GOP-led House report slams systemic failures in handling of Epstein case

A Republican-led US House committee has issued a 137-page report accusing federal investigators, prosecutors and jail officials of repeated failures in their handling of Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes and death. It says missed warnings and lenient decisions helped shield Epstein and his associates, allowing abuse to continue and denying victims justice.

The findings follow a 15-month inquiry involving 19 transcribed interviews and depositions, subpoenas and reviews of financial records. The report criticises a 2007 non-prosecution agreement that resulted in an 18-month state sentence with work-release privileges, and says Epstein continued abusing women during that period. It also says guards at the New York jail where Epstein died in 2019 skipped 12 patrols and three inmate counts, leaving his cell unmonitored for nearly eight hours; the committee urged the Justice Department to interview key witnesses again and investigate associates accused of crimes.