Private Hands, Public Questions: Epstein Evidence Removal Sparks Congressional Probe (3/27/26)

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What's up everyone and welcome to another episode

of the Epstein Chronicles.

A couple of weeks ago we were talking about the private investigators

who removed evidence from Epstein's home.

While now we're hearing that the House Oversight panel

is seeking testimony from these private investigators

about what kind of evidence was moved

and the craziest part is the DOJ.

Never seized any of this information,

never seized any of this evidence, never seized any

of these desktop computers, never seized any of it,

just like they never rated Zorro Ranch,

just like they never rated the houses in Colorado.

I guess all of that was just an oversight.

Maybe they forgot that Jeffrey Epstein had other properties

to raid, or that he had storage units

that needed to be searched.

I remember when Rex Huriman was first arrested

and accused of being the Long Island serial killer.

They raided what two, three different storage units

that this dude had.

Meanwhile, you have a guy like Jeffrey Epstein,

who has houses that remain untouched,

and storage units that the DOJ didn't even care about.

So now the House Oversight Committee is trying to get a handle

on what might have been in those storage units

and in hopes of doing that, they've hit the private eyes

with subpoenas.

So today we have an article from ABC News and the headline.

House Oversight Panel seeks testimony from private investigators

who removed evidence from Epstein's home.

The authors of this article are Lauren Peller, Peter,

Charlembeau, and James Hill.

Democrats on the House Oversight Committee are seeking testimony

from private investigators who were removed and stored

a trove of evidence from the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein's

Palm Beach Mansion before it was searched by police in 2005.

According to letters reviewed by ABC News.

So you need to tell me that this was a expansive investigation

that no stone was left unturned, that everybody was looked at,

everybody was talked to, everybody was brought in.

Well, we know that's not true.

And it's not just me telling you that anymore,

like I always say, you now have that evidence for yourself.

This whole entire thing down in Florida was nothing more than theater.

The idea was to get it off the plate.

The federal government knew how damaging it could be for them.

So they wanted the state to take care of it, right?

Kick it right back down the state and wipe our hands clean of it.

That's what they thought.

They never thought that this was going to pop back up,

that people were going to still be interested in what happened

with Epstein, that Julie Kay Brown would kick off her series.

Yet here we are.

And now people want answers.

And I think that if you really want to get to the bottom of what happened,

you have to start at Ground Zero.

And Ground Zero, obviously, is the first investigation in Florida.

While the Department of Justice appearing to have never obtained the evidence,

which included three desktop computers and more than two dozen phone directories,

lawmakers want to interview the men about the removal of what could have been

key evidence for police and prosecutors in their probe and Epstein's ex-trafficking.

And I think the big question here is, how did they know to remove it?

Who tipped them off?

Because somebody tipped Jeffrey Epstein off down in Florida without a doubt.

Was it Sandy Burger?

Was it somebody else? Who knows?

But somebody definitely tipped them off.

Because if you remember, by the time that the authorities got there,

everything was removed.

The hard drives were gone, the computers were gone, wires were dangling.

Nothing left to be found.

The committee requests that you make yourself available for a transcribed interview

to provide insight into the contents, removal, storage, and location of the materials removed

from Mr. Epstein's Palm Beach home.

Oversight committee ranking member, representative Robert Garcia of California,

wrote in letters that were sent to three private investigators who were working for Epstein.

I'm sure that's an enjoyable email to get, or note to get, or whatever.

Yeah, we're going to need you to come in and talk about Jeffrey Epstein

and why you hid some information and evidence that could have helped the cops.

See you on such and such a date.

The next call is directly to your lawyer, right?

Uh, so and so?

I got a big problem.

And it's Epstein related.

The committee also seeks information regarding the reason for the removal of these materials,

the potential withholding of these materials from law enforcement,

and any other information regarding the activities and crimes of Jeffrey Epstein,

and any of his co-conspirators, Garcia wrote.

ABC News last month reported about the removal of potential evidence,

which may have shielded Epstein from legal scrutiny, and contributed to how he was able to largely

have a justice for more than a decade.

And I think that's a valid line of questioning, right?

I mean, you have these computers, you have this evidence, and it's all in this storage room.

And according to reports, it was moved, right before the house was rated,

like for real, and the original investigators had no questions about that.

Alex Acosta, Marieville Lafana, nobody wanted to kick in the door and get that information.

