Justice Department Unredacts Additional Names in Epstein Files Amid Congressional Pressure

The Justice Department has unredacted additional names in the Jeffrey Epstein files after pressure from lawmakers who reviewed unredacted versions of several records.

Republican Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky, after reviewing the documents, noted that the Justice Department had previously redacted the identities of several individuals named in a 2019 FBI document. The newly unredacted names include billionaire Les Wexner, Epstein’s longtime assistant Lesley Groff, and former French modeling agent Jean-Luc Brunel, each listed as co-conspirators of Epstein.

Wexner, former CEO of Victoria’s Secret parent company L Brands, employed Epstein as a money manager and stated he severed ties with him in 2007. A legal representative for Wexner previously stated that Wexner was neither a co-conspirator nor a target in any respect and had cooperated fully with investigators.

Michael Bachner, attorney for Groff, stated that Groff had never seen the document and was unaware of it. He added that after voluntarily speaking with prosecutors and answering all questions, Groff was informed she was not being prosecuted.

Brunel was arrested on charges including raping a minor and was found dead in his prison cell in 2022, with a medical examiner ruling his death as suicide by hanging. He had denied any wrongdoing, and his lawyers stated at the time that his death was not due to guilt but rather a sense of injustice.

In a 2019 note to L Brands employees, Wexner disavowed Epstein and denied knowledge of any illegal activity.

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, in an online exchange with Massie, stated that while the Justice Department had unredacted Wexner’s name from the document, he was already mentioned in the Epstein documents thousands of times. Blanche emphasized that the DOJ is hiding nothing.

The Justice Department also revealed another name after pressure from Massie and other lawmakers who reviewed some of the unredacted material. In a 2009 email, Epstein wrote to a redacted recipient, 'where are you? are you ok I loved the torture video.' Massie indicated on social media that the email recipient was a sultan. Blanche later identified the recipient as Sultan Bin Sulayem, an Emirati businessman.

The Justice Department has not explained why redactions have been made in such a confused and inconsistent way, nor have they addressed why other individuals beyond Epstein were never charged, except to say there was no evidence that would allow them to prosecute anyone else.

A source familiar with the process indicated that many of the emails that are fully redacted involve female victims turned co-conspirators or email addresses with no name, necessitating redaction per privacy laws. Some of the FBI files were also already redacted.

In a hearing before Congress last year, FBI Director Kash Patel stated there was no credible information that showed Epstein trafficked girls to others. He emphasized that if such information existed, a case would have been brought immediately.

A draft indictment released by the DOJ last week alleged that from 2001 to 2005, Epstein and three unnamed defendants engaged in a conspiracy to procure females under the age of 18 for lewd conduct to satisfy Epstein’s prurient interests. The identities of the unnamed defendants are not publicly known.

Instead of bringing the indictment, federal prosecutors in 2007 reached a non-prosecution agreement with Epstein, who avoided federal charges and served 13 months in state prison on prostitution charges.

In a 2020 review, the Justice Department found that former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida Alex Acosta had used poor judgment in the deal but did not find that Acosta had engaged in professional misconduct.