Ex-US attorney general defends Epstein files handling in congressional probe

A significant story is unfolding on the international scene. Ex-US attorney general defends Epstein files handling in congressional probe13 hours ago Share Save Add as preferred on GoogleKwasi Gyamfi AsieduandNardine SaadGetty ImagesFormer US Attorney General Pam Bondi arrives to testify at a closed-door interview with the House Oversight Committee on Capitol Hill on 29 May, 2026Former US Attorney General Pam Bondi has defended her handling of the release of documents related to the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Bondi, who was removed from her post as America's top law enforcement officer by US President Donald Trump in April, testified behind closed doors on Friday in Washington DC. "We demonstrated an unprecedented commitment to transparency in the Department's search for, collection and review of the Epstein files, producing nearly three million pages of material," she said in opening remarks to the US House Oversight Committee.

Bondi was formally summoned by the panel in March, just before Trump announced her ouster as his administration's top prosecutor. As attorney general, Bondi was tasked with implementing the Epstein Files Transparency Act, legislation signed into law by Trump that mandated the US Department of Justice publicly release unclassified records. But Bondi and the US Justice Department have been widely criticised, with accusations that documents were withheld and files were published that made victims of Epstein's crimes publicly identifiable.

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"I am proud of the department's record and commitment to transparency under my leadership," she said. "This was an enormously complicated and labour-intensive process. To the best of my knowledge, the department produced everything required under the Epstein Files Transparency Act.

"The committee's Republican chairman, James Comer, wrote in a subpoena letter that they were investigating the "possible mismanagement" of the Epstein investigation and compliance with the act. Ahead of Friday's meeting, Comer told reporters that successive governments had failed Epstein's victims and that Bondi would be pressed about her handling of the release of the documents. "We're going to try to determine whether or not there could be more documents legally turned over," Comer said.

"I want every document. I don't want anything held back and I think the majority of the committee's the same way. "But three hours into the congressional interview, Democrats emerged accusing Bondi of being evasive in her answers, deferring responsibility to her former deputy, and said government lawyers had stepped in to prevent her from answering questions.

"She said she would not speak or respond to any questions that had anything to do with President Trump," said Robert Garcia, the committee's leading Democrat. Congressman Suhas Subramanyam, a Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, told the that the process was a cover-up and Republicans on the committee set the interview up with voluntary transcription and no video tape.

The development has drawn wide international attention, with diplomatic circles watching closely.