Clemson affiliates named in massive Epstein files release - The Tiger

The Epstein Files Transparency Act, signed by President Donald Trump on Nov. 19, 2025 and pioneered by California Rep. Ro Khanna, called for the publication of over 3 million pages. Clemson affiliates have been listed in the released email exchanges.

Prior to this release, files had already been publicized, but the Act brought the total to nearly 3.5 million pages, adding over 2,000 more videos and 180,000 images, according to the United States Department of Justice.

Hundreds of public figures and politicians have been named in the Epstein files, including Sarah Ferguson, Elon Musk, Richard Branson, Donald Trump and Bill Clinton.

Among Epstein’s emails, which have been declassified but still heavily redacted, there are mentions of individuals from or affiliated with Clemson University.

The first mentioned is Antony Valentini, starting around July 2011.

Valentini, a British-Italian theoretical physicist, became a professor of theoretical quantum physics at Clemson in February 2011. In 2022, he was listed as an adjunct faculty member. He’s no longer with the University, but currently publishes papers on high energy collisions.

Jeffrey Epstein emailed Ian Osborne, a venture capitalist and PR consultant, who exchanged hundreds of emails with Epstein in an attempt to connect him with technology billionaires and British politicians. Valentini was another person of interest to Osborne and Epstein, primarily due to his research in physics.

The first mention of Valentini is on July 27, 2011, with Epstein writing to Osborne, “i can see valentini in rome on the 6th or 7th.”

Later, in August, after continued discussion about meeting with Valentini, Osborne wrote to Epstein that he’d spoken with Valentini, mentioning he was more likely to be in Sardinia.

Osborne mentioned that “Mr. B wasn’t without his own issues in that department” in the same email thread mentioning Valentini the same day.

Epstein wrote back, “FYI always remember I prefer brutal honesty ie if they are concerned re prince Andrew.”

Former Prince Andrew was arrested on Feb. 19 on suspicion of misconduct in public office amid a wave of controversy sparked by the release of additional Epstein files.

There was no further discussion about Valentini in the emails until Jan. 8, 2014, when Valentini emailed Epstein requesting funding for “research into hidden variables in quantum mechanics — the idea that there is a deeper, nonlocal reality behind the quantum formalism.”

Valentini noted that his research at the time was funded by the John Templeton Foundation, but it was running out, so he was reaching out to Epstein for alternatives.

At that time, Valentini was employed as a professor of physics at Clemson.

March 2005 marked the first charge on Epstein, which was multiple counts of unlawful sex with a minor, and he was eventually indicted on a single count of soliciting prostitution. The FBI investigation began in 2006 following allegations of favoritism for the state attorney who assigned Epstein a grand jury, rather than arresting him on charges the police had already prepared.

In 2008, he pleaded guilty to state charges of soliciting prostitution and soliciting prostitution from someone under 18. Epstein avoided federal prosecution throughout the entire three years between the first charges and his guilty plea.

Multiple victims had emerged by 2011, alleging Epstein sexually abused and raped minors.

There is no other email in the files showing further correspondence between Epstein and Valentini.

Shortly after, in September 2012, Susan Chapman, an associate professor in the department of biological sciences, was mentioned in Epstein’s emails. The mention entailed correspondence sent directly to Epstein and others, notably to assistants, notably Lesley Groff.

Jack Horner, a famed Montana paleontologist and former Montana State University professor, now retired, emailed Epstein about a meeting with other academics. The meeting was on a “bioinformatics-based approach using comparative gene expression profiling to identify likely targets and transgenic technologies to modify their expression and/or function in chicken embryos.”

He requested nearly $9,000 in funding for the meeting.

Chapman was mentioned among the individuals Horner wished to invite, and Horner noted that she worked at Clemson University and on chicken tails.

In a later email after the October 2012 meeting dates, Horner emailed Epstein again, thanking him for the funding but noting that Epstein wasn’t there.

In November 2012, Horner emailed Epstein about a Dinochicken summit, noting Chapman, who attended and spoke about her research “on a chicken called an arucana which is rumpless, missing its tail.”

Horner signed the email with, “Please give my best to the girls.”

Prior to Chapman’s mention, Horner had written to Epstein in 2012, “Jeffrey and the girls were very gracious hosts as were Brian and Karen,” noting that it was the first contact with Epstein at his ranch. It was there that Epstein said he would help with Horner’s Dinochicken Project.

Clemson News spotlighted DinoChicken and detailed Chapman’s involvement in August 2023.

“We’re trying to understand how you had a dinosaur turn into a bird, and one of the ways to understand how that happened is to try to turn a bird back into a dinosaur. We’re not trying to make little dinosaur dragons or anything like that. We’re trying to understand how animals can change and adapt to the environment,” Chapman told Clemson News.