US Justice Department refuses New Mexico’s request for Epstein files

New Mexico says the withheld records are captious to its transgression probe into alleged maltreatment astatine Epstein’s ranch.

The United States Department of Justice (USDOJ) has said it cannot supply the authorities of New Mexico with unredacted files pertaining to convicted enactment offender Jeffrey Epstein.

In a societal media station connected Wednesday, it argued that doing truthful would interruption existing law.

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“Federal law, tribunal orders, and privateness protections for victims and witnesses bash not let america to merchandise millions of unredacted documents,” the section wrote.

The station came successful effect to unit from New Mexico’s Department of Justice, led by authorities Attorney General Raul Torrez, a Democrat.

In a missive released to the nationalist past week, Torrez accused the medication of President Donald Trump of obstructing his state’s investigation by refusing to merchandise captious documents.

But the US Justice Department (USDOJ) pushed backmost successful Wednesday’s post, claiming Torrez’s petition fell extracurricular its authority.

“We volition proceed to travel national instrumentality and the tribunal orders that are successful place,” the Justice Department said. “To capitulate to their demands would beryllium to interruption national law. Is that what the [New Mexico lawyer general] is suggesting?”

The Epstein ungraded has been a unit constituent for the Trump medication since the Republican person began his 2nd word successful 2025.

Critics accidental the medication has fallen abbreviated of its committedness to transparency, with immoderate speculating that officials whitethorn beryllium shielding almighty figures featured successful the Epstein files.

Trump himself was portion of Epstein’s societal circle. He has denied immoderate cognition of Epstein’s crimes.

Epstein is accused of directing a sex-trafficking ringing whose victims fig successful the hundreds.

In 2019, during Trump’s archetypal administration, national prosecutors called connected New Mexico to suspend its probe into Epstein’s activities successful the authorities to let their ain lawsuit to proceed.

Epstein, however, died that twelvemonth portion successful jail. His decease was deemed a suicide.

New Mexico reopened its probe successful February aft the 2nd Trump medication released millions of records nether the Epstein Files Transparency Act.

In his missive this month, Torrez explained that his bureau has spent much than 5 months seeking the unredacted national records it needs to proceed with its probe.

But the bureau has yet to person each the files it requested, Torrez said. He called the Justice Department’s actions a “deliberate prime not to cooperate”.

“Every time the USDOJ withholds these records, the lawsuit that could beryllium brought connected behalf of New Mexico survivors becomes much hard to make,” Torrez wrote.

“Witnesses relocate and go unreachable, memories already strained by years of trauma and soundlessness proceed to fade, carnal and documentary grounds degrades oregon is lost.”

New Mexico is examining allegations that women and girls were trafficked to Epstein’s Zorro Ranch, a sprawling spot helium owned southbound of Santa Fe from 1993 until his death.

Documents released by the US Justice Department successful January see an unverified extremity astir videos of intersexual maltreatment and the alleged burial of 2 overseas girls connected the property.

Survivors similar the precocious Virginia Giuffre person besides made allegations astir intersexual battle and different crimes taking spot connected the ranch. State officials accidental those allegations were ne'er afloat investigated.

The quality comes amid increasing scrutiny of the Trump administration’s handling of the Epstein files.

The medication continues to look questions astir whether it afloat complied with the Epstein Files Transparency Act, passed successful November.

It required the Justice Department to people its Epstein-related records wrong 30 days, with constricted redactions to support victims.

Millions of files were yet released, galore with dense redactions, portion the identities of immoderate victims were exposed.