The US Justice Department has revealed that more than one million additional documents potentially linked to the late paedophile Jeffrey Epstein have been found, meaning the public will have to wait a bit longer to see them.
The FBI and the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York informed the department about the discovery on Wednesday, handing over the massive trove for legal review.
"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 department said on social media.
Given the sheer volume of material, officials say the process could take "a few more weeks" to complete.
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This announcement follows a turbulent week for the department, which has been releasing documents in batches after missing the December 19 deadline set by Congress.
The Epstein Files Transparency Act, passed with near-unanimous support and signed into law by President Donald Trump last month, requires the government to open its files on Epstein and his longtime associate Ghislaine Maxwell.
The law specifically prohibits redacting names simply because they might cause embarrassment or reputational damage – only victims' identities and active criminal investigations can be shielded.
Yet many of the documents released so far have been heavily blacked out, including references to what the FBI described as 10 possible "co-conspirators" in 2019 emails.
Six of those individuals had reportedly been served with subpoenas across Florida, Boston, New York City and Connecticut.
The US Justice Department has revealed that more than a million additional documents potentially linked to the late paedophile Jeffrey Epstein have been found, meaning the public will have to wait a bit longer to see them
|REUTERS
Thousands of documents have already been released by the Department of Justice
|REUTERS
A dozen senators are now demanding an independent audit of how the department has handled the whole affair.
Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski joined 11 Democrats in writing to Acting Inspector General Don Berthiaume on Wednesday, urging him to examine whether the department has properly followed the transparency law.
"Given the Administration's historic hostility to releasing the files, politicisation of the Epstein case more broadly, and failure to comply with the Epstein Files Transparency Act, a neutral assessment of its compliance with the statutory disclosure requirements is essential," the senators wrote.
They argued that full transparency is crucial for identifying those who enabled and took part in Epstein's crimes.
Republican Representative Thomas Massie, who co-sponsored the transparency act, was even more blunt, posting on X: "DOJ did break the law by making illegal redactions and by missing the deadline."
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Some celebrities have already been pictured in the documents, such as Richard Branson
|REUTERS
Democratic lawmakers have been equally scathing in their response to the latest revelations.
Representative Ro Khanna, who worked alongside Massie to push through the bipartisan transparency bill, said the pair would "continue to keep the pressure on."
"After we said we are bringing contempt, the DOJ is now finding millions more documents to release," the California Democrat posted on X, adding: "The Epstein class must go."
Representative Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, called the situation "outrageous."
"It's outrageous that Trump's DOJ has illegally withheld over 1 million documents from the public," he said in a statement, appealing for whistleblowers or "anyone at the DOJ who can assist us in bringing justice for the survivors" to come forward.
Donald Trump has also been pictured in the documents
|REUTERS
The Justice Department has defended its approach, insisting the delays are necessary to safeguard those who suffered at Epstein's hands.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche told NBC's Meet the Press on Sunday: "The reason why we are still reviewing documents and still continuing our process is simply to protect victims.
"So the same individuals that are out there complaining about the lack of documents that were produced on Friday are the same individuals who apparently don't want us to protect victims."
The department has pledged to continue releasing records on a rolling basis and says it remains committed to complying with federal law and President Trump's direction to make the files public.
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