The name of US President Donald Trump appears several times in Jeffrey Epstein’s files, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing sources.
According to the newspaper, the documents also contain the names of “many other well-known figures,” totalling hundreds of names.
The Justice Department told Trump that it would not release any additional documents related to the Epstein investigation because the materials contain child pornography and personal information about victims, WSJ sources said.
“This is another piece of fake news, just like the previous article in The Wall Street Journal,” the White House commented.
According to POLITICO, Trump is furious about the public interest in the materials related to the Epstein case. He is upset that his subordinates cannot stop the conspiracy theories surrounding Epstein and his death, which they themselves spread.
As the publication explains, the Republican expected the summer to be a time to enjoy political victories: Trump managed to get Congress to pass a controversial tax bill, force several countries to sign trade deals, and convince NATO to increase defence spending. Instead, the scandal surrounding Epstein is overshadowing everything else. Part of the discontent stems from the realisation that this is a “vulnerable spot,” a source told POLITICO.
Epstein’s files
Jeffrey Epstein was a billionaire and banker. In 2008, he pleaded guilty to sex trafficking and was convicted of raping a minor. In 2019, he was re-arrested and charged with trafficking teenage girls and soliciting them for prostitution. A few weeks later, the billionaire was found dead in his prison cell before he could stand trial. A forensic examination ruled that the 66-year-old billionaire had committed suicide.
On July 23, a Florida Southern District court refused a request from the president to release the transcripts of the grand jury proceedings in the Epstein case. Judge Robin Rosenberg rejected the request, ruling that it did not fall under any of the exceptions to the rules requiring grand jury proceedings to be kept secret, Reuters reported.
Epstein’s girlfriend and accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell is in prison. She is serving a 20-year sentence for aiding and abetting human trafficking for sexual exploitation.
Trump and Epstein were friends for 15 years and spent time together until they fell out in 2004, according to The New York Times.