Oh, that's right.

The operation was being run by Matt Menchel, and Matt Menchel, while he had other ideas,

and unfortunately none of those ideas had anything to do with Jeffrey Epstein really being held accountable.

There was good reason to believe the computers contain relevant and potentially critical information,

and it was clear Epstein did not want the contents of his computers disclosed.

The OPR report said,

Oh, I wonder why.

You really think Jeffrey Epstein wants anyone rifling around on his computer,

considering the nonsense he was up to?

Highly doubt that.

But again, my question is, who the hell tipped this guy off?

Who let him know that the cops were coming, and that he had to get rid of all this evidence before they got there?

I think that's a pretty big question.

And I think it really goes to the heart of the real problem down here in Florida.

The fix was in, from the very beginning, before the guy was even arrested, the fix was in.

And I think at this point it's indisputable.

In letters first obtained by ABC News, Garcia formally requested that private investigator Paul Lavry, Stephen Curly, and William Riley,

appear separately for voluntary transcribed interviews.

The deadline for the investigators to respond is April 9th.

According to the letters Epstein's longtime attorney, Darren Indyke, who sat for a deposition before the oversight panel last week,

told lawmakers that the evidence was likely never turned over to law enforcement.

Like, how's that even possible?

If you got in trouble, believe me.

The feds, they're getting all of it.

Whatever information's available, whatever information exists, they're getting that shit.

And they're going to use it against you.

But Jeffrey Epstein, ah, come on.

Nothing to see here, folks.

Just a guy that was soliciting a girl for some sex, no big deal.

Ah, she wasn't even a minor. She was about to be 18.

That's the kind of bullshit they're pulling on us.

And I find it wholly unacceptable.

After Epstein's conviction, after he served gel time, through conversations with Defense Council,

I became aware that there were computer hard drives in the possession of private investigators.

Indyke said in his deposition,

I just don't know how they came into possession, but I knew of the existence of hard drives.

Again, he had no idea, nobody knew anything, folks.

Nobody had any idea what was going on, and they were all just winging it.

Everybody was just, you know, going on vibes.

Look, the truth is, every single person who's come up and given a deposition so far has lied.

They've all perjured themselves, and nothing's going to happen.

This would have to be a real investigation for something to happen.

And it most certainly is not.

Documents released earlier this year by the Department of Justice shed new light on the removal of the potential evidence.

According to a 2005 memo from private investigator William Riley,

to one of Epstein's criminal defense lawyers,

slavery visited Epstein's Palm Beach home to remove items of potential evidentiary value

less than two weeks before police raided the mansion in October of 2005.

Obviously, tipped off what he just had a vision.

He was sitting around and he called the psychic hotline and Miss Cleo picked up,

and she was like, oh, yeah, I'm on.

You're going to be redded in two weeks, because short of that, somebody tipped them off.

So the question is, who?

Lavry removed more than 100 pieces of potential evidence according to an index released by the DOJ,

including the three computers, 29-bound telephone directories, and a listing of nearby masseuses,

as well as a trove of sexually explicit materials.

Among the removed material was a photo with a handwritten message saying,

you better never forget about me, from an unknown woman who signed her name, class of 2005.

When the Palm Beach Police Department searched Epstein's home two weeks later,

investigators noted that multiple computers from the property were conspicuously absent from the home,

including one linked to Epstein's surveillance system.

Oh, I wonder why?

I'm sure it was all just a coincidence, right?

Just like the video from the jail, or the fact that Jeffrey Epstein was logged in as an African American person in jail.

Or the fact that he was put in a cell with Tartag Leoni.

All this stuff is just a coincidence.

And if you don't think so, you're a conspiracy theorist. That's the narrative.

But the truth is a long way from their narrative, isn't it?

And the truth is, we've been bullshitted from the very beginning.

While federal prosecutors attempted to recover the evidence while investigating Epstein in the late 2000s,

including a subpoena for Riley for testimony, law enforcement agreed to abandon the effort

when Epstein agreed to the 2008 plea deal that allowed him to avoid a lengthy jail sentence.

Documents released by the Department of Justice indicate Epstein's attorneys continue to keep tabs

on the evidence to ensure the material were not disclosed to attorneys for Epstein's victims in civil litigation.

Can you imagine what was on those computers and how much evidence the DOJ just let walk away?

