A newly released photograph shows disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein holding a novelty cheque for $22,500, reportedly from Donald Trump. The image was among hundreds of thousands of documents published by the US Justice Department on Friday, 19 December 2025.
Details of the Epstein Document Release
The latest tranche of files includes images that further link the convicted child sex offender to prominent political and business figures. Among them is a black-and-white scan of a framed photo featuring Epstein grinning while holding the oversized cheque. The signature line clearly reads 'D. Trump', though the style differs from the former president's current famous autograph.
Standing beside Epstein is a woman whose image has been redacted with a black box. The memo line on the cheque is also mostly obscured by redaction. The edges of the framed photo repeatedly bear the phrase 'once in a blue moon'. This image is currently the only new piece of information directly linking Trump to Epstein within this document release.
Context and Political Reactions
Donald Trump is among the myriad of rich and powerful individuals known to have associated with Epstein in New York and Florida social circles prior to Epstein's 2008 conviction. That conviction resulted in a 13-month prison sentence for soliciting prostitution from a minor.
The former president has publicly stated that he kicked Epstein out of his Mar-a-Lago club in 2007 for being a 'creep' and insists they were never close friends. He maintains that all association ended after that point.
This release follows a trickle of information earlier in the year from Democrats on the House Oversight Committee, which included emails, texts, and other images from the Epstein estate.
Ongoing Scrutiny and Future Releases
Internet sleuths and journalists are now combing through the vast cache of documents published on the Justice Department website at approximately 4:00 pm on 19 December. They are searching for new information that could reveal more about the extent of Epstein's crimes and his network of associates.
While the Justice Department met its court-ordered deadline to produce the files, officials admitted not everything could be made public immediately. Attorney General Todd Blanche confirmed that hundreds of thousands of additional documents would continue to be released in the coming weeks.
The ongoing disclosure keeps the spotlight firmly on one of the most notorious scandals involving the political and business elite, with the public and investigators awaiting further revelations.
