The Justice Department on Friday announced thelong-awaited release of an enormous tranche of Jeffrey Epstein files,spanning more than 3 million pages, which it said fulfilled its obligations under transparency legislation passed last year by Congress.
The volume of documents related to the late convicted sex offender means sorting through everything is going to take some time.
But here are some early takeaways:
The key Trump mentions so far
President Donald Trump's name shows up a lot in the latest batch of files, which includes material ranging from investigative documents to emails to news clips. A few of the mentions stand out so far.
First is an email chain from August 2025 in which an apparent FBI employee displays a list of apparentlyunsubstantiated tips involving Trumpand Epstein – many of them quite salacious.
"Yellow highlighting is for the salacious piece," one official writes to explain how the allegations were being sorted.
Trump has never been accused by law enforcement of Epstein-related wrongdoing, and he has denied engaging in any.
The allegations appear to be unverified, and the officials note that some are secondhand information. The document notes that in many instances, there was no contact made with the individuals who sent in the allegations, or no contact information was provided.
Some of the allegations were followed up on. One was sent to the FBI's Washington field office to conduct an interview, and another was deemed not credible, according to the document.
There are also allegations made in the document against former President Bill Clinton, who has denied wrongdoing related to Epstein.
Two files featuring that particular email were later removed temporarily from DOJ's website then restored. A DOJ official said the document had gone down "due to overload."
It's not clear why officials created the list of allegations related to Trump last year. But the political sensitivities of Trump's proximity to Epstein – with whom he associated for years before Trump said he ended their relationship in the mid-2000s – were made abundantly clear last year when Trump at one pointfalsely deniedhaving been told his name was in the files.
Asked for comment, the White House referred CNN to a DOJ press release, which emphasized that the files "may include fake or falsely submitted images, documents or videos" that it was required to release under transparency legislation passed last year.
"Some of the documents contain untrue and sensationalist claims against President Trump that were submitted to the FBI right before the 2020 election," the department said.
Another email chain shows someone who appears to be Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein's former girlfriend who was later convicted of child sex trafficking, strategizing with Epstein in 2011 about an accuser who worked at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort – and the two even discussing getting Trump involved.
Epstein contacts a Trump associate who worked in Trump's hotel business and asks about details of the accuser's employment, hoping to dispute her account.
"I thought you said not to involve Donald," an account labeled "GMAX" responds to Epstein.
The details of the emails match the account ofVirginia Giuffre, a prominent Epstein accuser whom Maxwell allegedly recruited from Mar-a-Lago in 2000.
Draft indictment from 2000s included alleged co-conspirators
The big reason many have anticipated the release of the Epstein files for years is the prospect that they could identify others who participated in Epstein's crimes. Only Maxwell was charged, but many Americans think others participated.
On Friday came a major sign that, at least at one point, prosecutors felt others could be charged.
A much-anticipated draft indictment from the Southern District of Florida from the 2000s would have charged Epstein alongside what appear to be three others who are described as having been "employed" by Epstein. The individuals, whose names are redacted, are mostly described as facilitating appointments between Epstein and girls.
The document describes all of them as having conspired to "persuade, induce, and entice individuals who had not attained the age of 18 years to engage in prostitution."
It's not the much-rumored "client list" that many have anticipated – despite that the Justice Department has denied it exists. But it is likely to lead to questions about who these people are and why they weren't ultimately charged.
Epstein'ssweetheart dealto avoid much more serious charges in the late 2000s – he pleaded guilty to a prostitution-related charges – is a major piece of this scandal.
This will likely add to the complaints about a lack of full accountability and delayed justice.
New questions about prominent figures including Lutnick and Musk
The new releases could create problems for a few others, including some prominent Trump allies who have sought to distance themselves from Epstein.
Documents show Trump Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick in 2012 planning a trip to Epstein's island, years after when he said he had cut ties with Epstein.
Lutnick in a podcast interview last year said he and his wife decided around 2005 never to associate with Epstein. But the2012 emailshows Lutnick asking where Epstein was located so they could meet for a meal.
