The US Justice Department has confirmed it will examine alleged connections between convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, several major financial institutions, and prominent Democratic figures, including former President Bill Clinton.
President Donald Trump announced that he had asked Attorney General Pam Bondi and the FBI to investigate Epstein’s “involvement and relationship” with Clinton and others. Bondi stated that the department would handle the matter “with urgency and integrity.”
Trump’s request came shortly after the release of thousands of Epstein-related emails by the US Congress. The documents — which include references to the president himself — sparked renewed political tensions. Democrats accused Trump of attempting to divert attention from lingering questions about his own past interactions with Epstein.
The emails, published by the House Oversight Committee, reference a wide range of high-profile individuals. According to a Wall Street Journal review, Trump’s name appears in more than 1,600 of the 2,324 email threads.
Robert Garcia, the committee’s top Democrat, claimed that Trump was trying to “deflect from serious new questions we have about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.”
In addition to Clinton, Trump said he had requested that the Justice Department examine potential ties between Epstein and major banks such as JPMorgan Chase, former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, and LinkedIn co-founder and Democratic donor Reid Hoffman.
“Epstein was a Democrat, and he is the Democrats’ problem, not the Republicans’ problem!” Trump wrote on social media. “They all know about him—don’t waste your time with Trump. I have a country to run!”
Clinton has repeatedly denied any knowledge of Epstein’s criminal activities.
A spokesperson for JPMorgan Chase said the bank regrets “any association” it had with Epstein and emphasized that the institution “did not help him commit his heinous acts.”
It remains unclear whether Trump issued a formal directive to the Justice Department or whether Bondi was responding publicly to his post on the Truth Social platform. Bondi added that she has appointed US Attorney Jay Clayton to lead the investigation into Epstein’s connections.
