Trump mentioned ‘hundreds of times’ in DoJ documents — live

Epstein first emails Nicholas Ribis, a former executive with Trump’s resort empire, about “the girl in the new papers” who had claimed to have worked at Mar-a-Lago in 1998 at the age of 15. Epstein states that he was “virtually [sic] positive that it is a lie” and that it was when she was 17, two years later in 2000 — meaning she was not a minor. “Who would i go to verify, I dont’ know how Donald would respond„? [sic]” Epstein wrote in 2011, around the time Giuffre made her allegations public. Epstein forwards the message to “GMAX”, an email address known to belong to Maxwell, who responds: “I thought you said not to involve Donald.”

President Trump said in June that Epstein “stole” a young women who worked for the spa at Mar-a-Lago, his first acknowledgement of Giuffre, who was among Epstein’s most well-known sex trafficking accusers. Trump has denied any wrongdoing with Epstein and has never been connected to any wrongdoing related to Giuffre.

A spokesperson for Bill Gates has called allegations in the latest Epstein files that the Microsoft co-founder caught a sexually transmitted disease “absolutely absurd and completely false”.

The spokesperson told the BBC: “These claims – from a proven, disgruntled liar – are absolutely absurd and completely false. The only thing these documents demonstrate is Epstein’s frustration that he did not have an ongoing relationship with Gates and the lengths he would go to entrap and defame.”

Bill Gates planned to give his wife antibiotics without her knowledge fearing he had caught a sexually transmitted infection from Russian prostitutes, Jeffrey Epstein claimed in an email.

Epstein alleged that the Microsoft billionaire had asked him to procure the medication in what appeared to be draft emails he sent to himself, addressed to “Bill”, on July 18, 2013.

A spokesperson for Gates said: “These claims are absolutely absurd and completely false.” Melinda French Gates, the tycoon’s now ex-wife, was contacted for comment.

• Read in full: Bill Gates caught an STD from Russian prostitutes, Epstein files claim

Sarah Ferguson called Jeffrey Epstein “my dear spectacular and special friend”, an email suggests.

She appears to have messaged him in April 2009, describing him as a “legend” and adding: “I am so proud of you”.

“Thank you for looking after me so well,” the email said. “I have read and devoured your email and am putting into action what you said. Then I will come back to you with a business plan and all you need and I need to see if it is the great oracle realm.!! Thank you for being such a great friend.”

She signs the message: “Lots of love Sarah. Xxxx.”

In March 2011, Ferguson said her involvement with Epstein was a “gigantic error of judgement”. There is no suggestion of any wrongdoing on Ferguson’s part.

In the 2022 email to Ghislaine Maxwell, Melania Trump went on to say: “I know you are very busy flying all over the world. How was Palm Beach? I cannot wait to go down. Give me a call when you are back in NY. Have a great time!” She signs off “Love, Melania!”

Trump and Epstein both had homes in Palm Beach, Florida, and they moved in the same high society circles in New York. Trump has denied any wrongdoing with Jeffrey Epstein.

Maxwell replies, calling her “sweet pea” and writing: “Actually plans changed again and I am not on my way back to nY. I leave again on Fri so I still do not think I have time to see you sadly. I will try and call though. Keep well.”

Melania Trump wrote an email to Ghislaine Maxwell, commenting on a “nice story about JE [Epstein]” she had read in New York Magazine.

“Hey G! How are you?” she wrote in an October 23, 2002. “Nice story about JE in NY mag. You look great in the picture.” At the time, Melania Knauss was dating businessman Donald Trump.

The magazine had published an article headlined Jeffrey Epstein: International Moneyman of Mystery. Trump, then a New York real estate mogul, was quoted in it, saying: “I’ve known Jeff for fifteen years. Terrific guy. He’s a lot of fun to be with. It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side.”

Trump has denied any wrongdoing relating to Epstein.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor appeared to ask Jeffrey Epstein for his advice on a confidential document about investment opportunities in Helmand, Afghanistan.

Andrew told Epstein that he would be “very interested” in his “comments, views or ideas” and asked who else he could show it to in order to “attract some interest”.

He sent what he describes as a “confidential” brief in December 2010. British military casualties in Afghanistan peaked in 2009 and 2010, more than 100 troops dying in each of those years.

Andrew served as the UK’s special representative for international trade and investment from 2001 to 2011, but resigned after scrutiny of his expenses and associations with controversial figures.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor appears to have invited Jeffrey Epstein for dinner at Buckingham Palace where he promised they would have “lots of privacy”.

