The unsealing will include emails, photographs, flight logs and other records collected over decades. Earlier this month, 19 photographs from Epstein’s estate were released, showing him alongside prominent figures including former US presidents Donald Trump and Bill Clinton, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, Britain’s Prince Andrew and other influential personalities. While the images do not establish criminal wrongdoing, their circulation has intensified scrutiny.
The law compelling disclosure was cleared by overwhelming majorities in both houses of the US Congress and signed by President Trump on November 19. Under its provisions, the Justice Department must release the material within 30 days. Officials have indicated the archive is extensive, potentially running into thousands of pages.
The move comes amid renewed attention to Epstein’s long-running abuse scandal, which first surfaced in 2005 in Florida and later expanded to include allegations by dozens of underage victims. Epstein was arrested again in 2019 on federal sex trafficking charges and was found dead in a New York jail cell a month later, in what authorities ruled a suicide — a conclusion that has been widely questioned.
As the deadline approaches, speculation has mounted about whether the files will name individuals beyond those already known. In India, former BJP MP Subramanian Swamy has claimed that some Indian political figures could feature in the disclosures, though US authorities have made no such indication. No Indian leader or business figure has been officially named so far.
The Justice Department has said the objective of the release is transparency, while balancing privacy concerns of victims. The disclosures are expected to reignite debate on accountability, influence and the failures that allowed Epstein to evade scrutiny for years.
