NEW YORK (AP) — At least 16 files disappeared from the Justice Department’s webpage for documents related to Jeffrey Epstein — including a photograph showing President Trump — less than a day after they were released, with no explanation from the government and no notice to the public.
The missing files, which were available Friday and no longer accessible by Saturday, included images of paintings depicting nude women, and one showing a series of photographs along a credenza and in drawers.
In the latter image, inside a drawer among other photos, was a photograph of Trump, alongside Epstein, Melania Trump and Epstein’s longtime associate Ghislaine Maxwell.
This photo, file 468, from the Epstein files that includes Donald Trump has apparently now been removed from the DOJ release.@AGPamBondi is this true? What else is being covered up? We need transparency for the American public. pic.twitter.com/3wYZAl2dse
— Oversight Dems (@OversightDems) December 20, 2025
The Justice Department did not say why the files were removed or whether their disappearance was intentional. A spokesperson for the department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Online, the unexplained missing files fueled speculation about what was taken down and why the public was not notified, compounding long-standing intrigue about Epstein and the powerful figures who surrounded him.
In a post on X, Democrats on the House Oversight Committee pointed to the missing image featuring the Trump photo, writing: “What else is being covered up? We need transparency for the American public.”
The episode has deepened concerns that have already emerged from the Justice Department’s much-anticipated document release.
The tens of thousands of pages made public offered little new insight into Epstein’s crimes or the prosecutorial decisions that allowed him to avoid serious federal charges for years, while omitting some of the most closely watched materials, including FBI interviews with victims and internal Justice Department memos on charging decisions.
