OPINION:
Sex abuser Jeffrey Epstein died in prison in 2019. The files the government has collected and stored on Epstein are at least six years old. But little is still known about the atrocities committed by Epstein and his partners on his private Little St. James island in the U.S. Virgin Islands. How come?
We do know locals called it Pedophile Island.
We don’t know the specifics of who was involved or the extent of what occurred.
What’s taking so long?
We do know U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, as well as FBI Director Kash Patel and his deputy, Dan Bongino, have promised since campaign season to unlock the secrets of the Epstein files for all the world to see.
We don’t know why we still don’t know all the secrets.
Why the delay?
Political activist and Project Veritas Chairman-Turned-President of O’Keefe Media Group James O’Keefe is releasing videos of the inside of buildings on Pedophile Island — which is more new information than has come from America’s own government, own Justice Department, own federal investigative agencies in recent months. Why is that?
“FBI bosses insist Jeffrey Epstein killed himself,” Fox News reported a couple of days ago, citing statements from Patel and Bongino.
“Patel and Bongino face MAGA wrath after dismissing Epstein conspiracy theories,” MSNBC wrote.
On Fox News, host Maria Bartiromo asked: “You said Jeffrey Epstein committed suicide. People don’t believe it.” Patel answered: “Listen, they have a right to their opinion, but you know a suicide when you see one, and that’s what that was.” Bongino answered: “He killed himself. I’ve seen the whole file. He killed himself.”
Well and good.
But the American people haven’t seen the whole file. And that’s the problem. That’s where the breakdown of trust results.
On one hand, there’s O’Keefe, panning his cameras and collecting, as he states, “exclusive, never-before-seen video and photographs from inside the most controversial structure on Jeffrey Epstein’s private island … referred to as ‘The Temple’” — and on the other hand, there’s Bondi, there’s Patel, there’s Bongino all saying trust us, you can trust us, just hold back and wait. And trust us.
We’re from the government and we’re here to help.
People have been waiting for the truth for a very long time. And by truth, it’s meant Names Of Abusers.
“Epstein’s Island, ‘Little St. Jeff’s’: A Hideaway Where Money Bought Influence,” The New York Times reported in August of 2019.
Fast-forward to March of this year, and the Miami Herald writes this: “Opening up two decades of government files related to sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein isn’t going to be as simple as inserting them into three-ring binders or putting them on the Internet. After hyping the release of Epstein documents as ‘breaking news’ on Fox News, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi … distributed binders filled with material to a group of conservative social media pundits. But the big reveal, designed to promote President Donald Trump’s new culture of transparency, fell flat. When the group opened the binders, they discovered 200 pages of dated material, most of which had long ago been made public. To make matters worse, some of the material was overly redacted — the same material had already been available on the Internet in un-redacted form.”
Maybe the DOJ ought to put O’Keefe on the payroll. He’s got new material, at least.
Look. The American people want to believe in and trust that their federal law enforcement agencies are investigating with full might the entire Epstein matter, with the goal of bringing to justice those who participated in sex trafficking, sex abuse, sexual abuse of minors and other criminal behaviors. The American people want to believe their tax-paid investigators will bring to justice any and all who participated in the abuse, no matter how high up the political chain they go. Go where the investigation leads. Follow the money, follow the trails, follow the facts.
But six years is six years.
Campaign promises have turned to official political promises and formal White House investigations.
And people have died. Mysteriously. Under suspicious circumstances — no matter what Patel and Bongino say.
“Jeffrey Epstein’s brother doesn’t believe he died by suicide and wants new investigation,” The Guardian wrote in January of 2024.
“Virginia Giuffre’s [suicide] death sparks calls for investigation from father,” CBS12 wrote a few days ago, about the 41-year-old woman who exposed Epstein’s sex trafficking ring in 2019, and accused him of forcing her to have sex with Prince Andrew and others on Pedophile Island when she was just 17 years old.
“Her death, initially ruled a suicide, has sparked calls for further investigation from her father, who is urging authorities to reexamine the circumstances surrounding her passing,” CBS wrote.
Maybe there is nothing to see here.
Maybe Giuffre and Epstein both died by suicide.
Maybe the U.S. government really is trying as hard as it can to uncover all the secrets of Pedophile Island and rain down justice on the heads of the guilty and release all the pertinent information, including names, to the American public in a timely manner.
But Americans need more than “trust me, I’ve seen the files.” Americans, as well as Epstein victims, deserve far more than that.
If O’Keefe can offer up more exclusive inside looks on the Epstein case than America’s own DOJ, America’s own FBI, America’s supposedly best and brightest and most committed — then something smells. Something’s wrong. Something is at the very least suspicious.
The appearance is that justice is not being served.
• Cheryl Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com or on Twitter, @ckchumley. Listen to her podcast “Bold and Blunt” by clicking HERE. And never miss her column; subscribe to her newsletter and podcast by clicking HERE. Her latest book, “God-Given Or Bust: Defeating Marxism and Saving America With Biblical Truths,” is available by clicking HERE.
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