Latest / Beyond The Horizon / The DOJ Moves To Dismiss The Epstein Related Lawsuit Filed By New Mexico (Part 2) (10/19/26)

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The DOJ Moves To Dismiss The Epstein Related Lawsuit Filed By New Mexico (Part 2) (10/19/26) · Beyond The Horizon

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: What's up everyone and welcome to another episode of the
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: Epstein Chronicles. In this episode we're going to pick up
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: where he left off with a lawsuit filed by New
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: Mexico against the DOJ. Documents from the Epstein files further
• 0:14
  Speaker 1: confirm that, in exchange for NMDOJ's deference to federal law enforcement,
• 0:19
  Speaker 1: USDOJ would refer to NMDOJ state crimes and pass along
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: any information they have gathered about the state crimes that
• 0:27
  Speaker 1: were committed in the jurisdiction. On September 17, 2019, an
• 0:32
  Speaker 1: MDOJ provided USDOJ with its entire investigative file, including police reports,
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: recorded witness interviews, and materials related to Epstein's use of
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  Speaker 1: New Mexico public lands. In doing so, an MDOJ reiterated
• 0:47
  Speaker 1: its intent to work in union with federal prosecutors if
• 0:51
  Speaker 1: further investigation reveals additional survivors of crimes occurring in New Mexico.
• 0:56
  Speaker 1: and specifically requested to be notified if the federal investigation
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: revealed survivors of crimes occurring in New Mexico, not mentioned
• 1:03
  Speaker 1: in the state, provided investigative material. USDOJ internally discussed Epstein
• 1:10
  Speaker 1: and his associates' criminal activities tied to New Mexico, and
• 1:15
  Speaker 1: discussed taking investigative steps based on that knowledge even after
• 1:19
  Speaker 1: Epstein's death. But federal law enforcement failed to ever search
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  Speaker 1: Zorro Ranch. USDOJ likewise failed to make any attempt to
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  Speaker 1: seize Zorro Ranch and Epstein's associated New Mexico property and
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  Speaker 1: failed to do anything else to preserve or gather evidence
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: of Epstein's crimes in New Mexico. NMDOJ remained engaged in
• 1:39
  Speaker 1: addressing Epstein and his associates' crimes. On October 15, 2019,
• 1:44
  Speaker 1: following Epstein's death, then-New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas wrote
• 1:49
  Speaker 1: to USDOJ, He reminded USDOJ that his office had turned
• 1:54
  Speaker 1: over material supportive of their federal investigation and allegations of
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  Speaker 1: misconduct by Epstein's possible conspirators, and requested that USDOJ explore
• 2:04
  Speaker 1: initiating the process to seize Epstein's New Mexico land holdings
• 2:08
  Speaker 1: for the eventual benefit of survivors of these acts and
• 2:11
  Speaker 1: the people of the state of New Mexico. A year
• 2:15
  Speaker 1: after pausing the state investigation and following Epstein associate Glaine
• 2:18
  Speaker 1: Maxwell's arrest, On July 2, 2020, NMDOJ again contacted USDOJ
• 2:24
  Speaker 1: to offer assistance with any federal prosecution. At that time,
• 2:29
  Speaker 1: NMDOJ reiterated the state's intent to move forward on any
• 2:33
  Speaker 1: state-level charges, should any viable charges exist. USDOJ replied, We
• 2:38
  Speaker 1: very much appreciate your support, and we will reach out
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  Speaker 1: should we learn of viable state-level charges that are not
• 2:45
  Speaker 1: already covered by our federal investigation. USDOJ never provided New
• 2:52
  Speaker 1: Mexico any information it learned about potential New Mexico state
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  Speaker 1: law crimes the federal investigation revealed. On July 8, 2020,
• 3:00
  Speaker 1: NMDOJ sent another letter to USDOJ recounting NMDOJ's assistance to
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  Speaker 1: federal prosecutors, warning that Zorro Ranch appeared to have been
• 3:09
  Speaker 1: used by Epstein and others to facilitate the commission and
• 3:13
  Speaker 1: prolonged concealment of his trafficking of children, and again requesting
• 3:17
  Speaker 1: that assets in New Mexico belonging to Epstein's estate or
• 3:20
  Speaker 1: his conspirators, be seized in conjunction with a pending criminal
• 3:23
  Speaker 1: prosecution of Epstein's associates and co-conspirators. That request was ignored.
