Is DOJ misleading US public on Epstein files? Released docs full of famous names, but not Donald Trump’s

The thousands of documents released by the U.S. Justice Department related 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 made public only a limited batch of the Epstein-related records on Friday, with large portions redacted, citing the time-intensive review process and the need to protect the privacy of Epstein’s victims.

The release was part of the Trump administration’s effort to comply with a law passed overwhelmingly by Congress in November that requires all Epstein files to be disclosed, despite Trump’s earlier, months-long push to keep the records sealed, Reuters reported.

The heavy redactions and the small volume of records released frustrated some Republicans and failed to calm a controversy looming over the party ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.

The lack of references to Trump stood out, particularly because photos and documents connected to him have surfaced in earlier Epstein disclosures over the years. For example, Trump’s name appeared on flight logs from Epstein’s private jet that were included in an initial set of Epstein-related materials released by the Justice Department in February.

What does the release contain?

The release also contained other items of note, including a complaint accusing Epstein of involvement in “child pornography” that was filed with the FBI ⁠in 1996, long before law enforcement began looking into his misconduct.

Celebrities who appeared in photos made available as part of Friday's release include the late news anchor Walter Cronkite, singers Mick Jagger, Michael Jackson and Diana Ross, British entrepreneur Richard Branson and the former Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson.

Many of the photos were undated and provided without ‍context, and ‌none of those figures have been accused of any wrongdoing in connection with Epstein.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor also appears in one photo lying across the laps of several women. The former Duke of York, who was stripped of his royal title over his ties to Epstein, ​has denied any wrongdoing, Reuters reported.

Heavy redactions and a missing file

The scandal surrounding Epstein has become a political wound for Trump, who for years had promoted conspiracy theories about Epstein to his supporters.

The documents released this week contained material from multiple investigations into Epstein, including photographs of Bill Clinton, a longtime target of Republican criticism. However, they appeared to include few, if any, photos of Trump or records referencing him, despite Trump and Epstein’s well-documented friendship in the 1990s and early 2000s, before the two fell out ahead of Epstein’s first conviction in 2008.

Trump has not been accused of wrongdoing and has denied knowing about Epstein's crimes.

One file with a photo of Trump appeared to have been removed on Saturday from the dataset released by the Justice Department. Its absence was noted online by Democrats in the House of Representatives, who demanded an explanation from the administration.

Later on Saturday, that picture was part of up to 16 photos that had been deleted from the Justice Department website, according to The New York Times, NPR and the Associated Press.

The Justice Department and the White House did not immediately respond to queries about ​missing files.

It was ⁠not immediately clear how substantive the new materials were, given that many Epstein-related documents have previously been made public since his 2019 death in jail, which was ruled a suicide, Reuters reported.

Many of the files were heavily redacted — several documents with 100 pages or more were entirely blacked out — and ⁠the Justice Department acknowledged it was still reviewing hundreds of thousands of additional pages for possible release.

One of Epstein's victims, Marina Lacerda, reacted angrily on Saturday to the large number of redactions and ‌unreleased documents.

“All of us are infuriated by this. It's another slap in the face. We expected way more,” Lacerda told MS NOW.

Last month, Democrats in the House released thousands of emails obtained from Epstein's estate, including one in which Epstein wrote that Trump “knew about the girls,” without clarifying what that meant. Trump, in response, accused Democrats of promoting the “Epstein Hoax” as a distraction.

The Justice Department sought to draw ​attention to Clinton, with two agency spokespeople posting on social media images that they said showed him with Epstein victims.

Clinton's deputy chief of staff, Angel Urena, said in a statement that the White House was attempting to “shield themselves” from scrutiny by focusing on the former president.

“They can release as many grainy 20-plus-year-old photos as they want, but this isn't about Bill Clinton,” he wrote.

In a statement, the White House ‍said the release demonstrated its transparency and commitment to justice for Epstein's victims. But the ‍disclosures occurred only because ⁠Congress forced the administration's hand, after Trump officials declared earlier this year that no more Epstein files would be made public, Reuters reported.

The disclosure law required the Justice Department to turn over information about its handling of the Epstein investigation, including internal reports and emails. None of those materials appeared to be in the batch of documents the government released on Friday.

The law allowed the Justice Department to withhold personal information about Epstein's victims as well as material that would jeopardise an active investigation.

(With inputs from agencies)