The Department of Justice on Friday released more than 3.5 million pages of documents related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, marking what officials described as the final major disclosure under a congressional mandate that required full transparency in the case.

The release included more than 2,000 videos and 180,000 images, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche announced at a press conference. The disclosure came more than a month after the December 19, 2025 deadline established by Congress under the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which President Donald Trump signed into law on November 19, 2025.

"We complied with the statute," Blanche said, adding that the department did not work to protect anyone for political reasons.

More than 500 attorneys and reviewers from the Justice Department contributed to the effort of preparing the materials for public release. The files were collected from five primary sources: the Florida and New York cases against Epstein, the New York case against his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell, investigations into Epstein's death, a Florida case involving a former butler, multiple FBI investigations, and the Office of Inspector General investigation into Epstein's death in his jail cell.

No Hidden "Client List" Exists, Officials Say

Blanche sought to dispel speculation that the department was secretly withholding a collection of documents containing the names of men who participated in Epstein's sex trafficking operation.

"There's this built-in assumption that somehow there's this hidden tranche of information of men that we know about, that we're covering up, or that we're choosing not to prosecute," Blanche said. "That is not the case."

He added that there is no "tranche of super-secret documents about Jeffrey Epstein that we're withholding."

Federal officials initially identified 6 million pages as potentially responsive to the transparency law. The final release was significantly smaller after duplicates and unrelated materials were removed.

"The number of responsive pages is significantly smaller than the total number of pages initially collected," Blanche said. "That's why I mentioned a moment ago, we're releasing more than 3 million pages today, and not the 6 million pages that we collected."

Redactions and Withheld Materials

The Justice Department redacted images of every woman in the files except for Maxwell, who was convicted of child sex trafficking in 2021 and sentenced to 20 years in prison. No men in the photographs were redacted.

"We did not redact images of any men unless it was impossible to redact a woman without also redacting a man," Blanche said.

Some pornographic materials were included in the release. Blanche noted that the files "include large quantities of commercial pornography and images that were seized from Epstein's devices but which he did not take." However, he acknowledged that it appears Epstein or others around him did take some of them.

Categories of withheld documents include those containing personally identifying information of victims, victims' personal and medical files, materials protected by attorney-client privilege or deliberative process privilege, and documents unrelated to the Epstein or Maxwell cases.

The department also withheld some materials that depict violence, as permitted under the act.

Prominent Names Surface in the Files

At least 3,200 documents released Friday mention President Trump. Blanche said many of these references appear in tips submitted to investigators, news articles that Epstein and his associates shared with each other, and email correspondence between Epstein and his circle.

The Justice Department cautioned that the reliability of tips contained in the files was poor, with many uncorroborated. In one instance, investigators tried to follow up on a tip but found nothing that would require further prosecutions.

"Some of the documents contain untrue and sensationalist claims against President Trump that were submitted to the FBI right before the 2020 election," the department said in a statement. "To be clear, the claims are unfounded and false."

Blanche said the White House had no oversight in Friday's release.

Other prominent figures appeared throughout the documents. Emails from 2012 showed Tesla CEO Elon Musk communicating with Epstein about visiting his private island in the U.S. Virgin Islands. In one exchange, Epstein asked Musk how many people would be taking a helicopter to the island. Musk responded: "Probably just Talulah and me. What day/night will be the wildest party on your island?" Musk was in a relationship with actress Talulah Riley at the time.

Based on the correspondence, it does not appear Musk ever made the trip. He has publicly denied visiting Epstein's island.

Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick were also mentioned in the files as having apparently visited Epstein's island before federal charges were filed against him in 2019.

An email exchange from October 2002 between Melania Trump and Maxwell was also included. In the message, the future first lady mentioned a New York magazine profile of Epstein, writing: "Nice story about JE in NY mag. You look great on the picture." Maxwell responded, addressing her as "sweet pea."

A Delayed but Final Release

The Epstein Files Transparency Act passed Congress in November 2025 with bipartisan support. Representatives Thomas Massie and Ro Khanna, the bill's sponsors, had criticized the department for missing the original deadline and releasing files in batches rather than all at once.

Epstein was arrested on sex trafficking charges in 2019 before being found dead in a New York City jail cell in August of that year. Medical examiners ruled his death a suicide. Years earlier, in 2008, he was convicted in Florida of procuring a person under the age of 18 for prostitution. He served three months of an 18-month sentence under a plea deal that included work release.

Maxwell was found guilty of child sex trafficking and other charges in 2021. Separate court filings have shown she claimed at least 25 individuals reached secret settlements with victims over abuse allegations connected to Epstein.

The Justice Department said the production may include fake or falsely submitted materials, as everything sent to the FBI by the public that was responsive to the act was included in the release.