• 3:30
  Speaker 1: Local federal prosecutors in New Mexico seemingly shared the state's concern.
• 3:34
  Speaker 1: On July 15, 2020, DNM officials in Albuquerque contacted SDNY,
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  Speaker 1: noting that conduct in New Mexico formed the basis of
• 3:42
  Speaker 1: one of the overt acts in Maxwell's indictment, and requested
• 3:46
  Speaker 1: a call to discuss potential seizure, forfeiture, of Epstein's NM property.
• 3:51
  Speaker 1: Officials at SDNY did not act on the request. By
• 3:55
  Speaker 1: forcing the USDOJ to publicly disclose Epstein files, Congress revealed
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  Speaker 1: that USDOJ violated its agreement to share information with NMDOJ
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  Speaker 1: about criminal conduct in New Mexico in exchange for the
• 4:07
  Speaker 1: state deferring to the federal investigation. On November 18, 2025,
• 4:13
  Speaker 1: Congress passed bipartisan legislation to force USDOJ to disclose information
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  Speaker 1: about Epstein and his co-conspirators. EFTA is an unprecedented disclosure
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  Speaker 1: law requiring the Attorney General, with few exceptions, to make
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  Speaker 1: publicly available in a searchable and downloadable database all unclassified
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  Speaker 1: Department of Justice files related to its investigation of the
• 4:35
  Speaker 1: notorious sexual predator and child sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, the
• 4:40
  Speaker 1: child sex trafficker Glenn Maxwell, and their associates. Materials made
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  Speaker 1: publicly available through EFTA include all unclassified records, documents, communications,
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  Speaker 1: and investigative material in the possession of the Department of Justice,
• 4:55
  Speaker 1: including the Federal Bureau of Investigation and U.S. Attorney's Offices.
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  Speaker 1: Relating to broad topics surrounding Epstein and Maxwell, EFTA Section 2A.
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  Speaker 1: ETFA permits five categories of information to be withheld or
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  Speaker 1: redacted from public disclosure. victims' personally identifiable information and privacy,
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  Speaker 1: child sex abuse material, material that would jeopardize an active
• 5:18
  Speaker 1: federal investigation or an ongoing prosecution, provided that such withholding
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  Speaker 1: is narrowly tailored and temporary, images of death, physical abuse,
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  Speaker 1: or injury of any person, and material classified for national security.
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  Speaker 1: Any such withholding of or redactions to material made publicly
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  Speaker 1: available through EFTA must be accompanied by a written justification
• 5:39
  Speaker 1: published in the Federal Register and submitted to Congress, EFTA
• 5:43
  Speaker 1: Section 2C2. EFTA imposed a December 19, 2025 deadline for
• 5:49
  Speaker 1: USDOJ compliance. USDOJ violated that statutory deadline and posted Epstein
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  Speaker 1: documents on a rolling basis through January 30, 2026. The
• 6:00
  Speaker 1: redacted Epstein files provide significant cause to investigate whether further
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  Speaker 1: criminal activity had occurred in New Mexico or including the 13,000
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  Speaker 1: public references to Zorro Ranch already noted. The released documents
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  Speaker 1: show that USDOJ had long known that crimes occurred in
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  Speaker 1: New Mexico. In fact, USDOJ had secured grand jury testimony
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  Speaker 1: from one of its own witnesses detailing a victim's account
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  Speaker 1: of being abused in New Mexico. Maxwell's indictment also included
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  Speaker 1: alleged overt acts of grooming and abuse in New Mexico.
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  Speaker 1: In December 2021, Maxwell was found guilty of sex trafficking
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  Speaker 1: and other crimes. She was sentenced in June 2022. In
• 6:41
  Speaker 1: response to Senate questioning, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanch has
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  Speaker 1: confirmed that USDOJ is not proceeding with any Epstein-related prosecutions
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  Speaker 1: at this time. Violating the promises that induced New Mexico
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  Speaker 1: to stand down, the state investigation into Epstein and his
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  Speaker 1: co-conspirators in 2019, USDOJ never shared information related to Epstein
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  Speaker 1: and his co-conspirators' conduct in and related to New Mexico.
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  Speaker 1: Despite the U.S. DOJ's failure to provide the information as promised,
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  Speaker 1: the NMDOJ continued pursuing avenues to advance justice for survivors.
