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Topics: Jeffrey Epstein, US News, Politics, News, Donald Trump
Rhiannon Ingle
Topics: Jeffrey Epstein, US News, Politics, News, Donald Trump
The United States Department of Justice has reportedly withheld over 47,000 Epstein files from the public after releasing more than two million pages of documents under the Epstein Files Transparency Act.
In an official press release dated 30 January, the DOJ announced it had published over three million additional pages responsive to the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which was signed into law by President Donald Trump on 19 November.
CBS News reports that, combined with previously released materials, the Department put the total at 3.5 million pages.
An analysis conducted by the outlet found that, after removing tens of thousands of files, the DOJ currently makes public about 2.7 million pages of documents related to paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, which is notably much lower than the Department’s initial claim of three million.
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The analysis found that, as of late February, the Department 'has taken down more than 47,000 files comprising about 65,500 pages', adding: "Links to those files now return a 'page not found' error on the department’s website."
Responding to inquiries from CBS News, Department of Justice spokesperson Natalie Baldassarre said that 'CBS’s analysis appears to be fundamentally flawed' and that the department has 'not deleted any files from the library'.
However, the Wall Street Journal reports that a Justice Department spokeswoman said that '47,635 files were offline for further review and should be ready for re-production by the end of the week'.
"Our team is working around the clock to address victim concerns, redact personally identifiable information and any images of a sexual nature," Baldassarre told CBS News. "All responsive documents will be repopulated online once proper redactions are made."
The Independent previously reported that the now-offline files include materials connected to unverified allegations against Trump.
Back in January, the Justice Department stated, per the BBC: "Some of the documents contain untrue and sensationalist claims against President Trump that were submitted to the FBI right before the 2020 election.
"To be clear, the claims are unfounded and false, and if they have a shred of credibility, they certainly would have been weaponised against President Trump already."
The 79-year-old Republican has previously accused Democrats of using the Epstein files to 'deflect from their failures' and dubbing it 'the Jeffrey Epstein hoax', again claiming that Democrats were 'doing everything in their withering power' to 'deflect from all of their bad policies and losses'.
Meanwhile, the White House's Press Secretary, Karoline Leavitt, previously said in a statement that 'the Democrats selectively leaked emails to the liberal media to create a fake narrative to smear President Trump', adding: "These stories are nothing more than bad-faith efforts to distract from President Trump’s historic accomplishments, and any American with common sense sees right through this hoax and clear distraction from the government opening back up again."
Trump, who socialised and partied with convicted sex offender Epstein in the 1990s and 2000s before their fallout, has continuously denied any wrongdoing or any knowledge of Epstein's crimes, and the investigative material to date has yet to reveal any specific compromising details.
Epstein, who once described himself as the president’s 'closest friend', died by suicide in his prison cell while awaiting sex trafficking charges back in 2019.