The documents have sparked a “reckoning” for Epstein’s rich and powerful associates named in the files, including Lord Mandelson, who quit the House of Lords in disgrace on Tuesday.
Several CEOs, professors and politicians across the globe have also quit their posts. Meanwhile, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, who has also been pictured in the files, moved out of the Royal Lodge.
The email has also led to questions about how decisions were made at the DoJ over who should retain anonymity in the disclosure.
From: ########
To: Jeffrey Epstein
Thank you for a fun night…Your littlest girl was a little naughty.
Sent from my iPhone
In a draft indictment of Epstein from the 2000s, for instance, the names of alleged co-conspirators were also redacted.
The department has previously said that it redacted victim information, child sex abuse materials and anything that would jeopardise an active investigation.
“In many instances, as it has been well documented publicly, those who were originally victims became participants and co-conspirators,” a spokesperson told CNN. “We did not redact any names of men, only female victims.”
But the names of scores of Epstein’s victims were initially mistakenly disclosed by the department. The mistake had turned their lives “upside down,” lawyers representing a group of victims said.
A judge was considering blocking access to the government website which hosted the files before the department said it would quickly correct the errors.
Ro Khanna, a Democratic Congressman, and Thomas Massie, a Republican, who spearheaded efforts to lobby for the documents’ release have asked to see the unredacted files.
“The DoJ has protected the Epstein class with blanket redactions in some areas while failing to protect the identities of survivors in other areas,” Ro Khanna told CNN.
“Congress cannot properly assess DoJ’s handling of the Epstein and Maxwell cases without access to the complete record.”
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