying information per the Epstein Files Transparency Act. The law, enacted last month, requires the release of all relevant materials. The department expects the review of the new documents may take a few weeks.
The department released an initial wave of records on Friday and has posted additional batches over the weekend and Tuesday. Released files include photographs, transcripts, call logs and court records, some heavily redacted. No schedule has been announced for future releases.