A U.S. senator has introduced legislation aimed at compelling the Treasury Department to disclose financial records tied to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, including the names of potential trafficking victims and associates.
Senator Ron Wyden, a Democrat from Oregon, is pushing the Trump administration to release documents detailing over $1.5 billion in wire transfers. According to a statement from his office, these records could expose how banks like J.P. Morgan violated anti-money laundering laws, enabling Epstein to continue abusing and trafficking individuals long after authorities were alerted.
This effort follows a recent release of files by the House Oversight Committee, which included a note with a signature resembling President Trump’s. The White House dismissed it as a forgery, and Trump denied it was his.
Wyden, now the ranking Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, previously led the panel under President Joe Biden. During that time, committee investigators reviewed much of the material in person at the Treasury Department. The files, his office noted, “detail Epstein transactions totaling at least $1.5 billion and include the names of women and girls he may have trafficked, as well as individuals whose involvement with him could expose them to blackmail or foreign corruption.”
Despite repeated requests, the Treasury Department has not provided the records. Wyden’s proposed law would require Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to release a list of banks that filed Suspicious Activity Reports on Epstein, as well as the entities and individuals named in those reports. It would also mandate information on how the Treasury and its Financial Crimes Enforcement Network handled the reports.
A recent New York Times investigation highlighted how J.P. Morgan benefited from its ties to Epstein, even opening accounts for young women later identified as trafficking victims. A bank spokesperson told the Times the relationship “was a mistake” but denied aiding his crimes. J.P. Morgan had no further comment on Wyden’s draft.
Deutsche Bank also faced scrutiny, with New York state regulators fining it $150 million in 2020 for failing to flag Epstein-related suspicious transactions despite knowing his criminal history. Deutsche Bank did not respond to a request for comment.
The Treasury Department documents reportedly track Epstein’s payments over time, including actions after a 2018 Miami Herald series that led to his 2019 arrest and subsequent death in jail. Wyden is seeking information on 72 entities and individuals linked to Epstein, such as a defunct Jersey trust named La Hougue and British lawyer Malcolm Grumbridge—both highlighted in a 2022 OCCRP and Miami Herald probe into the finances of Epstein’s associate, Ghislaine Maxwell. Grumbridge previously said he was an “external adviser” to the Maxwell family with no role in the trust’s activities.
“Following the money is key to identifying Epstein’s clients and the enablers of his sex trafficking network,” Wyden stated, emphasizing the need for deeper investigation.