Who and what are in the documents?

The US Department of Justice (DoJ) has released multiple tranches of documents related to Jeffrey Epstein, the late convicted sex offender.

The files – which include photos, videos and investigative documents – were highly anticipated after Congress passed a law mandating that they be released in their entirety by 19 December.

However, some lawmakers have accused the DoJ of violating its legal obligations after it said it would not be able to release all the documents by the deadline.

Todd Blanche, the deputy attorney general, said “several hundred thousand” pages of documents were still being reviewed and had yet to be made public.

Many details in the thousands of files that have so far been released have also been heavily redacted. That has led to criticism, because under the law that compels the release of their files, the only material that can be blacked out is the identities of Epstein's victims and any information under active criminal investigation.

A number of famous names and faces have been included in the files that have been made public. Being named or pictured in the files is not an indication of wrongdoing, and many of those identified in the files or in previous releases related to Epstein have expressly denied any wrongdoing.

Here is a look at what the DoJ releases have yielded so far.

Among the documents released so far are emails appearing to be sent between FBI personnel in 2019 that mention 10 possible “co-conspirators” in the Epstein case.

The emails said six of the group had been served with subpoenas, including three in Florida, one in Boston, one in New York City, and one in Connecticut.

Four subpoenas had not yet been served when the emails were sent, including to one “wealthy businessman in Ohio”.

Another email sent to FBI New York gives an update on the alleged co-conspirators. This time it appears to mention multiple names. Most are redacted from the file.

Two names were not redacted – Maxwell and Wexner.

Ghislaine Maxwell, who was Epstein's accomplice and close associate, was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2022 for sex trafficking of minors and other offences.

The email that mentions the name Wezner says “I do not know about Ohio contacting Wexner”, and presumably refers to former Victoria's Secret CEO Les Wexner.

Wexner, who had a public friendship with Epstein, said in 2019 that he was “embarrassed” by his ties to the financier.

Responding to the 23 December DoJ release, lawyers for Wexner told BBC News that “the assistant US attorney in charge of the Epstein investigation stated at the time that Mr Wexner was neither a co-conspirator nor target”.

Several of the images released in the documents show former US President Bill Clinton.

One picture shows him swimming in a pool, and another shows him lying on his back with his hands behind his head in what appears to be a hot tub.

Clinton was photographed with Epstein several times over the 1990s and early 2000s, before Epstein was first arrested. Clinton has never been accused of wrongdoing by survivors of Epstein's abuse, and has denied knowledge of his sex offending.

A spokesman for Clinton issued a second comment on the files on the Monday after they were first released, accusing the DoJ of protecting “someone or something”. Angel Ureña added on social media: “We do not know whom, what or why. But we do know this: we need no such protection.” Mr Ureña went on to demand the release of remaining files.

Mr Ureña earlier said that photos released by the DoJ were decades old. “They can release as many grainy 20-plus-year-old photos as they want, but this isn't about Bill Clinton. Never has, never will be,” he said.

“There are two types of people here. The first group knew nothing and cut Epstein off before his crimes came to light. The second group continued relationships with him after. We're in the first,” he said.

The current US president has also been mentioned in the tranches of files that have been released by the DoJ.

Court documents as part of the release detail an episode in which Epstein allegedly introduced a 14-year-old girl to Trump at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.

During the alleged encounter in the 1990s, Epstein elbowed Trump and “playfully asked him”, in reference to the girl, “this is a good one, right?”, the document says.

Trump smiled and nodded in agreement, according to the lawsuit filed against Epstein's estate and Ghislaine Maxwell in 2020.

The document says that “they both chuckled” and the girl felt uncomfortable, but “at the time, was too young to understand why”.

The victim alleges she was groomed and abused by Epstein over many years. In the court filing, she makes no accusations against Trump.

In response to a request for comment, White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said the Trump administration was “the most transparent in history” and had “done more for the victims than Democrats ever have”.

The US president has previously said he was a friend of Epstein's for years, but said they fell out in about 2004, years before Epstein was first arrested.

Trump has consistently denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein.

In another batch of released documents, federal prosecutors in New York appear to signal that Trump flew on Epstein's private plane more than had been known.

In a January 2020 email, a prosecutor in New York wrote to a recipient – whose name has been redacted – that newly received flight records “reflect that Donald Trump traveled on Epstein's private jet many more times than previously has been reported (or that we were aware)”.

Trump was listed as a passenger on “at least eight flights between 1993 and 1996”, and Ghislaine Maxwell was present on at least four of those flights, the prosecutor wrote. Trump was also “listed as having traveled with, among others and at various times, Marla Maples, his daughter Tiffany, and his son Eric”.

