DOJ removed, withheld Epstein files related to accusations about Trump - NPR

Justice Department withheld and removed some Epstein files related to Trump

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

We've heard a lot of revelations about what is in millions of pages of Epstein files. Today, we have a revelation that the Justice Department never released.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

An NPR investigation finds the government removed or withheld dozens of pages from the public database of Epstein documents. Those pages relate to accusations of sexual abuse that also contain mention of President Trump. It is the latest example of ways the Trump administration has not been transparent in its handling of the release of the Epstein files.

INSKEEP: NPR's Stephen Fowler broke the story and is here. Stephen, good morning.

STEPHEN FOWLER, BYLINE: Good morning.

INSKEEP: OK, so let's figure this out. Of course, it's well documented that President Trump's name is in the Epstein files thousands of times. They had a long friendship and then a falling-out. But what is different about what you found that seems not to have been there?

FOWLER: When we were looking in the files, we found this email from the FBI dated last July and released last month. It listed all of the claims and tips that they'd received about Trump and what the disposition was. There were plenty of things there that were unverifiable, fantastical. You had non-credible reports, except one. That one, to paraphrase, accused Trump of sexually abusing a minor around 1983 when she was also being abused by Epstein, and it was sent to a field office to investigate further.

INSKEEP: OK. So what did that investigation find?

FOWLER: We don't know, other than it was notable enough to include on a Justice Department slideshow from last fall, also released last month, that summarizes the investigations into Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. There's a slide of, quote, "prominent names." At the top is Trump with two allegations, including this one about sexual abuse. What's unusual is that it's the only place you can find mention of this accusation.

INSKEEP: Wait a minute. Why is it unusual that's the only place you can find it?

FOWLER: Well, it's more what other documents have shown us about these particular missing pages. There's records showing the FBI interviewed this accuser four times. Only one of those interviews is in the public Epstein database. And it does not mention Trump at all. And the Justice Department's own tracking indicates there's at least 50 pages that exist but were not made public.

INSKEEP: OK. So when you begin putting these documents together, it's like a jigsaw puzzle, and it becomes clear that some pieces are missing. Did you find some kind of - I don't know - list or table of contents that outlines what is supposed to be there?

FOWLER: Sort of. There are three sets of what's called Bates stamps on that interview. Think of it like serial numbers for these documents that go up sequentially. At the end of this interview document, the last page, the bottom tracking number for the Epstein Files Transparency Act goes up by one to go to the next file. There's a top number tracking documents related to this person interviewed that went up by six, and a third serial number jumped by 53, showing that there's likely something out there beyond what the DOJ is sharing.

INSKEEP: How does the Justice Department explain that?

FOWLER: They didn't give an on-record answer to detailed questions, instead pointing back to the work they're doing to fix redaction errors and address victim concerns.

INSKEEP: Ah. Implying there might be just some error here. But what is the White House saying?

FOWLER: Well, the White House and the Trump administration have consistently said that there is nothing incriminating the president in the files. They point to a Justice Department statement when the last batch was released that say, quote, "untrue and sensationalist claims" about Trump are in the files. Abigail Jackson, a White House spokeswoman, sent a statement to NPR that says in part that President Trump, quote, "has done more for Epstein's victims than anyone before him" by signing the law to release the files, among other things, and say that he's been totally exonerated.

INSKEEP: OK. NPR's Stephen Fowler. And you can read NPR's exclusive reporting on the Epstein files at our website, npr.org. Thanks, Stephen.

FOWLER: Thank you.

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