Washington, Feb 20. (dpa/GNA) – New Mexico prosecutors said on Thursday, they plan to reopen a criminal investigation into possible illegal activities at a ranch linked to late financier Jeffrey Epstein, citing newly released federal documents.
The probe had been shelved in 2019 at the request of the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. However, the release of previously sealed Epstein files by the US Justice Department “warrant further examination,” New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez said on X.
Torrez said special investigators and prosecutors at the New Mexico Department of Justice would seek immediate access to the complete, unredacted federal case file. The focus of the renewed inquiry is the so-called Zorro Ranch, which authorities say belonged to Epstein.
Media reports have alleged that sexual abuse and human trafficking may have taken place at the property. Time magazine recently reported on multiple allegations related to the ranch contained in the Epstein files.
It cited a 2019 anonymous email to then-Albuquerque mayoral candidate Eddy Aragon claiming that two “foreign girls” were buried in hills near the ranch on the orders of “Jeffrey and Madam G.”
“Madam G.” is widely believed to refer to Ghislaine Maxwell, a longtime associate of Epstein. There is currently no evidence substantiating the burial allegations.
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