Epstein and Maxwell grand juries did not hear directly from victims,
prosecutors tell judges
[July 31, 2025]
By LARRY NEUMEISTER
The federal grand juries that indicted Jeffrey Epstein and his former
girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell on sex trafficking charges did not hear
directly from any of the alleged victims in the case, Justice Department
officials said in support of their request to unseal transcripts of the
usually secret proceedings. Just two witnesses testified before the
panel and both were law enforcement officials, the officials said.
In a court filing late Tuesday, the officials again urged the court to
release the records, citing huge public interest, but they also sought
to assure the judges that making them public wouldn't harm victims of
the couple's crimes.
While the memo didn't detail what was in the grand jury testimony, it
dampened expectations that the transcripts would contain new
revelations, saying that “certain aspects and subject matters” contained
in them became public during Maxwell’s trial in 2021 and that other
details have been made public through many years of civil lawsuits filed
by victims.
The Justice Department described the grand jury witnesses in response to
questions from two judges who would have to approve the release of the
transcripts. Grand jury transcripts are rarely released by courts,
unless they need to be disclosed in connection with a judicial
proceeding. The papers filed Tuesday cite a 1997 2nd U.S. Circuit Court
of Appeals ruling that said judges have wide discretion and public
interest alone can justify releasing grand jury information.
The Epstein grand jury heard from just one witness, an FBI agent, when
it met in June and July 2019, the government disclosed. The Maxwell
grand jury heard from the same FBI agent and a New York Police
Department detective when it met in June and July 2020 and March 2021,
according to the submission.
It isn’t unusual for law enforcement officials to be the only witnesses
before grand juries, which have a limited role and don't need to decide
whether a person is guilty of a crime.
The memorandum was signed by Jay Clayton, the interim U.S. attorney for
the Southern District of New York, and included the names of Attorney
General Pam Bondi and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche.
Trump supporters want to see the evidence
The request to unseal the transcripts came after the Justice Department
enraged parts of President Donald Trump’s base of supporters when it
announced in early July it wouldn't be making public any more
investigative files related to Epstein, who was accused of paying
underage girls for sexual acts.
The decision not to make additional materials public shocked some Trump
supporters because members of his administration had hyped the expected
release and stoked conspiracies around the well-connected financier.
Epstein took his own life in a federal jail in August 2019, weeks after
his arrest on sex trafficking charges, but his case has generated
endless attention and conspiracy theories because of his and Maxwell’s
links to famous people, such as royals, presidents and billionaires,
including Trump.
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Audrey Strauss, acting U.S. attorney for the Southern District of
New York, points to a photo of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine
Maxwell, during a news conference in New York on July 2, 2020. (AP
Photo/John Minchillo, File)
Maxwell is serving a 20-year prison sentence after her December 2021
conviction on sex trafficking charges that accused her of luring
teenage girls to be sexually abused by Epstein. Last week, she sat
for 1 1/2 days of interviews with Justice Department officials in
Florida, answering questions “about 100 different people,” her
attorney said. Maxwell was being interviewed because of Trump’s
directive to gather and release any credible evidence about others
who may have committed crimes, the deputy attorney general said.
Trump keeps being questioned about Epstein
Trump has denied prior knowledge of Epstein’s crimes and claimed he
had cut off their relationship long ago. But he faces ongoing
questions about the Epstein case, overshadowing his administration’s
achievements. When reporters last week pressed the Republican
president about possibly pardoning Maxwell, he deflected,
emphasizing his administration’s successes.
After the request to unseal grand jury records, two former
prosecutors in Manhattan told The Associated Press the transcripts
would be relatively short and contain only the testimony of law
enforcement witnesses talking about evidence that tracks information
in the indictments.
The court memorandum filed Tuesday said many of the victims whose
accounts of being exploited by Epstein and Maxwell were discussed
before the grand jury by the FBI agent and the NYPD detective later
testified at Maxwell's public trial.
‘Increasing calls for additional disclosures’
The government said no Epstein or Maxwell family members have come
forward to express an interest in the request to unseal the grand
jury transcripts, although Maxwell has indicated she will file a
position with the court.
The memorandum says the request to unseal the transcripts is
“consistent with increasing calls for additional disclosures in this
matter.”
“There is undoubtedly a clearly expressed interest from the public
in Jeffrey Epstein’s and Ghislaine Maxwell’s crimes," it says.
“Beyond that, there is abundant public interest in the investigative
work conducted by the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau
of Investigation into those crimes.”
Under a 2008 nonprosecution agreement, Epstein pleaded guilty in
Florida to state charges of soliciting and procuring a minor for
prostitution. That allowed him to avert a possible life sentence,
instead serving 13 months in a work release program. He was required
to make payments to victims and register as a sex offender.
Epstein was later charged by federal prosecutors in Manhattan for
nearly identical allegations in 2019.
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