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In 2009, Riley confirmed that he would continue to store the material in a safe and secure location, though the evidence location in the following decade remains unclear.

If at any time you're unable to maintain possession of those materials or have any concern whatsoever that Mr. Epstein's possessions may be compromised in any manner, please advise me immediately.

Such that we can take the necessary actions to protect and preserve those materials as is required in the non-prosecution agreement and attorney for Epstein wrote in a letter memorializing the conversation about the evidence.

So let's get rid of the NPA, which is illegal anyway, which has already been shit on by the court, and then let's get down to business.

Oh wait, Pam Bondy's in charge. She's not going to do that. That would out all of Donald Trump's friends, and we can have that, can we?

Billing records of the private detective agency owned by Riley and Curly, both former Miami police officers, show that the firms invoices for Epstein and his attorneys spent several years and included recurring charges for a storage facility, according to records included in the DOJ's release of the Epstein files.

The DOJ knew exactly where this stuff was, and they didn't want to touch it. Was it that radioactive? I don't know. Maybe we'll find out, but I doubt it.

Riley and Lavery did not respond to requests for comment last month. Rich by phone, Curly said he would not discuss anything related to Jeffrey Epstein.

Garcia told ABC News, it's incredibly troubling that Epstein's computers and hard drives were in possession of private investigators and may have never been seen by any law enforcement agency.

Are we not even going to mention the fact that he was tipped off? That might be important, because what does it matter if the law enforcement agency sees the information that's on the computer or the evidence that's inside of those documents, if they're not going to act on it.

And if somebody from law enforcement tipped them off, we got a bigger problem here. And as you know, I believe we have a bigger problem here.

The idea that now these private investigators have this enormous amount of information that has not been accessible to us on the committee or in Congress or the American public is pretty significant, Garcia said.

They are an important part of our investigation. House Democrats and the letters requested that the investigators preserve all relevant material in their possession, including hard drives, storage devices, backup archive data, cloud-based storage accounts, financial records, videos, photos, audio recordings, and all communications.

The committee also requested any records reflecting the transfer, custody, or handling of the above materials and any physical items that were taken from Jeffrey Epstein's home. They're not going to get that.

You can ask for it, but I don't recall. I forgot. Oh, that was misplaced. I expect a whole lot of that. Yo, can we be real? Any evidence that was in those files or anything that was on those hard drives is long gone?

What it's all preserved? Give me a break. While Garcia's invitation for a voluntary testimony, if the men do not cooperate, the committee could vote to subpoena them or the Republican chairman of the committee representative James Comer of Kentucky could also unilaterally compel them to testify.

Oh, we're relying on Comer again, huh? It's like relying on a blind guide to get you up Mount Everest. Not really going to work out the way you think.

We're bringing in anyone that has information that could be helpful to our investigation and hopefully will be able to get to the truth to the American people and provide some type of justice for the victims. Comer said after a recent deposition with Epstein's accountant Richard Khan.

I really wish that Comer cared, but he doesn't. And it's his actions that show us that this whole entire thing is nothing more than a way to help Donald Trump.

Then a way to help Donald Trump. That's what he's trying to do.

Maria Villafana, the former assistant US attorney who pushed to indict Epstein during the investigation in Florida previously said, if the evidence on the missing computers had been what we suspected it was, it would have put this case completely to bed, according to the OPR report.

Yeah, Villafana is not a hero here.

And I have an email from Villafana where she's working with Epstein's lawyers to try and find statutes to charge him with a lesser crime. And over the weekend, I'll be sharing that with you.

Acosta said he had no recollection of the efforts to obtain the computers and objected to the report's conclusion that he should have given greater consideration to pursuing the evidence before entering the deal with Epstein, the report said.

Look, Acosta was just window dressing.

The decision came down from justice, remain justice, and that was a leap and mucasey. And remember, it was mental who really designed this plea deal.

You know, the guy that ended up being Jeffrey Epstein's buddy. Yeah, that guy. And as far as the evidence inside of that storage room, who the hell knows what was in there or what's in there now?

And maybe Congress should stop being nice and stop asking if this guy wants to come in or these guys want to come in to talk and order them to do so.

And will that happen? Who knows? We'll have to see what goes on and if these investigators try to fight this invitation to speak to Congress.

And like usual, we'll keep an eye on this one and we'll see where it all ends up.

All the information that goes with this episode can be found in the description box.

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