The China Mail - New photo dump fuels Capitol Hill push on Epstein files release

The 68 images -- shared without added context -- are part of a much larger cache that Congress obtained from Epstein's estate and has been drip-feeding to the public in recent days, stoking political drama in Washington.

Among the newly released photos are shots of passports and identity documents from multiple countries, most of the personal details redacted.

Several documents are marked "female," including passports from places such as Ukraine and Russia, and a number of faces in the images are obscured to protect identities.

Other photographs include two images showing public intellectual Noam Chomsky seated with Epstein on what appears to be an aircraft, and pictures of Bill Gates posing beside a woman whose face is blurred.

The cache also includes images of filmmaker Woody Allen and former Trump strategist Steve Bannon -- both of whom featured in an earlier photo release.

The latest batch of photographs do not appear to depict any unlawful conduct by any of the subjects.

But one screenshot shows a snippet of a text exchange in which an unknown sender appears to discuss recruiting young women.

"I have a friend scout she sent me some girls today. But she asks 1000$ per girl. I will send u girls now. Maybe someone will be good for J?" the post says.

The screenshot includes a partially redacted physical description and the line "18 y old," but provides no names or clear indication of who is speaking.

A separate image shows a woman's foot bearing a handwritten quote from Vladimir Nabokov's "Lolita," a novel about a man's sexual obsession with a child -- another detail released without explanation.

Democrats say they are publishing material as it arrives while redacting identifying information for victims and anyone who could be a victim. Republicans, who control the Oversight Committee that is tasked with ensuring government transparency and accountability, have accused Democrats of "cherry-picking" to shape a narrative.

The Justice Department (DOJ) has remained silent on whether it will meet Friday's deadline, set by the Epstein Files Transparency Act, passed last month with bipartisan support.

The law requires the DOJ to publish the most comprehensive set of Epstein-related materials yet, while safeguarding victims' identities.

Epstein, a convicted sex offender with ties to global elites, died in his New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. His death -- ruled a suicide -- fueled conspiracy theories and demands for accountability.

"Oversight Democrats will continue to release photographs and documents from the Epstein estate to provide transparency for the American people," the committee’s top Democrat, Robert Garcia, said, calling for the Justice Department to "release the Epstein files now."

K.Lam--ThChM