New Mexico authorities have launched a search of a ranch formerly owned by Jeffrey Epstein, state officials announced on Monday.
The property, known as Zorro Ranch, has been cited in civil and criminal proceedings as a site of alleged sexual abuse by the late financier. Despite this, it was never searched by federal authorities, according to a recent investigation by the The Guardian.
The New Mexico department of justice said it had “initiated a search” of the ranch, with assistance from state police and the Sandoval county sheriff’s office. The operation was carried out at the direction of the state attorney general, Raúl Torrez.
The move follows renewed scrutiny of the ranch after the US Department of Justice released roughly three million investigative documents related to Epstein. It also comes weeks after Torrez announced the reopening of a state investigation into alleged illegal activity at the property.
That inquiry was originally opened in 2019 but was paused at the request of federal prosecutors in New York, who were pursuing a separate investigation into Epstein’s sex-trafficking operation. Epstein was later arrested and died in custody.
State legislators in New Mexico have since established a “truth commission” to examine activity at the ranch.
Zorro Ranch spans about 10,000 acres outside Santa Fe. According to court testimony, Epstein allegedly abused teenage girls and young women there over several years. Survivors have described the ranch as an isolated site where abuse occurred without interference.
Court records and witness accounts also allege that powerful figures visited the ranch, including a former New Mexico governor. The property was reportedly central to Epstein’s stated ambition to father children with multiple women in an effort to spread his DNA.
A Guardian investigation earlier this year found that, until the recent reopening of the case, there appeared to be no active criminal investigations linked to the ranch.
Legal experts have cautioned that the passage of time may limit what the search can uncover. John Day, a New Mexico defence attorney and former prosecutor, said any physical evidence was likely to be of limited value after so many years.
Others said the search could still be significant. Kate Mangels, a lawyer specialising in abuse cases, said examining the property might help corroborate survivors’ accounts if the layout of buildings matched their testimony.
In announcing the search, the justice department thanked the current owners for cooperating and urged the public to avoid the area. Officials said they would provide updates when appropriate and reiterated their commitment to supporting survivors and following the evidence.
