The Department of Justice and FBI have concluded that disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein did not maintain a "client list," blackmail powerful individuals, or die by foul play, according to a two-page internal memo obtained by Axios and confirmed by ABC News. The findings, disclosed Monday, also state that no further charges will be filed in connection with the Epstein case, reigniting public skepticism and online outrage-particularly over the 20-year prison sentence currently being served by Ghislaine Maxwell.
The DOJ memo states: "This systematic review revealed no incriminating 'client list.' There was also no credible evidence found that Epstein blackmailed prominent individuals as part of his actions." The memo further asserts that investigators found no "evidence that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties."
Epstein, who died by suicide in a Manhattan federal jail in August 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges, had long been at the center of speculation involving prominent politicians, business leaders, and celebrities. The Trump administration initiated a review of the case earlier this year, promising the release of relevant files and video footage.
The enhanced footage from Epstein's cell, included in the administration's release, reportedly shows no one entering the secure area between approximately 10:40 p.m. on August 9 and 6:30 a.m. the next morning, when Epstein was found unresponsive. "The FBI enhanced the relevant footage by increasing its contrast, balancing the color, and improving its sharpness for greater clarity and viewability," the memo said.
The announcement has fueled backlash online, especially regarding Maxwell's incarceration. Maxwell, Epstein's former associate, was convicted in 2021 for grooming and trafficking minors for Epstein to abuse, including girls as young as 14. Critics argue her conviction implies there must have been recipients of the trafficking.
Podcasters the Hodge Twins wrote on X: "Ghislaine Maxwell is in prison for 20 years for sex trafficking kids with Epstein. And the DOJ and FBI just said that there is no client list, he didn't blackmail nobody, and nobody else is getting charged. So they sex trafficked kids to nobody??" The post was viewed 2.4 million times and liked over 91,000 times.
Tim Young, a media fellow at the Heritage Foundation, added: "Well then I guess Ghislaine Maxwell was trafficking children to no one? Why would she be in jail then?"
Author Nigel Cawthorne, who wrote Prince Andrew: Epstein, Maxwell and the Palace, told Newsweek, "That may be an argument she can use with a parole board-'why is she the only one who has been prosecuted?' I think her lawyers will certainly be working on it."
The DOJ memo said certain materials, particularly video evidence submitted to the FBI, would not be released as they contained depictions of child sexual abuse. Questions have since emerged as to why names of individuals appearing in such evidence have not been disclosed.
"There's all the videos. What's happening with them? Who is shown in them?" Cawthorne said. "If they don't have the client list that Epstein compiled himself, then they could compile a list from the video surely?"
The case has also caused friction among Trump supporters. Alina Habba, Trump's legal spokesperson, told Piers Morgan Uncensored in February, "We have flight logs, we have information, names that will come out." She added: "I don't see how it's not shocking that there were so many individuals that were hidden and kept secret and not been held accountable."
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) previously criticized the DOJ's Epstein-related document release in February, writing on X: "THIS IS NOT WHAT WE OR THE AMERICAN PEOPLE ASKED FOR and a complete disappointment."
Questions surrounding former President Donald Trump's past ties to Epstein have lingered. Though Trump has publicly stated he "was not a fan of Epstein" and banned him from his golf clubs in the early 2000s, Epstein reportedly once referred to Trump as his "closest friend" in a 2017 interview with author Michael Wolff. Elon Musk briefly reignited the controversy last month by accusing Trump of being "in the Epstein files," before deleting the post and stating he "went too far."
