Lawmakers and public figures criticise the partial release of Jeffrey Epstein-linked documents, accusing the Justice Department of withholding legally required information.
ISTANBUL: The partial release of documents linked to the late financier Jeffrey Epstein has sparked fresh controversy in the US.
Lawmakers and public figures have accused the Justice Department of withholding information required by law.
Democratic Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said the newly released material represents a small portion of the full record.
“Even with everything in this Epstein drop, remember: this is a minority of the files,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote on social media platform X.
She stated the release violates the law, which requires all files to be made public.
Ocasio-Cortez claimed the department led by Attorney General Pam Bondi is still hiding most of them.
Democratic Representative Robert Garcia, a member of the House Oversight Committee, also condemned the limited disclosure.
He described the action as “outrageous and incredibly concerning.”
Republican Representative Thomas Massie claimed political pressure followed the document release.
“Within hours of the Epstein file release, a superPAC funded by Israel-first billionaires… bought another US$800,000 of TV ads against me,” Massie said.
He noted that donor John Paulson appears in Epstein’s black book.
Massie added he would still win his election, but stated “if I lose, it was worth it.”
Tech billionaire Elon Musk also rejected any link to Epstein.
“They are trying to deflect responsibility to me from the truly guilty,” Musk said.
He clarified he had not attended any of Epstein’s parties, travelled on his plane, or visited his island.
Musk asserted that “those who have committed serious crimes need to be prosecuted.”
Epstein was found dead in his New York City jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.
He had previously pleaded guilty in a Florida court in 2008.
He was convicted of procuring a minor for prostitution, a deal critics have labelled a “sweetheart deal”.
His victims have alleged he operated a sprawling sex trafficking network used by wealthy and political elites.
The case remains a politically charged issue in the US.
Lawmakers and victims’ advocates continue demanding greater transparency about his network of associates.
