F*** the Epstein Files

Let’s go to the video tape!

~Warner Wolf/Sportscaster

Two days ago, the Santa Fe New Mexican reported that the state’s attorney general was reopening an investigation into potential sex trafficking and other illegal activity at Zorro Ranch, the 7,560 acre property Jeffrey Epstein purchased in 1993 from then New Mexico governor Bruce King. This latest addition to the scenes of Epstein’s crimes included a feature common to all the other properties: hidden surveillance cameras. A Google search confirmed the existence of the recording devices at multiple locations.

• During a 2005 investigation, police discovered two cameras hidden in clocks in Epstein’s Palm Beach home.
• A 2014 email from Epstein to his pilot Larry Visoski included a reference to “three motion detected hidden cameras,” which Visoski says he has already installed in Kleenex boxes.
• Photos of his New York townhouse, taken in 2019, include pictures of surveillance cameras in several locations including Epstein’s bedroom. There was also a room with a sign that read “24 Hour Video Surveillance” containing several monitors.
• Photos taken of Epstein’s Little St. James Island residence confirm the existence of surveillance system consisting of several different camera models and a video recorder.

All of which begs the question, “Why aren’t any of the videos (properly redacted) included in DOJ’s released materials?” Don’t these folks watch TV? In every modern police show, the initial task for the investigation team is to identify the existence of closed circuit television (CCTV). Documents and depositions are nice but there is no better evidence than watching the perpetrator commit the crime. In July 2025, Attorney General Pam Bondi told White House reporters that the FBI was reviewing “tens of thousands of videos” of Epstein “with children or child porn.” Surely, if there were any of these videos in the DOJ releases, they would have made headlines. But better safe than sorry. So I asked Google, “Are there any videos in the available Epstein files released so far?” An Gemini AI summary of the video evidence covers three categories.

• Epstein’s Private Life: Approximately 14 hours of footage which include drone cam images of Epstein Island and short, grainy clips of young women, none of which involve sexual acts.
• Prison Surveillance: Footage from the night of Epstein’s death.
• Investigative Footage: Searches of Epstein properties and law enforcement (including FBI) interviews.

There are a few recordings, first aired on Channel 4 News in Great Britain, of Epstein in his Palm Beach residence with Ghislaine Maxwell and a young woman. The following description appeared in a February 11, 2026 article in the New York Times.

The grainy clips, many less than a minute long, provide a clear view of Mr. Epstein’s desk, and some show him sitting behind it. In a handful of videos, other people mill around or sit on the desk. In one, a woman kneels by Mr. Epstein, who has his feet on the desk.

My question? If there was such extensive surveillance equipment in each of his properties why are a few grainy clips from one location the extent of the DOJ releases to date? Equally unacceptable, why hasn’t every news outlet been asking this question? Or, for that matter, members of Congress? There are only two semi-reasonable responses, both of which need to be debunked.

First, did the representatives and their staff who drafted the Epstein Files Transparency Act give DOJ a pass?” Makes you wonder if Pam Bondi sought advice from a former president. “Bill, what do you think the meaning of files is?” But that argument does not hold water. In SEC. 2(a), the text includes the phrase “…and investigative materials in the possession of the Department of Justice, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the United States Attorneys’ Offices.” Video recordings seized during searches of Epstein properties surely fall within the definition of materials within the federal government’s possession. Equally important, by releasing the few videos they did, DOJ admits such evidence is included in the definition of “materials.”

Second, DOJ could argue, particularly in light of their botched redaction process, that protecting victims from public access to any unmasked appearance in salacious videos was now a top priority. That should not, however, prevent someone other than DOJ reviewing the unredacted videos. If members of the Supreme Court, as they did when deciding cases related to community standards and free speech, could sit through x-rated movies, there must be some reasonable third party who could serve as a special master. Using the guidance already provided in the Epstein Files Transparency Act, the special master could identify perpetrators and potentially chargeable crimes and make referrals to DOJ without identifying any of the victims.

But what if DOJ continues refusing to fully comply with the Act, contrary to my congressman who recently told an audience there is nothing he can do about the Epstein files, Congress has several options. They can hold Pam Bondi, Todd Blanche and Kash Patel in contempt of Congress. The House can begin impeachment proceedings against one or more of them. Congress could pass legislation authorizing the appointment of a special counsel. Congress could convene a joint special committee and appoint its own special master.

Epstein’s victims have waited long enough for justice. They have endured then U.S. attorney Alexander Acosta’s sweetheart deal for Epstein after his 2008 conviction, Epstein’s 2019 mismanaged arrest and detention, the coddling of Maxwell by Todd Blanche and hesitation by DOJ and the Republican Congress to hold co-conspirators accountable. Eventually House Speaker and Donald Trump had no choice but to acquiesce when public outrage forced a vote on releasing the files. Yet we find ourselves still quibbling over release of more “files” and trying to complete a jigsaw puzzle when half the pieces are missing or solid black. Warner Wolf was right. Let’s roll the video tape. A report of what is on the surveillance footage makes almost everything else irrelevant. So, f*** the files.

One last point. It is time we stop calling Epstein’s victims the “survivors.” Sometime in the future that description might be appropriate. Now, however, the only “survivors” are 1those who have used their power, money and connections to survive free of the punishment commensurate with their crimes.

For what it’s worth.
Dr. ESP