Maples, who is Tiffany's mother, was married to Trump from 1993 to 1999.

“On two other flights, two of the passengers, respectively, were women who would be possible witnesses in a Maxwell case,” the prosecutor wrote.

The timing of Trump's alleged trips coincide with the years that were examined by federal prosecutors for Maxwell's conduct and travels as part of the criminal case they brought against her. Maxwell was ultimately found guilty of conspiring with Epstein to recruit and sexually abuse minors.

The DoJ has said some of the files “contain untrue and sensationalist claims made against President Trump that were submitted to the FBI right before the 2020 election”.

Among the photos and documents released is one photo appearing to show Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor lying across five people, whose faces have been redacted.

Epstein's convicted co-conspirator Maxwell is seen in the image standing behind them.

Andrew has faced years of scrutiny over his past friendship with Epstein, who does not appear in the photo.

One of the other files that stands out is a 2001 email sent by a person identified as “A”.

The message, sent to Maxwell, says that “A” is at “Balmoral Summer Camp for the Royal Family”. Balmoral might refer to Balmoral Castle, a retreat used by the Royal Family.

“A”, who was also identified as “The Invisible Man”, then asks Maxwell: “Have you found me some new inappropriate friends?”

The email from “A” was sent from an address similar but slightly different to one that, in a photo from a previous file release, was listed in Epstein's phone book under a contact titled “Duke of York”.

Mountbatten-Windsor, who was formerly known as the Duke of York, has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein, and has said he did not “see, witness or suspect any behaviour of the sort that subsequently led to his arrest and conviction”.

The DoJ documents released on 19 December included the widest assortment of celebrities that have been seen in any Epstein-related release of files to date.

Epstein, a former financier, was known for having high-profile connections across the worlds of entertainment, politics and business.

Some of the images showed him with stars including Michael Jackson, Mick Jagger and Diana Ross.

It is unclear where or when any of the photos were taken, or in what context. It is also unclear if Epstein was associated with all of these figures or whether he attended these events himself. Previously released photos from Epstein's estate have included photos that he did not take, from events at which he was not in attendance.

In one of the newly released photos, Epstein is photographed with Michael Jackson. Another shows Rolling Stones legend Jagger posing for a photo with Clinton and a woman whose face is redacted. They are all in cocktail attire.

Another image of Jackson shows him with Clinton and Ross. They are posing together in a small area and multiple other faces are redacted from the image.

Several photos include the actor Chris Tucker. One shows him posing and seated next to Clinton at a dining table. Another shows him on aeroplane tarmac with Maxwell.

The BBC has contacted Jagger, Tucker and Ross for comment.

Clinton has previously denied knowledge of Epstein's sex offending. Responding to the release of files, a spokesman said the photos were decades-old. “This isn't about Bill Clinton. Never has, never will be,” he said.

Another photo shows Maxwell posing in front of 10 Downing Street.

She is alone, and there is no context provided with the photo about why she is there or when the image was taken.

We do not know who was the UK prime minister at the time the photo was taken, or in what capacity Maxwell was visiting.

One of the first people known to have reported Epstein appears in the files.

Maria Farmer, an artist who worked for Epstein, told the FBI in a 1996 report that he had stolen personal photos that she took of her 12-year-old and 16-year-old sisters.

Ms Farmer said in a complaint that she believed Epstein sold the photos to potential buyers, and said he threatened to burn her house down if she told anyone about it.

Her name is redacted in the files, but Ms Farmer confirmed the account was hers.

She alleged in her 1996 report that Epstein had asked her to take pictures for him of young girls at swimming pools.

“Epstein is now threatening [redacted] that if she tells anyone about the photos he will burn her house down,” the report states.

After the files were released, Farmer said she felt vindicated after nearly 30 years. “I feel redeemed,” she said.

Among the documents released are many that are redacted, including police statements, investigative reports and photos.

More than 550 pages of the first release of files, on 19 December, were fully redacted, according to CBS, the BBC's US partner. These include a document related to a grand jury investigation where 100 pages were entirely blacked out.

Officials, as outlined in the law, were allowed to redact materials to protect the identity of victims, or anything related to an active criminal investigation, but they were required by law to explain such redactions, which has not yet been done.

Asked why not all of the files were released by the 19 December deadline, Blanche said: “It's very simple and very clear. The statute also requires us to protect victims.”

After that initial release of information, the DoJ said the material that had been made public was only a share of what was to come.

Blanche said the department was releasing “several hundred thousand pages” by that deadline and that he expected “several hundred thousand more” to be released over the coming weeks.

Campaigning members of the US Congress, including Democrat Ro Khanna and Republican Thomas Massie, have threatened legal action against members of the justice department over the delay.