When contacted Friday by the New York Times, Lutnick said, "I spent zero time with him," and hung up.
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Anotheremailshows Lutnick inviting Epstein (through Epstein's assistant) to a 2015 fundraiser for then-Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton that Lutnick was hosting. It's unclear whether Epstein attended.
A Commerce Department spokesman told CNN: "Secretary Lutnick had limited interactions with Mr. Epstein in the presence of his wife and has never been accused of wrongdoing."
Similarly, the documents show tech billionaireElon Musktrying to coordinate trips to Epstein's island in 2012 and 2013, despite Musk's claims to having rebuffed Epstein's attempts to invite him.
Musk at one point asks which time would feature the "wildest party."
On November 24, 2012, EpsteinemailedMusk asking, "how many people will you be for the heli to island." Musk responded that it would likely just be him and his then-wife.
It's not clear from the emails whether Musk actually visited. His representatives didn't immediately respond to a request for comment .
Musk posted onXon Friday night that he had "very little correspondence with Epstein and declined repeated invitations to go to his island or fly on his 'Lolita Express', but was well aware that some email correspondence with him could be misinterpreted and used by detractors to smear my name.
Musk last year cited Trump's presence in the Epstein filesduring a brief feudwith the president.
The files continue to feature significant mentions of Clinton. Those include Epstein in a2016 depositionbeing asked about Clinton, and repeatedly invoking his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.
A spokesperson has repeatedly said Clinton cut ties with Epstein before Epstein wascharged with soliciting prostitution in 2006and knew nothing of his crimes. Clinton has denied visiting Epstein's island.
The documents also suggest an extensive relationship between Epstein and former Trump adviserSteve Bannonthat could add to pressure on Bannon to account for it.
One2020 FBI memoindicates a witness told the agency about Bannon's "relationship with Jeffrey Epstein," but "was hesitant" to discuss the matter in detail because Bannon was "friends with powerful people."
CNN has reached out to a Bannon spokesperson for comment.
None of these men have been accused of Epstein-related wrongdoing by law enforcement.
More problems with DOJ's releases
The Justice Department's previous releases of the files were marred by problems including allegations of overzealous redactions and missing the late-December deadline that Congress gave the administration to release all the files.
And there was more where that came from on Friday.
Perhaps the biggest issue was allegations that DOJ failed to fully redact information about Epstein's victims.
Bradley Edwards, an attorney whorepresented dozens of Epstein's victims, said DOJ had "violated the trust, privacy, and the rightsof more victims than perhaps ever before." And survivors who spoke with CNNsaid they foundnumerous examples of victims' names appearing unredacted.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said Friday morning when the files were released that mistakes were "inevitable" given the volume of documents. DOJ has had an inbox for victims to raise concerns.
But it's difficult to imagine a more significant failure in the release of these records.
The files also continue to redact the names of Justice Department employees involved in the investigations and other matters related to Epstein.
Blanche said DOJ also decided to redact images of any women except Maxwell, while declining to redact images of any men unless it had to in order to protect the anonymity of a woman.
A poignant reminder of the victims
This item features some graphic and disturbing descriptions of sexual violence.
Indeed, the files serve as a reminder of what Epstein's hundreds of victims went through – many of whom lost the chance to get justice when he died while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges in 2019.
Disturbing allegations surfaced on Friday drive home that point.
AsCNN's Marshall Cohen recaps, one victim recalled to the FBI in 2021 that she had confided in Epstein when she was about 14 years old about having previously been molested. She said Epstein went on to sexually abuse her.
The account came in an FBI memo known as a "302," which describes a witness interview, but there is no indication whether it was corroborated.
The notes say the victim "felt taken advantage of," but she said she also "felt happy because she had a bunch of money" from massages she was paid for.
If you need help:
National Domestic Violence Hotline: Call 1-800-799-SAFE (7233), text START to 88788 or chat through website.
National Sexual Assault Hotline: Call 1-800-656-HOPE (4673), text HOPE to 64673 or chat through website. Provided by RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network).
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