DOJ Releases Previously Hidden FBI Reports on Trump Mentioned in Epstein Investigation
The U.S. Department of Justice on Thursday released three previously undisclosed FBI interview reports from 2019 connected to a woman who made unverified allegations involving former President Donald Trump dating back to the 1980s.
According to the Justice Department, the documents—known as FBI 302 reports—were originally withheld when millions of pages of Epstein-related records were released earlier this year. Officials said the reports were mistakenly labeled as duplicates during the review process.
In a statement posted on social media, the DOJ said that during a follow-up review it discovered that 15 documents had been incorrectly coded as “duplicative,” prompting their release. The department did not provide further details beyond suggesting the error may have been the result of human oversight.
The newly released summaries show that the FBI interviewed the woman four times between July and October 2019 as part of the broader investigation into Jeffrey Epstein. During the interviews, the woman alleged that Epstein introduced her to Trump sometime in the 1980s when she was between 13 and 15 years old.
In one interview summary, the woman claimed that Epstein brought her to either New York or New Jersey, where she said she encountered Trump and alleged abuse occurred during the trip. However, according to the report from her final interview in October 2019, she declined to provide additional details when investigators asked follow-up questions about the claim.
The reports note that the alleged encounter would have taken place during a period when there is no clear evidence Epstein and Trump were in contact.
Trump has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing related to Epstein and has said he had no knowledge of Epstein’s criminal activities.
In her earliest FBI interview, the woman alleged that Epstein first abused her after she responded to what she believed was a babysitting job, only to find there were no children present. She claimed several similar incidents occurred afterward, according to investigators’ summaries.
The woman also alleged that some of the incidents involving Epstein occurred in South Carolina, a location not widely associated with Epstein’s known activities. The alleged timeframe would place the events roughly two decades before authorities in Florida began investigating Epstein for the sexual exploitation of minors.
Before the additional documents were released Thursday, some congressional Democrats accused the Justice Department of withholding the records to protect the president. Representative Robert Garcia of California criticized the delay, saying the public deserved transparency about the files.
The Justice Department previously said that some materials within the broader Epstein document release contain “untrue and sensationalist claims” about Trump and other individuals. Officials emphasized that the allegations referenced in the files are unverified.
While the newly released reports add detail to the FBI’s 2019 interviews, handwritten notes from the agents involved have not yet been included in the public database.
