New Mexico Reopens Probe into Jeffrey Epsteins Zorro Ranch

New Mexico Reopens Investigation into Jeffrey Epstein’s Ranch

The New Mexico Attorney General’s office has announced that it is reopening an investigation into possible illegal activity at a ranch formerly owned by convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The decision was made after new information was revealed in unsealed FBI files, which were recently released by the US Department of Justice.

In 2019, a state investigation into Epstein’s Zorro Ranch was closed at the request of federal prosecutors in New York. However, Attorney General Raul Torrez has stated that the revelations outlined in the previously sealed FBI files warrant further examination of the case.

The unsealed documents were published online on January 30 as part of a law requiring their release. The files relate to Epstein’s activities and connections to various individuals and organizations.

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, a former prince in the UK royal family, was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office earlier this week. His arrest has renewed calls for accountability for those involved in Epstein’s crimes.

Epstein was convicted of solicitation and procuring a minor for sex in Florida in 2008. He entered into a plea deal widely considered lenient, serving only 13 months of an 18-month sentence. The US Department of Justice has maintained that it has found no evidence of criminal conduct beyond the charges against Epstein and his former girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell.

State lawmakers have launched a truth commission to probe allegations that the Zorro Ranch may have been a site of sexual abuse and sex trafficking. The commission will also investigate why Epstein was not registered as a sex offender in New Mexico after he pleaded guilty in 2008.

The Attorney General’s office has stated that it will work with the commission and seek access to the complete, un-redacted federal case files related to Epstein.

Source: Al Jazeera