A Republican-led House committee has released more than 33,000 pages of documents related to disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, as party leaders attempt to address public demands for transparency while blocking a broader bipartisan disclosure effort.
The Tuesday release comes as House leadership seeks to derail a separate cross-party initiative that would compel the Department of Justice to disclose all unclassified Epstein records, including files held by the FBI and US attorneys’ offices.
Epstein, who died by suicide in federal custody in 2019, remains the subject of widespread public suspicion and conspiracy theories.
However, most of the newly released materials consist of previously available court filings and investigative records, drawing sharp criticism from Democratic lawmakers. Representative Jim McGovern of Massachusetts dismissed the effort on X, writing: “Nearly everything Republicans just supposedly ‘released’ … has already been released.”
The files do contain some new video and audio evidence. At least eight videos appear to show police interviews with Epstein’s victims, some timestamped from 2005 and 2006. In one particularly disturbing 17-minute recording, a girl whose identity has been obscured described how Epstein paid her $350 for a massage and sex when she was 17.
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“He has the girls take off their clothes and give him a massage,” she recounted in the interview.
Audio files from the Florida investigation also include what appears to be another victim interview, with names and personal details redacted for privacy.
Despite the document release, Representatives Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) said they would continue pressing their bipartisan measure requiring comprehensive DOJ disclosure of all unclassified Epstein records.
Massie told Axios he intends to push ahead regardless of the committee’s action, and the pair plan to hold a press conference with Epstein victims on Wednesday to maintain pressure for fuller transparency.
Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson has attempted to dismiss the bipartisan effort, calling the petition “inartfully drafted” because it lacks provisions to protect victims’ identities. Johnson argued the measure was “moot” in light of the committee’s document release.
“It’s superfluous at this point, and I think we’re achieving the desired end here,” Johnson said.
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee has also announced it has subpoenaed the DOJ, Epstein’s estate, and convicted Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell for additional records and testimony, suggesting the congressional investigation will continue despite the current document dump.
