At least six women who accuse the late financier Jeffrey Epstein of sexual abuse have voiced profound disappointment and anger following the release of a vast trove of documents by the US Department of Justice, slamming what they call a continued 'lack of transparency'.
Fury Over Redactions and Delayed Justice
The Department of Justice (DOJ) released approximately 600,000 pages of previously unseen pictures and documents related to the disgraced billionaire on Friday. However, the move has sparked fury after it emerged that significant portions of the files were entirely blacked out, with critics accusing the Trump administration of flouting an order to publish all relevant information with minimal redactions.
The DOJ itself admitted the release was not exhaustive, stating that more pictures and files would be made public at an unspecified later date. For Epstein's accusers, this has compounded a deep-seated sense of injustice and delayed accountability.
Victims Speak Out: 'Where is the Transparency?'
Marina Lacerda, a key witness in the 2019 investigation that led to Epstein's arrest on sex trafficking charges, expressed her frustration. She claims the abuse began when she was just 14. 'Just put out the files,' she demanded. 'And stop redacting names that don't need to be redacted.' She voiced skepticism over the administration's claim of aiming for transparency.
Marijke Chartouni, who says Epstein abused her when she was 20, echoed this sentiment, asking pointedly: 'If everything is redacted, where is the transparency?'
Lisa Phillips, another accuser, told CNN she believes the authorities behind the release are 'protecting themselves, not the victims.' She added, 'I feel like they have so much information to start connecting the dots and for survivors to get justice. But as you're seeing, we just keep stalling.'
Jess Michaels, one of Epstein's earliest known victims who says she was assaulted in 1991, stated: 'They are proving everything we have been saying about corruption and delayed justice. What are they protecting? The coverup continues.'
A Lone Vindication Amidst Disappointment
Among the widespread criticism, one victim found a measure of validation. Maria Farmer has long maintained that she filed a complaint about Epstein with the FBI in 1996, years before a formal investigation began. Her claims were often met with silence or disbelief.
The newly released files include a one-page 1996 report from an unnamed woman—whose details match Farmer's—claiming Epstein stole photos of her young sisters. Farmer's name is redacted, but the document states she believed Epstein sold the photos and that he threatened to 'burn her house down' if she spoke out.
'I've waited 30 years,' Farmer told The New York Times. 'I can't believe it. They can't call me a liar anymore.' Her sister, Annie Farmer, said it was a 'tremendous relief' that her sister's truth was finally acknowledged, though she too expressed disappointment at the overall opacity of the release.
The document dump, which includes over 13,000 files, has also drawn fire for being difficult to search, requiring manual trawling. The controversy has even drawn in political figures, with Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene accusing the administration of breaking the law by not releasing the information in full and protecting 'the rich powerful elites.'
For the survivors, the fight for complete transparency and accountability for all of Epstein's associates continues, with Friday's release seen as another stumbling block rather than a step toward closure.
