Jeffrey Epstein court documents expected to be published tonight – here’s what you need to know
Bill Clinton and Prince Andrew are set to be two of around 200 people named as associates of Jeffrey Epstein in court papers to be unsealed by a US court.
In December, New York district judge Loretta Preska made a ruling that they should no longer remain secret – and has now said her court will begin to publish names today.
Although the former US president and the Duke of York have already been linked to Epstein, the tranche of hundreds of files could reveal new details.
The documents mainly consist of previously unseen legal arguments from the defamation case Virginia Guiffre, Epstein’s main accuser, made against his former lover Ghislaine Maxwell in 2015.
Files were sealed or heavily redacted to protect the identities of “alleged victims, people not accused of wrongdoing…and absent third parties” that could have been implicated in the case.
Here we look at what you need to know.
Which case is it?
The documents were all part of a 2015 civil lawsuit lodged by Virginia Guiffre, who says she was one of Epstein’s principal victims of underage sex trafficking.
She sued Ghislaine Maxwell, 62, for defamation after her spokesperson issued a statement describing Ms Guiffre’s allegations against her and Epstein as “obvious lies”.
At the time Maxwell tried to have the case thrown out but district court judge Robert Sweet rejected her motion to dismiss it.
He ruled Ms Guiffre was the victim of “sustained underage sexual abuse between 1999 and 2002”.
Virginia Guiffre outside court
The ruling paved the way for Ms Guiffre, now 40 and living in Australia, to pursue various other lawsuits, including the one against Prince Andrew for “sexual assault and intentional infliction of emotional distress”, which was settled for a rumoured $12m (£9.45m) in February 2022. The duke has always denied her claims.
It also helped facilitate the criminal case against Maxwell, who was found guilty of five out of six charges of grooming four girls for Epstein to abuse between 1994 and 2004. She was sentenced to 20 years in a US prison in December 2021 and has since launched an appeal.
Jeffrey Epstein’s mugshot. Pic: AP
What are the documents about?
Documents relating to the case were subjected to court orders sealing or redacting them to protect the privacy of some of the people named.
They are likely to be either people accused of wrongdoing – or not, including those who worked for Epstein, flew on his planes, or visited his homes, as well as alleged victims and witnesses.
The Miami Herald first intervened to get them unsealed on public interest grounds in 2018 – and this is the eighth set to be released.
The day after the first round was published in 2019, Epstein was found dead, aged 66, in his Manhattan prison cell where he was awaiting trial for child sex trafficking offences.
In December, judge Preska published her findings that there was no legal justification for keeping the names redacted.
She gave each of the people listed the chance to individually appeal her decision – with a deadline of midnight on 1 January.
Ghislaine Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein in a photo released during her court case
How is Bill Clinton involved?
The file contains names of around 170 people, judge Preska’s December ruling states.
They were previously referred to as “John and Jane Does” depending on their gender to conceal their identities.
ABC News has reported that President Bill Clinton is “Doe 36”, mentioned in more than 50 of the documents.
There is no indication of any wrongdoing by Mr Clinton.
Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein and Bill Clinton in 1993. Pic: Mega
He was photographed with Epstein and admitted being associated with him in a philanthropic capacity, but his representatives have said he cut off all contact with him in 2005 – before he faced criminal allegations.
Ms Guiffre’s 2015 lawsuit is reported to include a claim that she met the former president on Epstein’s private Caribbean island Little St James.
Epstein’s properties on Little St James in July 2019
Epstein in front of one of his private jets
Read more:
Intimate pictures of Epstein and Maxwell revealed
Prison negligence to blame for Epstein’s death – report
Flight logs kept by one of Epstein’s private pilots have confirmed Mr Clinton flew on Epstein’s plane several times between 2002 and 2003 – as part of humanitarian projects in Africa – as well as to Paris, Bangkok and Brunei.
He previously said in media reports Epstein was a “highly successful financier and committed philanthropist” and that he “appreciated his insights and generosity during… a trip to Africa to work on democratisation, empowering the poor, citizen service and combating HIV/AIDS”.
In 2019, Clinton’s spokesperson said he had “never been to Little St James Island, Epstein’s ranch in New Mexico or his residence in Florida”.
