The scandal deepened further after the Justice Department mistakenly published dozens of nude photos, showing the bodies and faces of young girls, or most likely minors.
The recently released files on Jeffrey Epstein have opened a shocking new chapter in one of the biggest sex scandals in decades. According to an email included in the official documents, Epstein is alleged to have fathered a secret child around 15 years ago. The email in question is dated September 21, 2011 and is claimed to have been sent by Sarah Ferguson, the ex-wife of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. In another email included in the same material, Ferguson expresses anger at Epstein for his disappearance and accuses him of being friends with him as a way to get closer to her ex-husband, Andrew. “I didn’t even know you were going to be a father,” she writes in the message. The Independent has asked Sarah Ferguson for comment on the allegations, but so far there has been no official reaction.
MASSIVE PUBLICATION OF DOCUMENTS AND CONNECTIONS WITH POWERFUL FIGURES
The US Department of Justice released on January 30 about 3 million pages of documents, including 2,000 videos and 18,000 photos, from Epstein’s files. The release came more than a month after the legal deadline. The materials shed more light on Epstein’s relationships with powerful men and well-known international figures, including Elon Musk, Bill Gates and US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick. Authorities emphasize that the inclusion of names in the documents does not automatically imply involvement in illegal activities.
VICTIMS’ LAWYERS REQUEST URGENT INTERVENTION
Following the release of the latest documents, two lawyers representing survivors of Epstein-related abuse have called for “immediate judicial intervention.” Attorneys Brittany Henderson and Brad Edwards have written to the two federal judges overseeing the criminal cases against Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. They say the Justice Department has released dozens of documents and photographs exposing the identities of victims. “In the past 48 hours alone, thousands of images have been released, affecting nearly 100 survivors whose lives have been shaken once again,” the letters obtained by CNN say. The lawyers add that the scale of the errors is inexplicable, especially when the primary duty ordered by the court was clear: to withhold the names of the victims before publication.
NUDE PHOTOS PUBLISHED BY MISTAKE
The scandal deepened further after the Justice Department mistakenly released dozens of nude photos showing the bodies and faces of young girls, or possibly minors. About 40 of the images, verified by the New York Times, appear to have been taken on beaches, possibly on Epstein’s private island and in bedrooms. The photos were removed shortly after authorities were notified of the error.
A Justice Department spokeswoman said it was working “around the clock to address the concerns of victims and to make necessary redactions of personal information and sexually explicit materials.” According to her, the documents will only be republished after all appropriate redactions have been made. The release of the Epstein files, which aimed to bring transparency, has opened a heated debate about institutional accountability, victim protection and how one of the most sensitive cases in American justice history is being handled.