The U.S. Justice Department said the grand jury transcripts that led to the sex trafficking indictments of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell contain testimony from only two law enforcement witnesses.
In a document filed in Manhattan federal court in support of a request to unseal the grand jury transcripts, officials describe the witnesses in a memo that was prepared in response to a request earlier this month from the judges overseeing both cases for more details about their request. The judges would have to approve any request to release the records.
Courts rarely release grand jury transcripts unless necessary for a trial. The papers, filed late Tuesday, cite a 1997 U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruling that judges have significant discretion and only the public interest can justify releasing grand jury information.
According to the filing, the Epstein grand jury heard only an FBI agent during its June and July 2019 hearings, while the Maxwell grand jury heard the same FBI agent and an NYPD detective during its June and July 2020 and March 2021 hearings.
The memorandum was signed by Jay Clayton, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and included the names of Attorney General Pam Bondi and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche.
The request to release the transcripts comes after the Justice Department sparked anger among some supporters of President Donald Trump when it announced in early July that it would no longer release Epstein's files.
The decision not to release additional material surprised some Trump supporters, as members of his administration had been hyping up the expected release and fueling conspiracy theories about Epstein.
The powerful financier and convicted sex offender committed suicide in federal prison in August 2019, weeks after being arrested on sex trafficking charges, officials said, but his case continues to attract attention and spark conspiracy theories because of his and Maxwell's connections to high-profile figures such as royalty, presidents and billionaires including Mr. Trump.
British socialite Maxwell is serving a 20-year prison sentence after being convicted in December 2021 of soliciting teenagers to be sexually abused by Epstein.
Last week she gave
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