But Ms Guiffre’s claim could formally contradict that statement.
Mr Clinton’s legal team has not lodged an appeal against his naming in the case.
Prince Andrew in Norfolk on Christmas Day 2023
What about Prince Andrew?
According to reports by ABC News, the redacted files will also include 40 documents of evidence from “Jane Doe 162”.
The news channel reports that she is Johanna Sjoberg, who has claimed Prince Andrew touched her breast on a sofa at Epstein’s Manhattan apartment in 2001.
Johanna Sjoberg. Pic: ANL/Shutterstock
She has said in court that when she was 17 she visited Epstein’s New York mansion while he, Maxwell and the Duke of York were there.
The duke denies this and Buckingham Palace has described the claims as “categorically untrue”.
Part of the reason judge Preska has ruled in favour of publishing names like hers is because she has already given interviews to media – including The Times.
Virginia Giuffre, who accused Prince Andrew of sexual assault, has died aged 41.
In a statement to Sky’s US partner network NBC News on Friday, her family said she took her own life in the Perth suburb of Neergabby, Australia, where she had been living for several years.
“It is with utterly broken hearts that we announce that Virginia passed away last night at her farm in Western Australia,” her family said.
“She lost her life to suicide, after being a lifelong victim of sexual abuse and sex trafficking.
“Virginia was a fierce warrior in the fight against sexual abuse and sex trafficking. She was the light that lifted so many survivors.
“In the end, the toll of abuse is so heavy that it became unbearable for Virginia to handle its weight.”
Pic: AP
Police said emergency services received reports of an unresponsive woman at a property in Neergabby on Friday night.
“Police and St John Western Australia attended and provided emergency first aid. Sadly, the 41-year-old woman was declared deceased at the scene,” a police spokeswoman said.
“The death is being investigated by Major Crime detectives; early indication is the death is not suspicious.”
Sexual assault claims
Prince Andrew has denied all claims of wrongdoing. File pic: Reuters
Ms Giuffre sued the Duke of York for sexual abuse in August 2021, saying Andrew had sex with her when she was 17 and had been trafficked by his friend, the billionaire paedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
The duke has repeatedly denied the claims, and he has not been charged with any criminal offences.
In March 2022, it was announced Ms Giuffre and Andrew had reached an out-of-court settlement – believed to include a “substantial donation to Ms Giuffre’s charity in support of victims’ rights”.
‘An incredible champion’
Sigrid McCawley, Ms Giuffre’s attorney, said in a statement that she “was much more than a client to me; she was a dear friend and an incredible champion for other victims”.
“Her courage pushed me to fight harder, and her strength was awe-inspiring,” she said. “The world has lost an amazing human being today.”
“Rest in peace, my sweet angel,” she added.
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Dini von Mueffling, Ms Giuffre’s representative, also said that “Virginia was one of the most extraordinary human beings I have ever had the honour to know”.
“Deeply loving, wise, and funny, she was a beacon to other survivors and victims,” she added. “She adored her children and many animals.
“She was always more concerned with me than with herself. I will miss her beyond words.
“It was the privilege of a lifetime to represent her.”
Ms Giuffre said at the end of March she had four days to live after a car accident, posting on social media that “I’ve gone into kidney renal failure”. She was discharged from hospital eight days later.
Raised mainly in Florida, she said she was abused by a family friend early in life, which led to her living on the streets at times as a teenager.
She said that in 2000, she met Ghislaine Maxwell, a British socialite who was convicted in 2021 on federal sex trafficking and conspiracy charges and was sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Ghislaine Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein. Pic: US Department of Justice
Ms Giuffre said Maxwell then introduced her to Epstein and hired her as his masseuse, and said she was sex trafficked and sexually abused by him and associates around the world.
‘A survivor’
After meeting her husband in 2002, while taking massage training in Thailand at what she said was Epstein’s behest, she moved to Australia and had a family.
She founded the sex trafficking victims’ advocacy charity SOAR in 2015, and is quoted on its website as saying: “I do this for victims everywhere.
“I am no longer the young and vulnerable girl who could be bullied. I am now a survivor, and nobody can ever take that away from me.”
