Epstein, Maxwell grand juries relied on two law enforcement witnesses, DOJ filing reveals

Fox News

2 days ago

An overnight filing by the Department of Justice revealed the grand juries in both Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell's cases had heard from two law enforcement witnesses, as officials are asking for the release of transcripts stemming from both sex trafficking indictments.
In a Tuesday filing in Manhattan federal court, officials disclosed the Epstein grand jury heard testimony from an FBI agent when it met in June and July 2019. The same FBI agent, along with a New York Police Department detective, also testified in front of the Maxwell grand jury in June and July 2020, and again in March 2021, according to court documents.
"Here, there was one witness—an FBI agent—during the Epstein grand jury proceedings," the filing said. "There were two witnesses—the same FBI agent from the Epstein grand jury proceedings and a detective with the NYPD who was a Task Force Officer with the FBI's Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force—during the Maxwell grand jury proceedings."
The filing was submitted after federal judges presiding over both cases asked the DOJ to provide additional details surrounding the cases. The DOJ previously requested to unseal grand jury transcripts of proceedings, resulting in the judges asking for additional information.
Courts rarely release grand jury transcripts, unless officials find they are imperative to a judicial proceeding.
However, the filing cites a 1997 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that determined judges can exercise discretion when deciding to unseal transcripts, and public interest can justify their release.
According to the filing, the factors determining the release of transcripts "are designed to assist the Court in exercising its 'careful judgment' in balancing the interests in public disclosure in unique circumstances of strongly expressed and wide-ranging public interest and the traditional considerations concerning the secrecy of grand jury proceedings."
"There is undoubtedly a clearly expressed interest from the public in Jeffrey Epstein's and Ghislaine Maxwell's crimes," the filing said. "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."
The request to unseal the transcripts came after the DOJ previously announced it would not be releasing any additional files relating to Epstein's sex trafficking case, with the filing asserting it is "consistent with increasing calls for additional disclosures in this matter."
Tuesday's filing evidently aimed to tamp down expectations surrounding any new revelations within the transcripts by asserting "certain aspects and subject matters" were previously made public during Maxwell's trial.
Additionally, two former Manhattan prosecutors also asserted the transcripts would only contain testimony from the members of law enforcement that corroborates details in both indictments, according to The Associated Press.
In 2008, Epstein signed a non-prosecution agreement in exchange for pleading guilty in Florida to state charges of soliciting and procuring a minor for prostitution. Nearly a decade later, he was charged with similar charges by federal prosecutors in Manhattan.
Maxwell, his longtime girlfriend and convicted accomplice, is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence at a federal facility in Tallahassee after she was found guilty of luring underage girls for Epstein's sexual abuse schemes in 2021. Last week, she spent nearly two days answering questions "about 100 different people" while meeting with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche about Epstein's crimes, according to her attorney.
The meetings came after Maxwell was slapped with a subpoena to testify before the House Oversight Committee regarding Epstein. However, in a letter to Chairman James Comer, her attorney laid out several conditions hinging on her agreement to speak – including asking for immunity, which was swiftly rejected by the panel.
Maxwell is currently in the early stages of appealing her conviction to the U.S. Supreme Court, citing that she should have been included in Epstein's non-prosecution agreement.
The DOJ and Maxwell's attorney did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.