The names of more than 100 people connected in some way to Jeffrey Epstein, the disgraced financier accused of orchestrating a sex-trafficking ring involving girls, are set to be released as soon as Wednesday as part of an order from a federal judge to unseal filings from a related court case that dates to 2015.
The mountainous release follows a years-long legal battle and piecemeal disclosures, and the identities — previously referred to as Jane or John Does in court documents — may reveal a fuller picture of Epstein and his associates. The majority of those named in the documents, however, are not accused of any wrongdoing, according to reporting from the Associated Press. Some, in fact, were victims of Epstein’s sex trafficking.
Still, anticipation has been building over the unsealing, particularly among conservatives and some online conspiracy theorists, though many of those whose names are soon to be made public were previously known or did not contest their disclosure. The Miami Herald reported that among those expected to be named are Prince Andrew, financier Glenn Dubin and modeling agent Jean Luc Brunel, along with employees of and recruiters for Epstein. Former President Clinton, who reportedly flew on Epstein’s private jet four times in the early aughts but has not been accused of any wrongdoing, is also expected to be named.
Judge Loretta Preska of the Southern District of New York ordered in December the public disclosure of the identities of about 150 John and Jane Does mentioned in court documents. Those documents are part of a defamation lawsuit brought by Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein’s victims, against Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s longtime girlfriend who was convicted of child sex trafficking in 2021 and sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Giuffre and Maxwell settled out of court in 2017. But the documents — which include the names of celebrities, high-profile officials and others with alleged ties to Epstein of some sort, along with litigation witnesses — offer potentially significant insight into Epstein and those in his orbit.
The Miami Herald, which published an award-winning investigative series about Epstein, filed a lawsuit in 2018 to release the records produced in the defamation case. Lawyer Alan Dershowitz also pushed for the documents to be unsealed as part of his own legal battle against Guiffre, who for years alleged Dershowitz sexually abused her when she was a teenager. The two settled in 2022, and Guiffre acknowledged she may have “made a mistake” with her accusation.
Some of the records stemming from the case have been gradually released over the years, though many documents remained redacted or sealed. Those people whose names are to be disclosed in the latest wave of unsealing had until Monday to appeal the judge’s order.
According to an order released Wednesday by Preska, two Does sought to remain under seal: Doe 107, who cited physical danger in her home country. The Herald agreed to maintain that redaction. The court granted the Doe an extension until Jan. 22 to support their request for remaining under seal.
The second is Doe 110 and is under review by the court, Preska’s order said.
Yet many Does did not object to the release, according to the judge’s order. That group appears to include Clinton, who is identified by news reports as J. Doe 036 and whose name appears in dozens of documents. According to ABC News, many of those documents relate to a battle between the parties over whether Clinton should be called to testify.
Clinton’s office issued a statement in 2019 saying that the former president knew nothing about Epstein’s crimes. His spokesperson pointed to that statement again Wednesday. Giuffre has not accused Clinton of wrongdoing.
But the Herald’s counsel may continue to press for the disclosure of three Does who are not victims and whose identities will remain hidden for various reasons cited by the judge, the newspaper reported.
Preska said many of the names were already public as a result of media interviews, news and police reports, lawsuits and disclosures at Maxwell’s trial in New York two years ago, among other outlets.
For example, J. Doe 005 is Carolyn Andriano, a sex-trafficking victim who testified against Maxwell at Maxwell’s criminal trial under only her first name, then gave her full name in an interview with the Daily Mail in 2022. Andriano died last year.
Courtney Wild, another of Epstein’s alleged victims, appears to be J. Doe 185. According to the judge’s order, Wild, who has not objected to being identified, has given interviews to the media and was a plaintiff in other lawsuits related to Epstein.
But many did fight to keep their names secret. Business Insider reported that Doe 183 is connected to Les Wexner , the Midwestern billionaire behind Victoria’s Secret with links to Epstein whose legal team has waged a battle for redactions. Wexner said he cut ties with Epstein in 2007.
Some of the identifying details were ordered to remain redacted because these individuals were minors at the time of the alleged sexual abuse, and they have not come forward publicly.
Leading up to the disclosure, conservatives and right-wing circles have seized on the documents’ release as evidence of wrongdoing by Democratic figures, particularly Clinton.
During a recent appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show,” New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers hinted that the late-night host Jimmy Kimmel’s name could surface on the Epstein list. That prompted a swift response from Kimmel, who said he never met Epstein and threatened possible legal action.
Epstein, 66, died by suicide in a New York jail in August 2019, weeks after he was arrested and federally charged with sex trafficking and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of minors. A watchdog report released in June found that negligence, misconduct and other failures at the jail contributed to his death.
“Numerous and serious” instances of misconduct and dereliction of duty contributed to a setting that allowed “arguably one of the most notorious inmates” in the Federal Bureau of Prison’s custody the opportunity to take his own life, according to the report.
More than a decade earlier, Epstein evaded federal criminal charges when he struck a plea deal with then-south Florida U.S. Atty. Alexander Acosta in a case related to accusations that he molested dozens of girls. (Acosta was a prominent Republican, serving in both the George W. Bush and Trump administrations.) As part of the agreement, Epstein pleaded guilty to state charges, including soliciting prostitution. He registered as a sex offender and served 13 months in jail but was allowed to leave six days a week to work at his office.
That deal became the subject of an investigative series by the Herald that brought renewed attention to his case. Called “Perversion of Justice: Jeffrey Epstein,” the series detailed accounts by more than 60 women who said they were victims of abuse as part of a sex ring run by Epstein.