:: Anyone feeling emotionally distressed or suicidal can call Samaritans for help on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org in the UK. In the US, call the Samaritans branch in your area or 1 (800) 273-TALK.
Donald Trump has met Volodymyr Zelenskyy ahead of the Pope’s funeral, Vatican sources have told Sky News.
The US and Ukrainian presidents had a “very productive discussion”, according to a White House Official, and have also agreed to hold further talks after the service.
They are among world leaders, including Sir Keir Starmer and Emmanuel Macron, who are attending the funeral of Pope Francis.
Follow live updates: Zelenskyy among world leaders joining thousands of mourners
There was applause from some of those gathered in St Peter’s Square when the Ukrainian leader walked out.
The former British ambassador to Russia Sir Tony Brenton said the event presents diplomatic opportunities, including the “biggest possible meeting” between Mr Trump and Mr Zelenskyy.
Trump and Zelenskyy meet for first time since Oval Office row. Pic: Reuters
He told Sky News it could mark “an important step” in starting the peace process between Russia and Ukraine, and is their first face-to-face meeting after a very public row between the presidents at the White House in February.
The bilateral meeting comes after Mr Trump’s peace negotiator Steve Witkoff held talks with Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin.
They discussed “the possibility of resuming direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine”, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said.
Russia and Ukraine have not held direct talks since the early weeks of the war, which began in February 2022.
Mr Trump has claimed a deal to end the war is “very close” and has urged Mr Zelenskyy to “get it done” in a post on his Truth Social platform.
He has previously warned both sides his administration would walk away from its efforts to achieve a peace if the two sides do not agree a deal soon.
Meanwhile, the Polish Armed Forces said a Russian military helicopter violated its airspace over the Baltic Sea on Friday evening, in a post on X.
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US
Donald Trump says Russia and Ukraine are ‘very close to a deal’ – and says ‘two sides should now meet’
Donald Trump has said Russia and Ukraine are “very close to a deal” with “most of the major points agreed” – as he called for the two sides to meet.
Shortly after arriving in Rome for Pope Francis’s funeral, the US president said high-level officials should now meet to “finish [the deal] off”.
“A good day in talks and meetings with Russia and Ukraine,” Mr Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
“They are very close to a deal, and the two sides should now meet, at very high levels, to ‘finish it off’.
“Most of the major points are agreed to. Stop the bloodshed, NOW. We will be wherever is necessary to help facilitate the END to this cruel and senseless war!”
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Ukraine-Russia peace talks explained
Throughout the week, the US president has criticised both Ukraine and Russia for failing to agree to a peace deal.
On Wednesday, he accused Mr Zelenskyy of harming talks on Truth Social, saying “the man with ‘no cards to play’ should now, finally, GET IT DONE”.
A day later, after nine people were killed in Kyiv after a Russian missile and drone strike, Mr Trump said: “Vladimir, STOP! 5000 soldiers a week are dying. Let’s get the Peace Deal DONE!”
The president and other officials have also threatened to withdraw from negotiations if no progress is made toward a deal.
It comes after Mr Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff met Vladimir Putin in Moscow to discuss a US-brokered peace plan for Ukraine.
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Putin-Witkoff meeting
The talks allowed Russia and the United States to “further bring their positions closer together” on “a number of international issues”, a Kremlin aide said.
Speaking earlier on the flight to Italy, Mr Trump said he hadn’t been fully briefed on Mr Witkoff and Mr Putin’s meeting – but added it was a “pretty good meeting”.
Read more:
US and Russia talks moving in ‘right direction’, top diplomat says
A ‘barbaric’ 24 hours in a ‘horrendous’ war
Russia and Ukraine have not held direct talks since the early weeks of the war, which began in February 2022.
Ukraine has repeatedly said it would not accept a deal conceding land or handing over sovereignty to Russia.
However, Mr Trump said in an interview with TIME magazine that “Crimea will stay with Russia,” describing the region as a place where Moscow has “had their submarines” and “the people speak largely Russian”.
“Zelenskyy understands that, and everybody understands that it’s been with them for a long time,” he added. “It’s been with them long before Trump came along.”
When asked on Friday about Mr Trump’s comments, Mr Zelenskyy did not want to comment but repeated that recognising occupied Ukrainian territory as Russian is a red line.
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