What are the main revelations from the new Epstein files release?

The U.S. Justice Department released millions of files related to the case of convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein on Friday, shedding further light on his expansive network of high profile figures.

The latest dump – expected to be the last – contains some three million pages, including 180,000 images and some 2,000 videos attached to the case. It brings the total to 3.5m documents released.

Initial findings include the shocking revelation that Epstein may have fathered a child around 15 years ago, as well asemails from Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the former British prince, inviting Epstein to Buckingham Palace years after the financier was convicted of sex crimes.

Peter Mandelson, the former British ambassador to the U.S., resigned from the Labour Party on Sunday after more of his correspondence with Epstein emerged. He said he believed claims that Epstein sent him tens of thousands of dollars years ago were false and would need investigating.

Messages from billionaire Elon Musk asked Epstein when his wildest party would be and discussed visiting his notorious island. It is unclear whether Musk, who is not accused of wrongdoing, ever visited.

And in other emails, Epstein made allegations Bill Gates had engaged in extra marital affairs. A spokesperson for Gates vehemently denied the “absurd” allegations.

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There’s no suggestion that appearing in the files implies wrongdoing. People who have appeared in previous releases have denied any illicit behaviour in relation to Epstein.

Below we look at the main revelations so far.

An email to the pedophile financier from Sarah Ferguson, the ex-wife of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor (formerly Prince Andrew), appears to suggest he had fathered a secret child around 15 years ago.

“Don’t know if you’re still on this bbm but have heard from The Duke that you have had a baby boy,” she allegedly wrote on September 21, 2011, according to DOJ files seen by The Telegraph.

The email continues: “Even though you never kept in touch, I still am here with love, friendship, and congratualtions [sic] on your baby boy. Sarah xx.”

In another email released by the DOJ and seen by The Sun, Fergie allegedly mentioned the boy again and complained that she had been “deeply” hurt by Epstein’s lack of contact with her.

“You have disappeared. I did not even know you were having a baby,” she allegedly wrote. “It was sooooo crystal clear to me that you were only friends with me to get to Andrew. And that really hurt me deeply. More than you will know.”

Epstein is not known to have fathered any children but, if Ferguson’s alleged claims are true, the pedophile’s child would now nearly be 15-years-old.

The Independent has contacted Sarah Ferguson for comment.

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Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor invited Epstein to Buckingham Palace for dinner and “lots of privacy” years after the financier was convicted, the new documents suggest.

In one email, Andrew said that he was travelling to London, where Epstein was staying. He told Epstein: "We could have dinner at Buckingham Palace and lots of privacy".

Epstein responded: "Already in london [sic]. what time woudl [sic] you like me and we will also need/ have private time."

It is not clear whether a meeting at the palace took place. The Independent has approached Buckingham Palace for comment.

The latest release also included pictures that appeared to feature Andrew poised on all fours over a woman on the floor. It is unclear where and when the photos were taken, and the woman’s identity is masked.

In another message that appeared to be sent to Andrew, Epstein offered to introduce the then prince to a “clever, beautiful and trustworthy” Russian woman named “Irina”, who was 26.

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The newly published files included hundreds of documents that mention Trump, many of which were collections of media reports.

One file details what appeared to be internal emails by federal investigators looking into salacious accusations involving the president and Epstein. The emails, from August 2025, give no indication that any claims had been substantiated. Investigators said several of the accusers were deemed not credible.

Another message, whose sender and recipient were both redacted, reads, "What does JE think of going to Mar-a-Lago after xmas instead of his island?" referring to Trump's Florida club. The message is from 2012, years after Trump said the two men had stopped socialising.

Trump has denied any knowledge of Epstein's crimes. But the scandal has dogged him for months, in part because he promised to release the files during his 2024 presidential campaign, then reneged after taking office.

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Elon Musk and Epstein discussed visits to Little St. James several times, including in 2012, in which Musk asked Epstein: “What day/night will be the wildest party on your island?”

In a 2013 email exchange between Elon Musk and Epstein, the two went back and forth about scheduling a time in January for Musk to visit the island.

In the document, Musk wrote to Epstein on Christmas Day in 2013: “Actually, I could fly back early on the 3rd. We will be in St Bart's. When should we head to your island on the 2nd?” It is not clear whether Musk ultimately visited.