A month after Epstein’s release from house arrest following his conviction for procuring a minor, Andrew wrote to him: “I am just departing Scotland should be down by 1800. I’ll ring you when I get down if you can give me a number to ring. Alternatively we could have dinner at Buckingham Palace and lots of privacy. A.”

Epstein replied: “I want private time with you.” He then adds that he is in London with three women. He asked: “Should i bring them all. so as to add some life. [sic]”.

Ghislaine Maxwell told Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor that he should join his wife and daughters on holiday rather than go to “the Island” where she joked “five stunning red heads” would be, according to newly released emails that lay bare the intimacy of their friendship.

In an exchange dated to August 2002, Andrew wrote to Maxwell that he was thinking of flying to Sotogrande in Spain to join his wife Sarah Ferguson and daughters Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie as it would be “a good thing for the girls, rather than trek across the pond”.

He continued: “Please will you give me permission to do so and I am conscious of the ‘better offer’ syndrome but in this case it wouldn’t be that… I think!”

The reference is apparently to Little Saint James, Epstein’s island in the US Virgin Islands.

The latest tranche of three million documents released by the US Department of Justice includes further revelations about the late billionaire paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, his girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and Lord Mandelson, the former US ambassador.

The documents, released under the Epstein Files Transparency Act, includes about 2,000 videos and 180,000 images.

Times journalists in London and New York are continuing to scour the files, but here are the key points.

• Read in full: What is in the Epstein files? The key revelations so far

Howard Lutnick, the US commerce secretary, appears to have invited Epstein to a fundraising event for Hillary Clinton that his firm hosted in 2015.

Lutnick, who was a neighbour of Epstein in Manhattan, has said that a tour of Epstein’s townhouse in 2005 led him and his wife to vow “never to be in the room with that disgusting person ever again”.

The invitation from Lutnick to the Clinton event appears to have been forwarded to Epstein by his longstanding assistant in November 2015. It is unclear whether Lutnick attended.

In a separate email sent in December 2012, Lutnick’s wife Allison appeared to write to Epstein’s assistant about an trip to his island. “We are looking forward to visiting you. We will be coming from Caneel Bay in the morning,” she wrote.

“We are a crowd … 2 families each with 4 kids ranging in age from 7-16 6 boys and 2 girls. I hope that’s okay. We would love to join you for lunch. Please advise on timing and exactly where our boat should go. Would 1 or 1.30pm for lunch work? We are travelling on a yacht called Excellence and I am cc’ing the Captain.”

Jeffrey Epstein appears to have arranged for Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor to have dinner with a “beautiful, trustworthy” 26-year-old Russian woman.

In an exchange from 2010, the convicted paedophile wrote: “I have a friend who I think you might enjoy having dinner with.”

In response, Andrew appeared to reply: “Of course. I am in Geneva until the morning of 22nd but would be delighted to see her. Will she be bringing a message from you? Please give her my contact details to get in touch.”

Epstein later added the woman was “26, russian, clevere [sic] beautiful, trustworthy and yes she has your email”.

Lord Mandelson apologised to Epstein’s victims in a statement to The Times on Friday evening.

Newly released documents suggest that Epstein sent Mandelson’s husband £10,000 for an osteopathy course.

In response, Mandelson, the former British ambassador to the US, said: “I was wrong to believe Epstein following his conviction and to continue my association with him afterwards. I apologise unequivocally for doing so to the women and girls who suffered.

“I was never culpable or complicit in his crimes. Like everyone else, I learned the actual truth about him after his death. But his victims did know what he was doing. Their voices were not heard and I am sorry I was amongst those who believed him over them.”

A masseuse who says she worked for Jeffrey Epstein in 1999, when she was 25, said she “didn’t feel good” about being asked to massage Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor because she thought she was being asked “to do more”, according to the new files.

The unnamed woman submitted a statement to a private investigations team in 2021 that was sent to Ghislaine Maxwell’s defence team, the files show. The woman said she wanted to remain anonymous to protect her children.

“I was only involved with Jeffrey for a year. I just followed around with him,” the woman said. “I didn’t see anything bad ever, there were no red flags, there was nothing alarming that I saw. When I first found out everything that happened, I was in shock. [The] time I was with him was my early twenties.”

She added about her relationship with Epstein: “I never saw him like a creepy guy. He had so many women after him at that time. He was the bachelor everyone wanted, very charming.” She further noted: “There were never any young girls.”

“I saw Prince Andrew and Donald Trump. [Epstein] wanted me to give Prince Andrew a massage, but I didn’t feel good about that. I wonder if he was offering me to him to do more. Ghislaine was not involved in that.”

