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The U.S. Department of Justice has not released summaries or notes from three FBI interviews conducted in 2019 with a South Carolina woman who accused convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein of sexually assaulting her as a child and separately alleged sexual abuse by President Donald Trump, according to an analysis by NBC News and information from a source familiar with the investigation.
The missing interview records are also not available in the unredacted Epstein materials that members of Congress have been allowed to review at the U.S. Department of Justice, according to Rep. Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee.
The woman came forward to federal authorities shortly after Epstein’s 2019 arrest, alleging that Epstein sexually assaulted her on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, when she was 13 years old in the mid-1980s. A summary of her first FBI interview — dated July 24, 2019 — was included in the Epstein files released earlier this year.
But evidence catalogs from the criminal case against Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell show that the FBI interviewed the woman on four separate occasions: July 24, Aug. 7, Aug. 20 and Oct. 16, 2019. Only the July 24 interview summary has been made public.
Allegations against Trump not included in released interview
The July 24 summary details repeated sexual abuse allegations against Epstein but does not reference Trump.
A source familiar with the investigation confirmed that the Hilton Head survivor is the same woman who later alleged she was forced into a sexual act with Trump in New Jersey when she was 13 years old. It remains unclear whether that allegation was discussed in the three FBI interviews that have not been released.
The woman later filed a civil lawsuit against the Epstein estate in 2019, according to court filings and Justice Department records. She is not being named by news organizations because she is an alleged victim of sexual abuse.
Justice Department response
Asked about the missing records, the Justice Department said it had produced all documents required under the law.
“As we have always said, all documents responsive were produced,” a DOJ spokesperson said Wednesday, adding that materials not released fell into categories including duplicates, privileged records, or documents tied to an ongoing federal investigation.
The law governing the release of the Epstein files permits DOJ to withhold records containing victim-identifying information, child sexual abuse material, or information that could compromise an active investigation. It explicitly bars withholding documents solely due to embarrassment, reputational harm or political sensitivity involving public officials.
FBI references to Trump allegations
The allegation involving Trump appears in at least two other FBI records that were released.
One is an August 2025 document prepared by the FBI’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force summarizing tips received by the National Threat Operations Center. That document references claims involving Trump but notes that most reports were deemed not credible or were submitted without contact information.
The allegation is also mentioned in a separate FBI presentation summarizing the broader Epstein investigation.
In response to questions following the January release of Epstein-related documents, the White House pointed reporters to a DOJ statement asserting that claims involving Trump were “unfounded and false” and would have been “weaponized” if credible.
Congressional concerns over missing records
Garcia said he personally reviewed the unredacted Epstein files at DOJ earlier this week and was unable to locate the missing interview records — even in restricted form.
“There is definitely, in my opinion, evidence of a cover-up happening,” Garcia said in an interview with NBC News. “The FBI clearly investigated, and now those documents are gone.”
Garcia said the absence of the interviews appears to violate both the Epstein Files Transparency Act and a House Oversight Committee subpoena issued to DOJ in August 2025 seeking all Epstein-related materials.
White House response
In a statement to NPR, White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said Trump has been “totally exonerated” in matters relating to Epstein and accused Democrats of hypocrisy.
NBC News is not naming the woman. An attorney who has previously represented her did not respond to requests for comment.
Independent journalist Roger Sollenberger and NPR first reported the missing interview records.
