What to know about the Jeffrey Epstein 'John Doe' files that were just unsealed
A federal judge has begun unsealing court records related to as many as 153 people whose names appear in documents in a lawsuit over the sex-trafficking ring orchestrated by Jeffrey Epstein. It's a much-anticipated development in a case where speculation long focused on the late financier's "black book" of friends and contacts.
The fact that names are mentioned in the court documents does not imply a link to the criminal activities that prompted sweeping federal charges against Epstein and his partner, Ghislaine Maxwell. Many of the names come up only in passing, or in settings that are "not salacious," as Senior U.S. District Judge Loretta A. Preska recently said.
Many of the most prominent individuals were already known to have links to Epstein because of previous court cases or disclosures in the media. Most of those publicly named have denied any wrongdoing or knowledge of Epstein's criminal activities previously.
The allegations are extraordinary, as they claim acts of illegal sexual predation took place within an elite world of