She did not accuse Trump or Andrew of any wrongdoing. Both men have previously denied any wrongdoing associated with Epstein.

Ghislaine Maxwell wrote to the the Invisible Man email address, thought to belong to Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, saying, “I am then in your hands (Literally)”, a document shows.

The email, from September 9, 2005, reads: “Darling Oops! I will be arriving in LA on flight number QF 025 at 1045 on Sunday 2nd October. I am then in your hands (Literally) until Saturday/Sunday, when I have to return to London, either from LA or New York.

“If you want me to leave any earlier then just let me know and I will change my flight times. Will you be organising internal flights in the US? Let me know if this is OK. Love you A.”

Trump finished his Oval Office press conference without being asked a single questions about the Epstein files.

He did take questions on potential military action against Iran and whether the US was in danger of civil war. Responding to a question from a reporter, Trump said progress was being made in peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia.

“I’ve ended eight wars, all of them I thought were going to be maybe tougher than this one, but Zelensky and Putin hate each other and it makes it very difficult,” he said. “But I think we’re getting very close to getting a settlement.”

Discussing a potential civil war as unrest continues in Minnesota, Trump said he had been elected on a law-and-order ticket and would deliver on his promise to voters.

The DoJ said the documents may include “untrue and sensationalist’ claims about President Trump that were submitted to the FBI before the 2020 election.

The department said: “This production may include fake or falsely submitted images, documents or videos, as everything that was sent to the FBI by the public was included in the production that is responsive to the [Epstein Files Transparency Act]. Some of the documents contain untrue and sensationalist claims against President Trump that were submitted to the FBI right before the 2020 election.

“To be clear, the claims are unfounded and false, and if they have a shred of credibility, they certainly would have been weaponised against President Trump already. These files were collected from five primary sources, including the Florida and New York cases against Epstein, the New York case against Maxwell, the New York cases investigating Epstein’s death, the Florida case investigating a former butler of Epstein, multiple FBI investigations and the Office of Inspector General investigation into Epstein’s death.”

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor appeared to invite Jeffrey Epstein to visit him at Buckingham Palace a month after the paedophile financier had been released from house arrest.

In an email exchange dated September 29, 2010, Epstein informs Andrew that he is in London and asks Andrew what he is doing. Andrew replies that he cannot join for lunch because he is meeting a “Saudi prince” but says he will be free later in the day.

“Delighted for you to come here to BP,” Andrew wrote. “Come with whomever and I’ll be here free from 1600ish to 2000.” Epstein responded: “See you at 4.” It is not clear whether he did go to the palace for the meeting.

Epstein had been released on probation after he was jailed for procuring for prostitution a girl below the age of 18.

Epstein sent Lord Mandelson’s husband £10,000, emails suggest.

Reinaldo Avila da Silva, who has been in a relationship with the Labour peer since the 1990s and married him in 2023, appears to have emailed Epstein in September 2009 — after the financier was jailed for soliciting sex with minors.

The email requested money for an osteopathy course, covering fees and expenses including anatomical models and a laptop. Epstein replied hours later: “I will wire your loan amount immediately.”

Mandelson lost his job as Britain’s ambassador to the United States in September when it emerged that his friendship with Epstein was closer than he had declared.

Mandelson has denied any knowledge of Epstein’s crimes and has since said he felt “a tremendous sense of regret” over their friendship and a “tremendous sense of sympathy” for his victims. He also admitted there had been “a lot of traffic, correspondence, exchanges” between him and Epstein and admitted that “embarrassing” correspondence would emerge.

In one email, Epstein is reminded about a planned dinner with Bill Gates, the Microsoft billionaire and philanthropist, and asked to clarify the date.

In a reply sent in November 2010, Epstein responds: “6th now … girls should be form [sic] 5-7 gates from 7-.” It is not clear who Epstein is referring to or whether he expected Gates to be present on those dates.

Gates, who has said he had several dinners with Epstein in the hope of securing donations for global health projects, later said their meetings were a “mistake”.

There is no evidence that he knew of or participated in Epstein’s abuse of minors.

Bank statements show Maxwell held various accounts at UBS Services, a Swiss-based banking service.

One statement from April 2014 appears to show current accounts holding $4.8 million. Another from about the same time shows $1.8 million, a third $1.2 million and another $2.9 million. She also has a retirement account.

In the files is confirmation from the UBS private wealth management team that Maxwell transferred $14.2 million in “PYDYX and cash” from an account named Ghislaine Maxwell to an account named Angara Trust.

Between 2016 and 2020, prosecutors alleged that Maxwell managed at least 15 accounts, frequently transferring hundreds of thousands of dollars. The sum of $500,000 was transferred in March 2019, months before Epstein’s death.

