UN experts say Epstein files allegations may amount to crimes against humanity

A panel of independent experts appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council stated that millions of files related to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein suggest a "global criminal enterprise" involving acts that meet the legal threshold of crimes against humanity.

The experts described crimes outlined in documents released by the U.S. Justice Department as occurring against a backdrop of supremacist beliefs, racism, corruption and extreme misogyny, involving the commodification and dehumanization of women and girls.

"So grave is the scale, nature, systematic character, and transnational reach of these atrocities against women and girls, that a number of them may reasonably meet the legal threshold of crimes against humanity," the experts said in a statement.

They called for an independent, thorough and impartial investigation into the allegations and how such crimes could persist for so long. The U.S. Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

A law approved by Congress with broad bipartisan support in November requires all Epstein-related files to be made public. The experts raised concerns about "serious compliance failures and botched redactions" exposing sensitive victim information, with more than 1,200 victims identified in released documents so far.

"The reluctance to fully disclose information or broaden investigations, has left many survivors feeling retraumatized and subjected to what they describe as ‘institutional gaslighting,'" the experts said.

The Justice Department releases have revealed Epstein's ties to prominent figures in politics, finance, academia and business, both before and after his 2008 guilty plea to prostitution charges including soliciting an underage girl. Epstein was found hanged in his jail cell in 2019 after arrest on federal sex trafficking of minors charges. His death was ruled a suicide.