DOJ Accused by Press of Removing FBI Interview Records Tied to Trump Accuser From Epstein Files Release
The Justice Department is facing fresh allegations from the press that it removed or obscured parts of the public record in the massive release of Jeffrey Epstein-related materials, after reports said references to FBI interviews with a woman who accused President Donald Trump of sexual assault as a minor no longer appear where they previously could be found.
The allegations center on a Justice Department release that included an FBI-produced slideshow summarizing investigative leads and “prominent names,” along with related entries indicating follow-up steps, including interviews. The New Republic reported Thursday that the FBI spoke with the woman four times in connection with her allegation, but that “most accusations against the president appear to have been removed” from the government’s published materials.
A separate account from The Daily Beast, based on the same FBI slideshow and related documents, reported that the files show the FBI conducted interviews tied to the tip, but that it remains unclear what, if anything, investigators ultimately concluded from that line of inquiry. The Daily Beast also described how the slideshow summarized an allegation that Epstein introduced the woman to Trump, and it noted additional database-style entries referencing investigative actions.
The dispute comes amid heightened scrutiny of how the DOJ is redacting, formatting, and re-posting materials released under the Epstein Files Transparency Act. In a Jan. 30 press release announcing the publication of roughly 3.5 million pages, DOJ said redactions were intended to be limited largely to protecting victims and their families, and it stated that “notable individuals and politicians were not redacted in the release of any files.”
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche has previously rejected claims that DOJ staff were ordered to redact Trump’s name or otherwise suppress mentions of him in the Epstein files. In a Dec. 20 interview with ABC News, Blanche said there had been “no effort” to redact Trump’s name and that releases would proceed consistent with the law.
In recent days, DOJ’s handling of the Epstein material has also been questioned on process grounds, not only on substance. Reuters reported Feb.15 that the DOJ sent a legally required letter to congressional leaders describing categories of redactions and providing a list of notable individuals mentioned in the files, while emphasizing that appearance in the records does not necessarily indicate any interaction with Epstein or wrongdoing.
Separately, the DOJ has acknowledged problems in the public posting process, including pulling and correcting documents when sensitive victim information may have been exposed. The DOJ has attributed the release of sensitive information to “technical or human” errors and described revised protocols for flagging and reposting documents after review.