Maxwell has been linked to numerous bank accounts, holding up to $20 million, but she claimed at the time of her arrest she had no monthly income and “less than $1 million” in the bank.

Alison Moe, the assistant US attorney, said at her bail hearing: “At a basic level, the defence argument is that she cannot remember off the top of her head just how many millions of dollars she has.”

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, using the alias the Invisible Man, appears to have warned a friend thought to be Ghislaine Maxwell: “Please don’t catch anything nasty on your travels!”

In an email to an address that was redacted, Andrew outlined his extensive travel itinerary, which included official travel on behalf of the British government. He wrote: “I am very sad at not coming to join you but I am so glad to be able to see more of my kids that the compensation is justified. But whatever I love you and am longing to see you when either you or I are in the same part of the world.

“For your information I will be coming to New York on 16th Sept and staying 2 nights with Rothschild! Then going on to Aspen and then returning to Philadelphia and places East until 29th then back to UK for a couple of days before going to Croatia and the Gulf states followed by Jordan and back to London on 15th Oct.

“I will then be coming to New York on that Friday the 19th for a dinner on the Monday evening and then getting back to London on the Tuesday. So look forward to catching up with you before you disappear to some exotic place and please don’t catch anything nasty on your travels!”

He signs off with: “Masses of love and thanks A xxx.”

Andrew has denied wrongdoing with respect to Maxwell and Epstein.

President Trump is in the Oval Office signing an executive order allowing an IndyCar race on the streets of Washington to celebrate America’s 250th anniversary.

Sean Duffy, the transportation secretary, and Doug Burgum, secretary of the interior, were joined at the White House by Roger Penske, a businessman and former racing driver.

Trump touted his record on bringing down crime and announced the America250 Grand Prix.
The race will take place in August and will be free to watch.

It was not clear whether Trump would answer questions about the Epstein files.

Ghislaine Maxwell appears to call Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor her “best friend” in an affectionate exchange of emails.

“I love you and think of you very often,” Maxwell writes in an email to “the Invisible Man”, an alias that has been linked to Andrew. In the exchange from the spring of 2003, she signs off: “You are my best friend.”

The Invisible Man addresses her as “Dear Maxwell”. He expresses regret at having to stay in the UK at a time of heightened media attention.

In an email with the subject line Home Alone, the Invisible Man writes: “I would love to be able to get away from here, but with this war on the media would go bananas if I was … known to be out of the country whilst this was on. I am becoming frustrated at this slight caging!”

The email, apparently from Andrew, signs off with: “Sending you masses of love and hope to see you soon!”

Andrew has denied all wrongdoing with respect to Maxwell and Epstein.

In a text conversation over the Skype platform, Jeffrey Epstein told a young friend to “go to Windsor in the country and Balmoral”.

In an exchange released in the new batch of files, Epstein appears to be conversing with a young person who is learning English, who tells him, “I really like it here, perfect of learning a language. You are very kind to me)”, and: “Your gift in school a lot helps me, thank you!”

They add, “I do everything for you”, to which Epstein responds: “Ass?” Epstein’s contact replies: “And this too)))”

Later, Epstein tells his contact: “Great, go to Natural History Museum. Go to Windsor in the country and Balmoral. I go on tours of great country homes. Lots to do.”

President Trump is mentioned hundreds of times in the new files, according to the DoJ website’s search function. It is not yet clear what those mentions relate to, but he has consistently denied wrongdoing in relation to Epstein.

Trump is speaking live during the signing of executive orders in the Oval Office.

The files include Ghislaine Maxwell’s never-before-seen mug shot from her arrest by FBI agents in 2020.

Federal mugshots are generally not released to the public by the Department of Justice, which restricts their release owing to privacy concerns.

Maxwell was arrested on July 2 during a raid on her secluded mansion in New Hampshire. She was located using GPS data from a phone that had made calls to her lawyer, sister and husband.

Maxwell is seen in an orange prison jumpsuit, with her hair tied up. The records state that she was born in France but living in Bradford, New Hampshire, at the time of her capture.

Ghislaine Maxwell appeared to offer condolences to “sweet pea” Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor on the death of his “wonderful” grandmother, saying that she was “happy” to have met her.

Writing to someone called the Invisible Man, who is thought to be Andrew, Maxwell sent an email a day after the Queen Mother died aged 101 on March 30, 2002.

Maxwell wrote: “Sweet pea — sorry you had to rush home, and also under such sad circumstances. However much the passing was to be expected in one so old, it does not make it any less sad. She was wonderful, and I am happy that I managed to meet her and speak with her. We shall reschedule. Love you Gx”

Blanche said the Trump administration was aware of the latest release but had had no influence over the content.

