(NewsNation) — A Palm Beach County judge Monday released grand jury records, which included hundreds of documents and audio recordings, from the 2006 Florida investigation against Jeffrey Epstein.
The records have remained under seal for 16 years. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed an order to release the files by July 1, reported the Palm Beach Post, which sued for their release in 2019.
Epstein, a millionaire known for associating with high-profile personalities, became the subject of a police investigation in Palm Beach, Florida, in 2005 after he was accused of paying a 14-year-old girl for sex.
Once he was arrested, multiple underage girls, many of them high school students, came forward telling police that Epstein hired them to give sexual massages.
Records show interviews, audio of Jeffrey Epstein victims
Court documents show that the Palm Beach County prosecutor, who had reinstated efforts to charge Epstein for months, painted the alleged underage victims as prostitutes, drug addicts, thieves and liars.
In the transcripts, one of Epstein’s housekeepers stated that “hundreds of girls” passed through the house, sometimes three a day. Additionally, there are audio recordings and footage of investigators interviewing some of these underage girls, who provided explicit details of their interactions with Epstein.
Documents expose flaws in 2006 Epstein case
While Palm Beach police charged Epstein with multiple counts of unlawful sex with a minor in 2006, the state attorney at the time, Barry Krischer, made the unusual decision of sending the case to a grand jury.
The grand jury heard from only one accuser and indicted Epstein with one count of solicitation of prostitution. Accusations from other victims, many of whom were minors, are not reflected in the indictment.
Krischer’s office never spoke with any of the victims, according to state attorney documents, and once Epstein’s high-profile defense attorneys became involved, his office quit communicating regularly with police, the Palm Beach Post reported.
Questions have swirled for nearly two decades about why Epstein was charged with relatively minor offenses and why the case went to a grand jury.
Among the records released Monday was the testimony of an underage girl who described being allegedly assaulted by Epstein.
He was re-arrested in 2019 on federal sex trafficking charges in New York but was found dead in his jail cell by suicide a month after his arrest.
Why are these new Jeffrey Epstein details coming to light?
Usually, when cases involve sexual assault with minors the files are sealed, like Epstein’s records. However, due to a new Florida law that took effect July 1, these documents and evidence have become public.
Investigators knew how Epstein would lure young girls into this home under false pretenses. In an effort to regain trust, the Palm Beach Clerk Joseph Abruzzo announced that the documents are now available to “ensure transparency.”
Many have argued about the relevance of releasing the documents now that Epstein is dead. However, the clerk’s office hopes that making the records public will provide peace of mind to the community and offer Epstein’s victims closure.
NewsNation’s Urja Sinha and Devan Markham contributed to this story.