Epstein files latest: Accuser describes being 'blindfolded, taken underground and raped'

One of the documents is a transcript of evidence given in court by an alleged victim who also brought girls to Jeffrey Epstein in Palm Beach. 

The woman appeared in court as part of Operation Leap Year - the FBI investigation into Epstein's sex crimes that began in 2006.

She tells the court: "[REDACTED] had asked me if I wanted to make money and she was working for this guy, Epstein, in Palm Beach. 

"So I told her I was interested and she further went into detail about massaging him, that you would have to take off articles of clothing and there would be touching and fondling involved."

She says this happened when she was 16. 

There were a "few girls" that Epstein "wasn't crazy about", she adds, including a person who was 23.

"He thought she was kind of too old," she says. 

Among the files is a 38-page transcript of testimony given by an FBI special agent before the district court in West Palm Beach, Florida, in May 2007.

The testimony was part of Operation Leap Year, the FBI's federal investigation into Jeffrey Epstein that started in 2006 after a Palm Beach police investigation into allegations he had abused a 14-year-old girl.

The agent describes an interview with an Epstein accuser, who got upset while talking about a massage in 2004. 

The agent says the woman, referred to as Jane Doe 4, "became so visibly upset". 

Jane Doe is a pseudonym used when a female's identity is either unknown or deliberately concealed.

The agent tells the court: "When she talked about the last massage and him grabbing her breasts and fondling her breasts she was in tears. 

"I could not get her back to discussing anything further that had taken place." 

Among the documents is a summary written in 2007 of an FBI interview with a witness who says she met Epstein at the age of 14. 

The woman, whose name has been redacted, told the FBI she was introduced to the paedophile by a 17-year-old girl, who asked her if she would like to make £300 by "providing a man in Palm Beach with a massage". 

"She needed to dress sexy and provide a massage for an hour and she would make $300. [REDACTED] told [REDACTED] that Epstein might ask her to remove her shirt, but she could keep her bra on," the summary says. 

It continues: "Epstein told [REDACTED] she was pretty. Epstein asked her age. [REDACTED] uttered "four" and then said 17. 

"Epstein responded by saying, 'so you are fourteen'. 

"[REDACTED] was previously instructed by [REDACTED] to tell Epstein she was 17. He told [REDACTED] that they would not tell anyone." 

The witness also told investigators: "According to [REDACTED] if a girl felt uncomfortable and did not want to comply with Epstein's requests, he would ask them to bring other girls." 

Deputy attorney general Todd Blanche has said "fake documents" have been released in the Epstein files.

Posting on X, he said there had been "outright lies" told about the files and urged people to separate fact from fiction. 

"We produce documents, and sometimes this can result in releasing fake or false documents because they simply are in our possession because the law requires this," he said. 

He said there had been a fake letter, fake videos of Epstein in his cell and "sensational tales and lies by random people" included in the release over the past few days.

He specifically identified a fake letter from Epstein apparently to Larry Nassar, a sports doctor convicted of sexually abusing Olympic athletes...

"Case in point: the so-called Epstein Nassar letter is clearly FAKE - wrong handwriting, wrong return address, and postmarked three days after Epstein died," Blanche said. 

The FBI confirmed the letter was fake, saying it was received by the jail and flagged to officers at the time. 

"This fake letter serves as a reminder that just because a document is released by the Department of Justice does not make the allegations or claims within the document factual. Nevertheless, the DOJ will continue to release all material required by law," it said. 

As a reminder, being named in the Epstein files does not suggest any wrongdoing. 

The documents range from handwritten notes to photographs and official transcripts of interviews with the authorities and have been released with little or no context.

While questions may be raised over any link that emerges in the files, we will provide the full context in which anyone's name is mentioned - or outline any missing details.

In an email sent in October 2024, a threat intake examiner at the FBI National Threat Operations Center summarises an account given by a woman who said she had been trafficked for sex and brought to Jeffrey Epstein's island when she was 13. 

The unnamed officer says the victim reported being trafficked from the age of five after being taken from an apartment and "cut in the throat". 

They recount the woman said she was taken again at the age of 12 or 13 to Paris, where she was raped by three men. 

"The men were a part of an organisation that would take naked photos of young girls and used [REDACTED] photo where she flew to Ireland for politicians and notable men," the email continues. 

"They would have sex with the young women and she was taken from Ireland and brought to Jeffery [sic] Epstein Island when she was 13 years old. 

"[REDACTED] said the only way to get off the island was to take naked photos or pose that is why there are so many photos laying around the house." 

The woman continues her account in the 2019 email to Hope for Justice, an anti-modern slavery charity, recounting being "taken to an underground location" where Jeffrey Epstein raped her. 

There is no indication of when the events took place.

Her written statement reads: "In Virgin Islands, I was [REDACTED] they stopped there. I was 17 years old, [REDACTED] was blindfolded and taken to an underground location. It had steps that went down. I was raped by Jeffery [sic] Epstein, there were other men that raped me. I was kept in a stall so that men could look at me. He said I was an animal and that he was perfect, if I had sex with him that I wouldn't be such an animal. [REDACTED]. He said I wanted to be raped because I wanted to be more like him."

Two of the documents appear to be taken from an email sent by an alleged victim to Hope for Justice, a charity that aims to end human trafficking. 

The woman, whose identity has been redacted, has written up answers to "preliminary questions" the organisation says it needs to "evaluate human trafficking situations for potential rescue".

The subject line of the email, which was sent in 2019, reads: "I'm sorry this took so long, please let me know if you need anything else".

We don't know any more context about what the witness recounts.

She begins by saying she was "born into sex trafficking".

"I do not remember a time that I was not trafficked for sex. According to birth certificate from [REDACTED] my biological parents (I do not recognize them as parents) [REDACTED] began to sell me for sex in the town of [REDACTED]," she writes.

"There were many men that were brought to their home to have sex with me. I was taken to many states in the US to sell me. I was forced by threat by [REDACTED], and Jeffery Epstein of being killed, bodily harm, and threats of harming other children if I did not have sex with them and any other people that they sold me to."

The US Department of Justice released the largest tranche of files related to criminal investigations into the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein so far yesterday. 

It published around 11,000 documents, including emails, witness testimony, photos and videos. 

There's a lot of information to comb through, and we're taking a more in-depth look at what has been released. After the high-profile names mentioned in the document were the focus of headlines yesterday, today we're focusing on the stories of Epstein's accusers.

Stay with us for the latest updates throughout the day - and catch up on what we learned yesterday below... 

That's it for our live coverage of what has been a very busy day for the Epstein files.

Here's a round-up of the the day's biggest takeaways:

• The US justice department released the biggest drop so far of investigative files related to Jeffrey Epstein;
• In one of the documents, an email from the "Invisible Man" in 2001 talks about a Royal Family summer camp at Balmoral and "inappropriate friends" and whether Ghislaine Maxwell has found the sender "some new inappropriate friends";
• The man in this email and others who signed off as "A" appears to be Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor - he has always denied any wrongdoing;
• Another document showed a postcard that appeared to be sent by Jeffrey Epstein, in which he appears to say that "our president also shares our love of young, nubile girls";
• But the US justice department has since said the document is fake after receiving confirmation from the FBI;
• The department also said some of the documents it had released contained "untrue and sensationalist claims" made against Donald Trump;
• A group of photos were released showing Jeffrey Epstein and his cell in New York in the days and weeks before and after his suicide;

Our US correspondent James Matthews assessed the importance of the new release - you can watch his analysis here:

He also spoke to Epstein survivor Lisa Phillips to get her reaction to the latest release - you can see some of that interview here: