Donald Trump slammed Jeffrey Epstein about two decades ago, claiming “everyone has known he’s been doing this”, a former Palm Beach police chief claimed.
Michael Reiter’s account of a conversation with Trump is contained within the justice department’s release of 3m Epstein files, dramatically contrasts with the US president’s public statements. After Epstein’s arrest in July 2019, Trump said “I had no idea” when asked if he knew about his former friend’s abuse of teenage girls.
Reiter, who retired in 2009, confirmed to the Miami Herald on Monday that he was the person whose name was redacted from this document. The former investigator recounted this conversation during an October 2019 FBI interview.
Reiter said this conversation took place in July 2006; around this time, allegations against Epstein were growing. He told the FBI that Trump telephoned him and remarked: “Thank goodness you’re stopping him, everyone has known he’s been doing this.”
Local police had been interviewing numerous minor Epstein victims in 2005 and 2006. The FBI and US attorney’s office in South Florida probed these claims.
But the case against Epstein concluded with a shocking sweetheart plea deal in 2008 that allowed him to elide federal prosecution if he admitted to state-level prostitution charges.
After Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell was arrested in July 2020, Trump was asked whether he expected the fallen British socialite “to turn in powerful men”.
“I don’t know. I haven’t really been following it too much. I just wish her well, frankly,” Trump responded.
“I’ve met her numerous times over the years, especially since I lived in Palm Beach, and I guess they lived in Palm Beach,” he also said. “But I wish her well, whatever it is.”
These comments also conflict with Reiter’s account. He told FBI agents that Trump described Maxwell as Epstein’s “operative”, and said “she is evil and to focus on her”, per the FBI report.
Reiter claimed that Trump told him: “He was around Epstein once when teenagers were present and Trump ‘got the hell out of there’”, the interview summary noted.
Trump has claimed he booted Epstein from his Mar-a-Lago club because the late financier, who died in jail awaiting trial, “stole” staffers, including Virginia Giuffre, who was among the most vocal of the Epstein survivors. Giuffre said that Epstein abused and trafficked her to high-profile men, including the former Prince Andrew. The fallen royal, now Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, has denied misconduct.
Trump’s relationship has for months proven to be a political landmine for the president. On the campaign trail, he promised to release the Epstein files – a clarion call to conspiracy-minded rightwing supporters.
The president then waffled on this promise, drawing the ire of backers, and prompting still more outrage after documents emerged showing that he and Epstein had a close relationship prior to their falling out. While Trump ultimately signed the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which mandates that his Department of Justice release all investigative documents, he has maintained the issue is a hoax.
The White House deferred a request for comment to Trump’s justice department. The Guardian has approached the Department of Justice and FBI for comment.
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