In late December 2025, the U.S. Department of Justice, under Attorney General Pamela Bondi, released a massive tranche of documents related to Jeffrey Epstein—nearly 30,000 pages across thousands of files, including emails, court records, photos, and flight logs. This release, part of the ongoing compliance with the Epstein Files Transparency Act, has reignited scrutiny over Epstein’s associations, with Donald Trump’s name surfacing repeatedly in connection to the financier’s infamous private jet, often dubbed the “Lolita Express.”
A standout revelation comes from a January 2020 internal email by an unidentified federal prosecutor in New York. The email states that newly received flight records showed Trump “traveled on Epstein’s private jet many more times than previously has been reported (or that we were aware).” Specifically, Trump is listed as a passenger on at least eight flights between 1993 and 1996. At least four of those included Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s convicted co-conspirator. One flight reportedly featured only Trump, Epstein, and a redacted 20-year-old woman as passengers. Others involved women who could serve as potential witnesses in Maxwell’s case.
These domestic flights—primarily between New Jersey, Palm Beach, and Washington, D.C.—align with the period when Epstein’s trafficking activities were allegedly active, though the documents emphasize that Trump’s presence on the logs does not imply wrongdoing. The Justice Department has cautioned that some materials contain “untrue and sensationalist claims” submitted to the FBI ahead of the 2020 election, distancing itself from unsubstantiated allegations.
Trump and Epstein’s relationship dates back to the 1980s and 1990s, a time when both moved in New York’s elite social circles. Trump once described Epstein as a “terrific guy” who liked “beautiful women… on the younger side,” though he later claimed a falling out. Previous public flight logs had shown Trump on the plane several times, but this DOJ release suggests the frequency was underreported.
The document dump has drawn mixed reactions. Supporters point to the lack of direct evidence tying Trump to Epstein’s crimes, while critics highlight the redactions, delays, and the administration’s initial resistance to full disclosure. The Justice Department missed the December 19, 2025, statutory deadline for complete release, citing the need to protect victims’ identities. By early January 2026, officials reported that only a fraction—less than 1% of potentially millions of pages—had been made public, with over two million documents still under review.
As additional batches trickle out amid bipartisan pressure and growing conspiracy theories, the flight log references serve as a stark reminder of the tangled web Epstein wove among the powerful. The question lingers: how much more remains hidden in the shadows of those private jet manifests?
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