On January 30, 2026, an additional 3 million pages were released, including 2,000 videos and 180,000 images.[12] While the Department of Justice acknowledged that a total of 6 million pages might qualify as files required to be released,[15] it stated that the January 30 release would be the final one, and that it had met its legal obligations.[16][17] The released files mentioned a number of public figures, and led to increased scrutiny of their activities.[18]
Since the release of the files, three people have had criminal investigations launched into them due to their ties to Epstein, with one resulting in criminal charges and the others resulting in arrests thus far: former Norwegian prime minister Thorbjørn Jagland, who has been charged with aggravated corruption;[19] Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor,[20] who was arrested on February 19, 2026;[21][22] and British politician Peter Mandelson, who was arrested on February 23, 2026.[23][24]
As of February 2026, individuals whose names show up frequently in the files include: Epstein’s assistant Lesley Groff (157,613 mentions), accountant Richard Kahn (52,781 mentions), US president Donald Trump and his wife Melania Trump (more than 38,000 references),[25] lawyer Darren Indyke (17,783 mentions), sex trafficker and socialite Ghislaine Maxwell (13,169 mentions), and modeling agent Jean-Luc Brunel (4,727 mentions).[26]
As of February 19, 2026, Jmail, a browser-based archive dedicated to the Epstein files, has archived a total of 1,412,250 files, 2,474,242 pages, and 1,038,603 emails; with 1,401,320 documents as released by the DOJ, and 8,624 documents from the House Oversight Committee.[27][28]
Background
Jeffrey Epstein in 2013
In 1996, Maria Farmer reported to the FBI that Epstein had “stolen” naked photos she had of her underage siblings, but says that she did not hear back.[29] Florida Palm Beach Police Department began investigating Epstein after a woman reported that her 14-year-old stepdaughter had been taken to Epstein’s home and paid to strip and massage Epstein.[30] Following an investigation, the FBI identified at least 35 girls with a similar history, between 2002 and 2005.[31] Epstein was indicted[32] and pleaded guilty to soliciting a 17 year old minor for prostitution in 2008.[33] He was registered as a sex offender and sentenced to 18 months in prison.[31]
In 2018, an article in the Miami Herald critiqued his plea deal and sentence as lenient,[31] and interviewed victims who shared their experiences with Epstein between 2002 and 2005. Virginia Giuffre alleged that Epstein had been operating a trafficking ring that “lent out” girls to other powerful men.[31]
The media coverage prompted New York federal prosecutors to reexamine the case and investigate potential additional Epstein offences between 2002 and 2005.[31] Investigators corroborated victims stories of abuse.[31] According to declassified 2019 FBI investigation findings released in 2026, other victims did not corroborate Giuffre’s specific allegation that Epstein had operated a trafficking “ring” that “lent out” girls to other powerful men.[34] Evidence seized from Epstein’s homes also only implicated Epstein and his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell.[34] Epstein was arrested in July 2019, on charges of sex trafficking minors between 2002 and 2005 in New York and Florida.[35] He died of suicide in prison while awaiting trial.[34]
Epstein cultivated a social circle of public figures that included politicians and celebrities.[3] This has fuelled conspiracy theories that Epstein kept a “client list” to whom he allegedly trafficked young girls, that he used this to blackmail clients, and that these clients later killed him. These theories have been disseminated widely after his 2019 death, including by Donald Trump.[36][37][38] FBI investigators did not find evidence for the specific allegation of a “ring” in which Epstein “lent out” girls,[
