Washington — A Justice Department and FBI review of the investigation related to disgraced late financier Jeffrey Epstein found that there was no “client list” or evidence that he blackmailed prominent figures, according to a memo detailing the findings.
The review also concluded that Epstein died by suicide while in custody at a Manhattan correctional facility in August 2019. Epstein was facing federal sex trafficking charges, and his death was subsequently investigated by the Justice Department’s internal watchdog and the FBI.
The Justice Department and FBI said in their memo that video footage reviewed by bureau investigators — and made available to the public — confirmed that Epstein was locked in his cell and nobody entered tiers of the unit where he was housed at the time of his death.
Investigators also “did not uncover evidence that could predicate any investigation against uncharged third parties,” according to the memo.
“This systematic review revealed no incriminating ‘client list.’ There was also no credible evidence found that Epstein blackmailed prominent individuals as part of his actions,” the Justice Department and FBI said in their two-page document detailing the conclusions.
Axios was first to report the memo with the Justice Department’s findings.
Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI leaders had pledged to release information about Epstein after President Trump returned to the White House earlier this year. Files related to Epstein’s case, as well as the circumstances surrounding his death, have been the subject of conspiracy theories for years. Among the speculation about the records involving Epstein was that the federal government was concealing information to shield powerful and prominent figures who were allegedly named in them.
While Bondi suggested during a Fox News interview in February that a “client list” was sitting on her desk, the purported document never materialized.
In February, a group of 15 right-wing social media influencers went to the White House and were given binders labeled “The Epstein Files: Phase 1.” The influencers said they received the binders from Bondi during a meeting that Mr. Trump, FBI Director Kash Patel and Vice President JD Vance also attended.
But any hopes of new information were quickly dashed, as the social media figures said the binders contained documents that were already in the public domain. Bondi confirmed that the first tranche of declassified files largely contained records that were leaked but had not been made public by the federal government.
Still, after Elon Musk and Mr. Trump had a falling out last month, the billionaire entrepreneur claimed that the administration had withheld the so-called Epstein files because the president was named in them. In response, Mr. Trump shared a social media post that rebuffed Musk’s claim.
The president told NBC News in an interview that any alleged links between him and Epstein were “old news,” and said he had not been friendly with the convicted sex offender for 18 years before his death.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt defended the administration’s approach to Epstein’s case on Monday, telling reporters that it is “committed to truth and to transparency.”
“That’s why the attorney general and the FBI director pledged, at the president’s direction, to do an exhaustive review of all of the files related to Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes and his death, and they put out a memo in conclusion of that review,” she said. “There was material they did not release, because, frankly, it was incredibly graphic and it contained child pornography, which is not something that’s appropriate for public consumption. But they committed to an exhaustive investigation. That’s what they did, and they provided the results of that.”
When asked about the “client list” that Bondi said was on her desk, Leavitt said the attorney general was referring to “the entirety of all of the paperwork, all of the paper in relation to Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes.”
The FBI and Justice Department said in their memo that the review confirmed that Epstein harmed more than 1,000 victims, each of whom suffered “unique trauma.”
“One of our highest priorities is combatting child exploitation and bringing justice to victims. Perpetuating unfounded theories about Epstein serves neither of those ends,” the memo said.
The Justice Department and FBI added that while they have “labored to provide the public with maximum information” about Epstein and examine evidence in the government’s possession, they determined that “no further disclosure would be appropriate or warranted.”
