Trump-Musk feud: Have all Epstein files been launched? What we know so far

Jeffrey Epstein and US President Trump

The long-murky Epstein files returned to the highlight in early 2024, this time on account of a public accusation by Tesla CEO, Elon Musk. In a social media submit, Musk claimed that US President Donald Trump was named in paperwork associated to Jeffrey Epstein, the disgraced financier and convicted intercourse offender. Musk supplied no proof, however the assertion reignited public curiosity within the long-secret files.“Epstein files” confer with 1000’s of paperwork, movies, and investigative supplies gathered through the years in reference to Epstein and his associates. While some court docket data from his 2008 Florida plea deal and his 2019 federal expenses in New York had been made public, many others remained sealed or closely redacted.What the primary declassified Epstein files revealedIn February, US lawyer normal Pam Bondi, together with the FBI, declassified and publicly launched files associated to Epstein’s sexual abuse of greater than 250 underage women at his properties in New York, Florida, and different places. The first section of declassified files largely consisted of supplies that had beforehand leaked by unofficial channels however had by no means been formally launched by the US authorities.The first batch of paperwork launched earlier this 12 months contained principally beforehand recognized data. These included pilot logs from the prosecution of Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s so-called “black book,” and a redacted record of masseuses. The logs had already been public for years and had been redacted to hide the identities of potential victims.One newly revealed doc, nonetheless, stood out: a three-page “Evidence List” compiled by the justice division, reportedly documenting objects recovered throughout searches of Epstein’s properties in New York and the Virgin Islands. According to the record, investigators seized dozens of recording units, computer systems, exhausting drives, and reminiscence sticks. Also included had been a CD labeled “girl pics nude book 4,” a folder marked “LSJ logbook,” believed to confer with Epstein’s personal island, and a photograph album described as “photo album of girl and Epstein.”Investigators additionally recovered a number of therapeutic massage tables,certainly one of which was introduced throughout Maxwell’s trial, together with a bag containing a set of copper handcuffs and a whip. Another merchandise, a bag holding a yellow envelope marked “SK” dated August 27, 2008, contained a number of smaller envelopes with a complete of $17,115 in money. The date corresponded with the interval when Epstein was in jail in Palm Beach, Florida.Despite these revelations, the FBI has not confirmed that Trump’s identify seems within the newly launched supplies. Musk, too, has not clarified which paperwork he was referring to, and no official supply has substantiated his declare.FBI director Kash Patel and deputy director Dan Bongino later confirmed in a Fox News interview that they’d reviewed the total file. They maintained that Epstein died by suicide and said that surveillance footage from his jail cell can be made public within the coming months.Jeffrey Epstein, whose wealth and enterprise operations remained largely opaque, was recognized for his connections to a spread of highly effective figures, together with US presidents, British royals, and Hollywood elites. He pleaded responsible in Florida in 2008 to baby prostitution expenses and served 13 months beneath a controversial work-release settlement. In 2019, he was arrested once more on federal intercourse trafficking expenses for allegedly working a community that exploited underage women. Weeks later, he was discovered useless in his Manhattan jail cell. Though his dying was formally dominated a suicide, persistent theories have advised he was murdered to guard highly effective people implicated in his crimes.Trump, who constructed a lot of his political identification on guarantees to dismantle the “deep state,” had usually hinted at exposing hidden authorities corruption, typically alluding to Epstein. As president, he authorised the discharge of 1000’s of pages tied to the JFK assassination, however didn’t do the identical with Epstein-related files.Musk and Trump, as soon as aligned politically, are actually overtly feuding. Their rift started over a brand new authorities tax invoice, with Musk calling it a “disgusting abomination.” Trump responded on Truth Social, claiming he had excluded Musk from federal EV coverage selections and threatened to revoke subsidies. Musk fired again on X, calling Trump’s claims “an obvious lie” and asserting that Trump’s 2024 marketing campaign wouldn’t have succeeded with out his help—deepening the divide between the 2 former allies.