WASHINGTON, Feb 25 - Representative Robert Garcia, the senior Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, has accused the U.S. Justice Department of withholding FBI interview records related to a woman who has accused President Donald Trump of sexually abusing her when she was a minor.
Garcia said he confirmed media reports indicating the Justice Department excluded more than 50 pages of material tied to the woman's allegations from a release of over 3 million documents connected to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. According to the congressman, the withheld material indicated the FBI treated the allegations seriously and interviewed the woman on four occasions. He said only the first interview was released publicly, and that session did not outline the woman's accusations against Trump.
In a letter to the Justice Department, Garcia wrote that the suppression of documents alleging "President Trump’s commission of sexual abuse of an underage victim" increases his concerns about a possible White House cover-up.
The Justice Department responded that it is reviewing whether any remaining Epstein-related records were inappropriately withheld and said it would publish material if that review concluded release was appropriate. The department has cautioned that some of the material it has released includes unsubstantiated accusations and sensational claims directed at Trump.
DOJ officials also said they have withheld documents to avoid revealing the identities of Epstein's victims or compromising ongoing investigations. Among the documents already released by the department are photos showing Trump with several women whose faces are redacted, and a suggestive handwritten note to Epstein, bordered by the outline of a naked woman, which appears to bear what the release says is Trump’s signature.
Evidence and testimony submitted during the 2021 trial of Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell indicate that Trump traveled on Epstein’s plane on multiple occasions. The released file set also contains an email from Epstein in which he wrote that Trump "knew about the girls," although the meaning of that comment is not clear from the record.
A White House spokeswoman, Abigail Jackson, said Trump had been "totally exonerated on anything relating to Epstein." The public record, as reflected in the documents and statements, notes that Trump socialized with Epstein extensively in the 1990s and 2000s, but Trump has denied any knowledge of Epstein’s crimes and has said he ended ties with Epstein before the financier's 2008 conviction on solicitation of a minor for prostitution.
Trump has also denied flying on Epstein's plane and asserted that the suggestive note attributed to him was fabricated.
Clearer answers about the full scope of the FBI's interviews and the rationale for withholding specific pages will depend on the Justice Department's ongoing review and any subsequent releases of material.