New Mexico accuses Justice Department of stalling Epstein ranch probe

New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez said the Justice Department has held back unredacted Epstein-related files for about 130 days, delaying a reopened investigation into Zorro Ranch. Torrez said his office needs the unredacted names of survivors, witnesses, alleged co-conspirators and other essential people before it can press the case further.

The dispute reaches back to the state’s earlier handling of Epstein-related allegations. New Mexico first closed its case in 2019 at the request of federal prosecutors in New York, then reopened the matter in February 2026 after the release of previously sealed FBI material. Zorro Ranch, near Stanley in Santa Fe County, was bought by Epstein in 1993. He built a hilltop mansion and private runway there and owned the property until his death in 2019.

The missing documents could determine whether the state can identify additional victims, corroborate witness accounts and decide whether other crimes or accomplices should be pursued. The Justice Department responded to New Mexico’s request in June, leaving the two sides in a dispute over both timing and completeness. Without the unredacted material, investigators may be forced to work with an incomplete record of what happened on the ranch over nearly three decades.

The United States Department of Justice Epstein Library houses materials responsive under the Epstein Files Transparency Act and was last updated June 9, 2026. On January 30, 2026, the department published more than 3 million additional pages, bringing the total production to nearly 3.5 million pages.

A July 2025 Justice Department memo said Epstein-related files included a large volume of images and videos of victims who were minors or appeared to be minors, along with more than 10,000 downloaded images and videos of illegal child sex abuse material and pornography. In Santa Fe, the New Mexico House passed House Resolution 1 in the 2026 session, creating a special investigatory subcommittee to examine allegations of criminal activity and public corruption.