Documents provided by Jeffrey Epstein’s estate to Democratic lawmakers investigating the convicted sex offender and his ties to a wider network of powerful political figures appear to show possible contact between the financier and Elon Musk and Steve Bannon.
Roughly six pages from more than 8,500 documents provided by Epstein’s estate to Democratic members on the House Oversight Committee include meeting schedules appearing to show appointments with Bannon and venture capitalist Peter Thiel during Donald Trump’s first term in office.
The documents also mention Musk joining a potential trip to Epstein’s island in 2014.
Prince Andrew also is listed in the documents as a passenger on Epstein’s aircraft, with financial disclosures provided to the committee suggesting evidence of payments from Epstein to an individual listed as “Andrew.”
The inclusion of one’s name in the documents does not indicate wrongdoing.
Included in the small batch of documents is a passenger manifest from May 12, 2000 that lists Prince Andrew as a passenger with Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell flying from New Jersey to West Palm Beach, Florida.
One scheduling note from December 5, 2014 says: “Reminder: Elon Musk to island Dec. 6 (is this still happening?)”
That same email also mentions a tentative breakfast with Bill Gates.
An email sent November 27, 2017 includes an itinerary with a noon lunch appointment with Thiel that same day.
Another email sent February 14, 2019 includes an itinerary with a 7 a.m. breakfast with Bannon on February 16.
Other records provided by the committee are largely redacted financial ledgers.
“It should be clear to every American that Jeffrey Epstein was friends with some of the most powerful and wealthiest men in the world,” Oversight Committee spokesperson Sara Guerrero said in a statement Friday.
“Every new document produced provides new information as we work to bring justice for the survivors and victims,” she added. “Oversight Democrats will not stop until we identify everyone complicit in Epstein’s heinous crimes.”
House Democrats have argued for the Department of Justice and Attorney General Pam Bondi to “release all the files now,” Guerrero said.
The Justice Department’s attempt to draw the investigation to a close has renewed scrutiny into the president’s relationship with Epstein, who was accused of sexually abusing dozens of minors before he was found dead in his jail cell in 2019.
The Republican-led House committee subpoenaed the Justice Department last month for records related to the criminal cases of Epstein and Maxwell, who is serving 20 years in federal prison after she was convicted in 2021 for her role in a scheme to sexually exploit and abuse minors with Epstein.
The latest batch of files follows lengthy two-day congressional hearings with FBI Director Kash Patel, whose leadership has come under fire in the wake of the bureau’s decision that “no further disclosure” in the Epstein case “would be appropriate or warranted.”
This is a developing story