Musk responded on Saturday on his X social media platform that he had been "well aware that some email correspondence with him could be misinterpreted and used by detractors to smear my name."

"No one pushed harder than me to have the Epstein files released and I’m glad that has finally happened," Musk wrote. "I had very little correspondence with Epstein and declined repeated invitations to go to his island or fly on his 'Lolita Express.'”

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Bill Gates has strongly denied claims in the files that he had engaged in extramarital sex.

Epstein made the allegation in a drafted 225-word email he sent to himself on July 18, 2013, with the subject line: “bill.”

He wrote that, as an associate of Gates, he had been asked to do things that were “potentially over the line into the illegal.”

He added that Gates and his then-wife, Melinda Gates, had been caught up in a “severe marital dispute” and that he had helped facilitate “illicit trysts” for the billionaire.

A spokesperson for Bill Gates told The Independent: “These claims are absolutely absurd and completely false. The only thing these documents demonstrate is Epstein’s frustration that he did not have an ongoing relationship with Gates and the lengths he would go to entrap and defame.”

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According to the latest documents, Lord Mandelson’s husband, Reinaldo Avila da Silva, emailed Epstein in 2009 to ask him for money to attend the British School of Osteopathy and fund other related expenses.

The emails show that da Silva set out the costs of the course to Epstein, with one referring to a £10,000 payment, made two months after Epstein’s release from prison.

Epstein told Mr da Silva: “I will wire your loan amount immediated’y (sic).”

“Just a brief note to thank you for the money which arrived in my account this morning,” Mr da Silva later replied.

Last year, Lord Mandelson was sacked from his role as UK ambassador to the US following mounting pressure over his ties to Epstein. On Friday, he issued a statement apologising to the victims of Epstein. He insisted he was ignorant of Epstein’s crimes and “learned the actual truth about him after his death.”

Emails also suggest that Lord Mandelson gave Epstein advance notice of a €500 billion bailout from the EU to save the Euro, a deal made by EU finance ministers in May 2010 amid concerns the Greek debt crisis could spread through the Eurozone.

The evening before, Epstein apparently emailed Lord Mandelson, who was business secretary and de facto deputy prime minister at the time: “sources tell me 500 b euro bailout , almost complete”.

Lord Mandelson apparently replied: "Sd be announced tonight."

Emails separately appeared to suggest that Lord Mandelson forwarded internal government information to Epstein when he was Gordon Brown’s business secretary and deputy.

The former British government minister resigned as a member of Labour Party after new reports emerged about his ties to disgraced U.S. financier Jeffrey Epstein, media reported on Sunday. Mandelson said he did not wish to cause “further embarrassment” to the Labour Party, according to the reports.

“I have been further linked this weekend to the understandable furore surrounding Jeffrey Epstein and I feel regretful and sorry about this,” Mandelson said in a letter to the Labour Party, reported by the BBC and other news organisations.

Mandelson said he believed allegations that Epstein made financial payments to him were false and that he would investigate them.

“While doing this, I do not wish to cause further embarrassment to the Labour Party and I am therefore stepping down from membership of the party,” the letter said.

Mandelson was a key figure in the Labour Party’s electoral success during Tony Blair’s premiership, which began in the 1990s. He came under renewed scrutiny last year after U.S. lawmakers released documents that included a letter in which he referred to Epstein as “my best pal,” leading to his dismissal as Britain’s envoy in Washington.

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Jeffrey Epstein spent years trying to meet with Russian leader Vladimir Putin, according to the aggregated files.

The Russian president is mentioned 1,055 times in the updated Epstein library. Many of the items only refer to Putin tangentially, such as in media bulletins sent to Epstein’s email address.

But over the years, the financier repeatedly discussed his hopes of meeting Putin with Thorbjorn Jagland, the former prime minister of Norway, who met with the Russian leader in his capacity as the secretary general of the Council of Europe.

In spring 2013, Epstein told Ehud Barak, the former Israeli prime minister, that he was hoping to meet Putin for the first time that June to discuss how Russia could encourage Western investment.

It was unclear whether they ever did meet to talk business. Email correspondence each year until 2018 suggests Epstein tried to set up meetings, or even invited Putin over for dinner through their mutual contacts.