Democratic lawmakers have released a tranche of documents from the investigation into Jeffrey Epstein, revealing apparent links between the disgraced financier and several prominent conservative figures, including Elon Musk, Steve Bannon and Peter Thiel.
The six redacted pages, provided by the justice department to the House oversight committee, form part of a wider inquiry into how sex-trafficking charges against the late American financier, who died in federal custody in 2019, were handled.
Among the records are extracts from Epstein’s calendar. They include a planned breakfast with Bannon, a close ally of Donald Trump, in February 2019; a lunch with Thiel in November 2017; and a tentative trip by Musk to Epstein’s private island in December 2014.
A flight manifest from 2000 lists Prince Andrew as a passenger on the convicted sex offender’s plane, while a financial disclosure shows Epstein making a payment that year to someone identified as “Andrew” for “Massage, Exercise, Yoga”.
The release has reignited political tensions. Sara Guerrero, spokesperson for the oversight committee’s Democratic minority, said: “It should be clear to every American that Jeffrey Epstein was friends with some of the most powerful and wealthiest men in the world. Every new document produced provides new information as we work to bring justice for the survivors and victims.”
Representative Eric Swalwell, a Democrat from California, wrote on X that Trump had “outed” Musk as being in the Epstein files, suggesting it may have been retaliation for Musk’s earlier criticism of the former president. Musk had previously accused Trump of being named in the files and demanded their release.
Republicans on the committee dismissed the latest disclosures as selective and politically motivated. In a statement on X, they accused Democrats of “withholding documents that contain the names of Democratic officials” and pledged to release the full set once redactions were complete.
Robert Garcia, the committee’s ranking Democrat, rejected the charge, insisting: “We don’t care how wealthy or powerful you are or if you are a Democrat or Republican. If you are in the Epstein documents and files we are going to expose it, and bring justice for the survivors. Release ALL THE FILES NOW!”
The documents are the latest development in the long-running controversy over the government’s handling of Epstein’s case. In the House, Democrats have joined with a small group of Republicans to push for legislation compelling the release of all Epstein files. The petition requires 218 signatures, a threshold expected to be reached following Democrat Adelita Grijalva’s victory in a special election in Arizona this week.
Any measure passed by the House would still require approval in the Senate, where Republican leaders have shown little enthusiasm for the proposal. Trump, who has dismissed the uproar over Epstein as a “Democrat hoax”, would also need to sign the bill.
The disclosures underscore the continuing political and public scrutiny of Epstein’s connections with powerful figures, and the demand for full transparency over his dealings.
