DOJ says ‘over a million more’ documents possibly tied to Epstein case uncovered and will take weeks to release them all
The Department of Justice announced that “over a million more” documents “potentially” tied to the Jeffrey Epstein case have been uncovered, and it may take weeks to release them all.
In a social media post on Christmas Eve, the department said it was informed by the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York and the FBI “that they have uncovered over a million more documents potentially related to the Jeffrey Epstein case.”
“We have lawyers working around the clock to review and make the legally required redactions to protect victims, and we will release the documents as soon as possible,” the statement said.
“Due to the mass volume of material, this process may take a few more weeks,” the department continued, and added it would “continue to fully comply with federal law and President Trump’s direction to release the files.”
The statement did not explain when the department was informed of the new files.
The update comes as the Trump administration faces more backlash over only partially releasing the files by the December 19 deadline set by Congress.
So far, approximately 750,000 documents in the late convicted sex offender’s case have been reviewed and released by a team of 200 people, a Trump administration official told Axios, which reports a “palpable sense of exasperation” over the crisis behind closed doors.
Before the department shared the update on December 24, there were still an estimated 700,000 files in the Epstein case that needed to be reviewed and released, the outlet reported.
Justice Department leadership reportedly sent out an “emergency request” email asking career prosecutors in Florida to volunteer over the Christmas period to assist in redacting the files, according to CNN.
“We need AUSAs to do remote document review and redactions related to the Epstein files,” the message from a supervising prosecutor in the Southern District of Florida’s U.S. Attorney’s Office reportedly said.
“I am aware that the timing could not be worse,” the email sent two days before Christmas Day said. “For some the holidays are about to begin, but I know that for others the holidays are coming to an end.”
The reported request for additional help in redacting the documents comes more than a month after President Donald Trump signed the Epstein Files Transparency Act into law.
The administration continues to be dogged by the controversy, hindered further by the heavily redacted files and its “clumsy” and partial release of the documents.
And officials are reportedly growing “frustrated” with the saga as it shows few signs of abating. “It’s a combination of extreme frustration at everything: at what Congress did, at our response to it, and a concern that it won’t go away,” an official told Axios.