“My team has certain communications with the White House,” he said. “There’s no oversight by the White House into the process.”

Blanche, giving a press conference, bristled as a journalist asked if the “public will learn the identities of the men who abused the girls” from the documents.

“We said in July and it remains true today — if we had information about men who abused women we would prosecute them,” he said.

Blanche said that “it is not the case” that the public will unmask men who abused women from information in the files.

Blanche suggested that as with previous releases, much of the material would be redacted. “A rigorous process was undertaken to protect victims against any clearly unwarranted invasion of their personal privacy,” he said.

Blanche said Justice Department officials had redacted every woman depicted in an image or video with the exception of Ghislaine Maxwell. Men were only redacted where it was “impossible to redact the woman without also redacting the man”.

The Justice Department said this month it had released 12,285 documents — less than 1 per cent the total. More than two million documents were still in review.

Pam Bondi, the attorney-general, revealed in court documents filed on Tuesday that hundreds of federal employees had been tasked with reviewing the millions of materials, which they said included video and audio recordings, to redact the names of Epstein’s victims and other potentially sensitive information.

The letter said DoJ efforts included “manual review by hundreds of department attorneys, agents and others” who had “dedicated days and weeks” to the effort.

The Times understands it was an “all hands on deck” order, which involved federal prosecutors asking staff to work over the winter holiday and over weekends.

Last month Bondi’s Justice Department released thousands of pages of material, some of which were heavily redacted. Flight logs, grand jury materials, photographs and emails from Epstein’s private accounts were in the first two tranches.

Photographs in a folder labelled “DoJ Disclosures” were among those released. Most were seized by the FBI during searches of Epstein’s homes in New York City and the US Virgin Islands.

Epstein appeared to have photographs of wealthy and influential figures, including one of the former president Bill Clinton in a hot tub with a woman whose face had been blacked out.

Other famous men featured in the photos included the actor Kevin Spacey, the billionaire Sir Richard Branson, the UK’s former ambassador to the US, Lord Mandelson, and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and his former wife, Sarah Ferguson.

There were also images from various trips to the UK, including Epstein, Andrew and Maxwell in a box at Royal Ascot and one of Maxwell on the steps of 10 Downing Street.

The House oversight committee has subpoenaed Ghislaine Maxwell to appear before it to testify over her involvement in Jeffrey Epstein’s sex-trafficking operation, in which hundreds of women and young girls were abused.

Maxwell has said she will use her Fifth Amendment right not to answer their questions when she appears virtually before the committee on February 9 from a prison camp in Texas. The British former socialite, 64, has said any testimony she may give could jeopardise her habeas corpus appeal against her 20-year federal sentences.

In the petition, lodged last month, Maxwell claimed 29 associates and friends of Epstein were shielded by the US government through “secret settlements”. She did not name the individuals and claims such information was kept from her — and that her own legal defence suffered as a result during her trial.

“None of the four named co-conspirators or the 25 men with secret settlements were indicted,” she said in the December court filing. “None of these men have been prosecuted and none has been revealed to the petitioner; she would have called them as witnesses had she known.”

The Justice Department closed the Epstein investigation in June, claiming there were no other co-conspirators facing charges.

• Read the full story here

The Trump administration has released thousands more documents from the Epstein files, a month after the deadline passed for the release of the entire trove.

The Justice Department has been forced to release documents relating to its investigation into Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell’s vast sex-trafficking ring by the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which was signed into law by President Trump.

The government had 30 days to publish everything in its possession, bringing the deadline to December 19. The administration released thousands of files before Christmas, falling far short of the quantity expected to be made public.

Todd Blanche, the deputy attorney-general, said the Justice Department was releasing more than three million documents in the latest tranche, including more than 2,000 videos and 180,000 images.

Included in the haul were “large quantities of commercial pornography and images that were seized” from Epstein’s devices but which he had not made.

New exchanges between Elon Musk and Epstein feature in the latest release of files.

In December 2013, Musk appears to have emailed Epstein about visiting his island over Christmas and the new year.

“Will be in the BVUSt Bart’s area over the holidays. Is there a good time to visit?” Musk wrote. St Bart’s is about 140 miles from Epstein’s island, Little Saint James.

Epstein replied that he would “send heli” for Musk. It is unclear if the visit occurred.

Musk has maintained that he never visited Epstein’s island. In 2019 Musk said Epstein had “tried repeatedly” to persuade him to visit but he declined, describing Epstein as “a creep”.