A review of files held by the US government on the financier Jeffrey Epstein has said there is no secret client list to be released, and confirmed his August 2019 death by suicide while in federal custody, both of which contradict conspiracy theories.
A memo said that a Department of Justice (DOJ) and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) review of the files – which has for years been teased as a treasure trove of information about a larger network of wrongdoing – concluded that no further charges are expected, as investigators “did not uncover evidence that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties”.
The justice department also released hours of footage taken from Manhattan’s metropolitan correctional center, showing that no one entered or left the area where Epstein was held during, before or after the time medical examiners concluded he took his life.
“As part of our commitment to transparency, the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation have conducted an exhaustive review of investigative holdings relating to Jeffrey Epstein,” the DOJ said.
It added that the review included “digital searches of its databases, hard drives, and network drives as well as physical searches of squad areas, locked cabinets, desks, closets, and other areas where responsive material may have been stored”.
The department said it had uncovered “a significant amount of material”, including more than 300 gigabytes of data and physical evidence that included “a large volume of images of Epstein, images and videos of victims who are either minors or appear to be minors, and over ten thousand downloaded videos and images of illegal child sex abuse material and other pornography”.
“Through this review, we found no basis to revisit the disclosure of those materials and will not permit the release of child pornography,” the memo said.
Nor, the statement continued, did the review uncover an incriminating “client list” or find credible evidence that Epstein was involved in blackmailing prominent individuals.
No further charges are expected in connection with the investigations into Epstein, the memo said, as investigators “did not uncover evidence that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties”.
The attorney general, Pam Bondi, had previously promised the public release of scores of records related to Epstein, but an earlier release of documents did nothing to advance the conspiracy narratives that have emerged since his death.
Soon after the memo was made public by Axios, and later by the independent journalist Jessica Reed Kraus on Substack, Elon Musk voiced his disappointment, posting an image to the social platform X of “The Official Jeffrey Epstein Pedophile Arrest Counter,” set to “0000”.
“What’s the time? Oh look, it’s no-one-has-been-arrested-o’clock again,” Musk captioned the photo.
The billionaire CEO of Tesla, who is feuding with Donald Trump after his work to gut federal government spending through the “department of government efficiency” (Doge) seemed to run counter to Trump’s recent bill that will massively increase the deficit, has previously intimated that Epstein file releases promised by the justice department had been stalled because Trump himself was implicated.
“Time to drop the really big bomb: @realDonaldTrump is in the Epstein files,” he wrote. “That is the real reason they have not been made public. Have a nice day, DJT.”
Trump dismissed Musk’s claims to NBC News: “That’s called ‘old news.’ That’s been old news. That has been talked about for years. Even Epstein’s lawyer said I had nothing to do with it – it’s old news,” he said.
The justice department also said its review of the files was consistent with prior disclosures on the case and its review confirmed that Epstein harmed over one thousand victims.
“Each suffered unique trauma. Sensitive information relating to these victims is intertwined throughout the materials. This includes specific details such as victim names and likenesses, physical descriptions, places of birth, associates, and employment history.
“One of our highest priorities is combatting child exploitation and bringing justice to victims. Perpetuating unfounded theories about Epstein serves neither of those ends.”