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  Speaker 1: On December 26, 2023, and February 14, 2024, respectively, Deutsche
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  Speaker 1: Bank and JPMorgan Chase entered into agreements with New Mexico
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  Speaker 1: related to the banking services they provided to Epstein. The
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  Speaker 1: resulting funds from these agreements were dedicated to supporting the
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  Speaker 1: state's anti-human trafficking initiatives. Although these agreements represented an important step,
• 7:39
  Speaker 1: the investigation and possible prosecution of criminal conduct requires distinct
• 7:44
  Speaker 1: information and records solely in the USDOJ's possession. USDOJ's ongoing
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  Speaker 1: refusal to provide documents to New Mexico law enforcement. In
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  Speaker 1: February of 2026, NMDOJ reopened its investigation into potential criminal
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  Speaker 1: activity at Zorro Ranch. NMDOJ conducted the first law enforcement
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  Speaker 1: search of Zorro Ranch. Given the renewed investigation under Attorney
• 8:07
  Speaker 1: General Torres and the information released by USDOJ in redacted
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  Speaker 1: form confirming that it has relevant documents and evidence regarding
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  Speaker 1: criminal conduct in New Mexico, NMDOJ has asked USDOJ to
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  Speaker 1: finally live up to the 2019 agreement. and provide New
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  Speaker 1: Mexico non-public information related to potential crimes in New Mexico.
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  Speaker 1: Consistent with long-standing history of state and federal law enforcement
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  Speaker 1: collaboration and USDOJ's 2019 agreement, NMDOJ first sought access to
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  Speaker 1: this information on a voluntary law enforcement to law enforcement basis.
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  Speaker 1: On February 13, 2026, NMDOJ, through its Chief of Criminal Affairs,
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  Speaker 1: sent then Deputy Attorney General Blanche a letter requesting immediate
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  Speaker 1: production of the full, unredacted copy of a specific document
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  Speaker 1: in the Epstein files, EFTA 01-250-229, that alleges the burial
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  Speaker 1: of two female victims in the land surrounding Zorro Ranch,
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  Speaker 1: as well as production of any and all other unredacted documentation, correspondence,
• 9:12
  Speaker 1: investigative material, internal memoranda, or related records in your possession,
• 9:17
  Speaker 1: that reference or pertain to these allegations, Thoreau Ranch, or
• 9:20
  Speaker 1: potential victims connected to this matter. On March 13, 2026,
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  Speaker 1: Attorney General Torres then sent U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi
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  Speaker 1: a letter requesting immediate production of the full, unredacted copies
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  Speaker 1: of five additional specific documents in the Epstein files, EFTA 00006970, 00008631, 00008631,
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  Speaker 1: And requesting general access to unredacted versions of material related
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  Speaker 1: to Zorro Ren. These materials reflect victims of Epstein sexual
• 10:03
  Speaker 1: abuse recounting being brought by him to New Mexico and
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  Speaker 1: grand jury testimony by an FBI witness in the Maxwell
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  Speaker 1: case regarding abuse in New Mexico. The letter emphasized that
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  Speaker 1: access to complete unredacted versions of the material is essential
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  Speaker 1: and to advancing NMDOJ's investigation. And Attorney General Torres specifically
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  Speaker 1: offered to help facilitate the process and minimize the administrative
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  Speaker 1: burden on your office, we're prepared to send a team
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  Speaker 1: to main justice in D.C. at your convenience to conduct
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  Speaker 1: an in-person review of these materials subject to any security
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  Speaker 1: protocols and access conditions you deem necessary. This letter requested
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  Speaker 1: a response by March 27th. No response was ever received
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  Speaker 1: by that date. On April 1, 2026, NMDOJ Special Counsel
• 10:54
  Speaker 1: Sean Sullivan spoke with USDOJ Associate Deputy Attorney General Diego
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  Speaker 1: Pastana regarding NMDOJ's request. Mr. Pastana expressed USDOJ's willingness to
• 11:05
  Speaker 1: engage collaboratively with NMDOJ's investigation and acknowledged the critical importance
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  Speaker 1: of NMDOJ's investigation in ensuring justice for survivors. But contrary
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  Speaker 1: to historical practice, Mr. Pastana said, demanded that NMDOJ submit
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  Speaker 1: a formal TUI request addressed to DNM and the local
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  Speaker 1: New Mexico FBI field office. All right, we're going to
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  Speaker 1: wrap up part two here, and in the next episode
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  Speaker 1: dealing with the topic, we're going to pick up where
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  Speaker 1: we left off. All the information that goes with this
• 11:34
  Speaker 1: episode can be found in the description box.