House Oversight calls on DOJ to interview key Epstein witnesses, says govt. ‘failed’ survivors

The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on Tuesday released a sharply critical report on the federal government's handling of investigations into Jeffrey Epstein and his accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell.

"The federal government has failed the survivors of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell's horrific crimes for decades," Oversight Chair Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., said in a statement.

The report called for the Department of Justice to interview or re-interview "key witnesses" with information about Epstein's sex trafficking of young women and girls, "further investigate allegations of criminal activity involving Epstein's associates, and provide survivors with unredacted access to their records."

The report also urged Congress to pass legislation sponsored by Comer that would allow survivors of sexual abuse to speak freely about it, even if they had signed confidentiality agreements.

In addition to criticizing the federal government, the committee blasted various financial institutions for their roles in dealing with Epstein, who killed himself in August 2019 in jail after being arrested on child sex trafficking charges.

"U.S. and foreign government authorities failed to identify indicators of human trafficking and immigration fraud," the committee said. "Institutions such as American Express enabled this activity, with company agents allowing Epstein to use fraudulent decoy flights and refundable or dummy itineraries to transport foreign women across borders directly to his residences."

"Financial institutions possessed substantial information about Epstein's criminal history and repeatedly identified transactions and activities presenting heightened compliance risks," the committee said. "Yet they failed to adequately address those risks, in some cases reporting them years later after Epstein's 2019 arrest, due to Epstein's personal connections, wealth, and influence."

The committee called on the Treasury Department and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network to review whether banks and other financial institutions are meeting their obligations to report activity that could point to money laundering and human trafficking.

The committee has been investigating Epstein, Maxwell, and their connections since last year.

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