Less than 24 hours after the first publication of documents related to the late financier Jeffrey Epstein, representatives of the Democratic Party in the US Congress accused the Justice Department of deleting a file from the published archive, the Associated Press and DPA reported.
According to a post on the social network X (X) from the dataset available for download from the ministry's website, a photo has been removed. It shows partially framed photographs. One of them is older and shows current US President Donald Trump with his wife Melania Trump in the company of Epstein and his longtime confidant Gillian Maxwell. Another photo depicts former US President Bill Clinton, the AP reported.
The Justice Department did not initially comment on the allegations.
Check The DPA showed that the newer version of the first set of files released on Saturday contains at least 16 fewer files than the version released on Friday afternoon. In addition to the photo that Democrats say is missing, the updated archive also no longer includes some images of a room with a massage chair.
Justice Department denies redactions in Trump's favor
After the release of thousands of files began on Friday night, a White House spokeswoman said the current administration was the "most transparent" in US history.
The Justice Department insisted that the files had not been altered to protect the president. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanch told ABC News that "nothing was withheld or redacted for that reason."
Blanch also denied allegations that there had been any direction to edit materials related to the president in connection with the Epstein scandal. “President Trump has made it clear from the very beginning that he expects all files that can be disclosed to be disclosed – and that is exactly what we are doing“, he added.
It is known that Trump knew Epstein, as archival photos show. At present, however, there are no indications of the Republican's involvement in the crimes for which Epstein was accused. Trump himself has consistently denied such allegations.
The published documents mention Trump's name episodically, and according to initial assessments, the materials contain almost no new information about the relationship between him and the financier. The American president has not commented on the case so far.
The American technology companies “Google“ (Google) and “Apple“ (Apple) have warned some of their employees who hold work visas for United States, to avoid traveling abroad due to significant delays in scheduling appointments for visa renewals and stamping at US embassies. This was reported by the publication “Business Insider“, quoted by Reuters.
According to the publication, in some cases, delays in scheduling appointments at diplomatic missions reach 12 months. Law firms specializing in immigration law and working with both companies have indicated that the problem is related to new requirements for additional checks, including analysis of the activity of candidates on social networks. For this reason, there is a risk that employees who have left the territory of the United States will not be able to return on time if their appointments are postponed.
The recommendation to limit international travel applies to holders of visa categories “H-1B“ (H-1B), “H-4“ H-4, F (F), J (J) and M (M). The “Google“ memorandum states that a number of US embassies and consulates are experiencing serious difficulties in processing applications, leading to extremely long deadlines for booking interview times.
So far, the two companies have not responded to Reuters' requests for official comment on the subject.
Earlier this month, the administration of President Donald Trump announced increased control over applicants for “H-1B“ visas for highly skilled specialists, including by checking their social media profiles. The program, which is widely used by the US technology sector to hire staff from countries such as India and China, has come under renewed scrutiny after the administration introduced a $100,000 fee for new applications this year.
In September, Alphabet, the parent company of Google, had already issued a similar warning to its employees, and in an email obtained by Reuters, the company strongly recommended that H-1B visa holders not leave the United States.