Epstein latest: Every famous face in new photos released from estate identified

Mitchell Epner, a former US public prosecutor, has talked to Jonathan Samuels about why it's taking Donald Trump's administration so long to comply with the order to release all of the Epstein files.

"I don't know if he has something to hide, but he is giving the best impression of somebody who has something to hide," Epner said.

"Donald Trump wants to turn the page, but he's like The Wizard of Oz saying 'pay no attention to that man behind the curtain'," the former prosecutor added.

The US president has emphatically denied any wrongdoing with regard to Epstein's crimes.

In the interview, Epner also explained what to expect from the impending release - watch it here... 

US correspondent Mark Stone talks us through the pictures from Jeffrey Epstein's estate that were released today and explains what we know about them.

"What they are is the continued drip-drip of information that is adding to a narrative - helpful or otherwise, depending on where you sit on all of this," Stone says.

Watch his analysis in the video...

Suspense is building towards the 19 December deadline by which the US Department of Justice has to release all the Epstein files collected by law enforcement.

Thomas Massie, the Republican congressman behind the law that mandates the release, was asked by reporters if there was a mechanism to force the government to comply.

"It's a crime if they don't," he said.

"It's not like they're in contempt of Congress because they didn’t respond to a subpoena. 

"This is a new law with criminal implications if they don't follow it."

The Kentucky Republican also said he was "encouraged" by a recent release of grand jury materials to the government.

As US Democrats have released the latest batch of files from Jeffrey Epstein's estate, preparations seem to be under way for a bigger release.

Federal judges have over the last week granted requests from the US Department of Justice to unseal material from Epstein's legal cases.

Two separate justices in New York have ordered the release of files from Epstein's 2019 sex trafficking case and the case of his associate Ghislaine Maxwell. 

Last week, a judge in Florida unsealed material from investigations that led to Epstein's conviction for soliciting prostitution from a minor in 2008.

A bipartisan law passed last month forces the government to release all Epstein files by next Friday, which has yet to happen.

Not all the images released today are of people.

We've mentioned already that a handful of pictures are of sex toys (see 17.14 post), but another displays only a black desk with a series of framed photographs behind it.

Not all the photos are visible and most faces have been redacted, although one person who can be made out is Bill Gates.

The Microsoft founder has featured in some other pictures released today - though none alongside Jeffrey Epstein.

Gates has said that meeting Epstein was a "mistake", having previously admitted to having "several dinners" with the disgraced financier in a bid to raise money for global health causes.

Marc Fisher, associate editor of The Washington Post, has explained the strategy that the Democrats are pursuing in the Epstein case.

There's no evidence of anything incriminating in the Epstein files, Fisher told presenter Jonathan Samuels, and Trump has denied involvement with his crimes.

But today's release and others have provided "the ammunition needed to undermine what little trust Americans still have in their government," Fisher said.

"That ammunition is these photos [of Trump from Epstein's files]... that just come out again and again and again, undermining the whole idea that Trump could be telling the truth here."

Watch the full interview in the video below...

We've just heard from the White House in response to the release of 19 photos from the estate of Jeffrey Epstein by Democrats on the House Oversight Committee.

Echoing previous comments from Republicans on the Committee, spokesperson Abigail Jackson says: "Once again, House Democrats are selectively releasing cherry-picked photos with random redactions to try and create a false narrative."

She adds: "The Democrat hoax against President Trump has been repeatedly debunked and the Trump administration has done more for Epstein’s victims than Democrats ever have by repeatedly calling for transparency, releasing thousands of pages of documents, and calling for further investigations into Epstein’s Democrat friends."

Included in the latest batch of photos is an image of former prince Andrew and Microsoft founder Bill Gates.

The image was taken during a summit for combating malaria in Northumberland Avenue, London, on 18 April 2018.

The original image features King Charles on the right next to his brother.

But the image as it appears in the Epstein files has been cropped, so it doesn't include the monarch.

It's unclear why the photo appears in the files, and who cropped it.

Here's the image as it appears in today's release...

And here's the original image...

Today's release of pictures "puts a lot of things into context" regarding Jeffrey Epstein, former US public prosecutor Paul Pelletier told Paste BN earlier.

There's "nothing incriminating" in them and they tell us "what we already knew", he said.

But Pelletier added that, while appearing in the files was no indication of wrongdoing, the pictures showed some people had relationships with Epstein, which may have exposed them to his crimes.

Watch Pelletier explain how this can be used in the video below...