Peter Mandelson was British ambassador to the USA.Image: keystone
The recent publication of new documents about Jeffrey Epstein is reaching ever wider circles – even as far as Europe. An overview.
02/03/2026, 06:1402/03/2026, 06:26
Anna-Lena Janzen / t-online
Last Friday, the Justice Department in Washington released more than three million additional documents related to the Epstein case, including emails, photos and videos. The names of numerous influential personalities appear again, including today’s US President Donald Trump, tech multi-billionaire Elon Musk and Microsoft founder Bill Gates.
The recent publication of new documents is also reaching wider circles as far as Europe. Names of celebrities from France, Norway and Slovakia appeared in the new files. The focus is on various people who are said to have had contact with Epstein. Epstein’s contacts in Switzerland are also documented, including with models and entrepreneurs Xenia Tchoumi or to Swiss banks.
Former British ambassador Peter Mandelson
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer ordered one on Monday Investigation into the contacts of the former British ambassador to the USA, Peter Mandelsonto the sex offender Epstein. The files brought Mandelson’s close ties to Epstein back into focus. Starmer’s spokesman said that “all available information about Peter Mandelson’s contacts with Jeffrey Epstein during his time as minister” would now be examined. In addition, Mandelson should be expelled from the British upper house, the House of Lords.
Mandelson was removed as ambassador in September because of the revelations. The reason was emails from the Briton to Epstein that became known at the time. According to the new documents, the Labor politician is said to have received money from Epstein on several occasions in the early 2000s. Further documents are said to prove Epstein’s transfers to Mandelson’s partner Reinaldo Avila da Silva.
In an interview with the BBC, Mandelson said he did not know whether the bank statements were authentic. However, on Sunday evening he resigned from the Labor Party, saying he did not want to “further embarrass the party”.
The British “Guardian” reported that Mandelson was now facing a police investigation for allegedly passing on market-relevant information to Epstein at the height of the financial crisis. Documents from the newly released files suggest that Mandelson sent a series of emails that contained confidential information the government received to deal with the global financial crisis. Mandelson was economics minister at the time.
Former French minister Jack Lang
The name of former French culture and education minister Jack Lang also appears in the new Epstein files. Accordingly, Lang and his daughter Caroline maintained contacts with the US financial investor. According to the French online magazine “Mediapart”, there is no evidence in the files that Lang or his daughter were involved in Epstein’s criminal activities. According to the newspaper Le Monde, Lang asked Epstein for favors such as the use of a car or plane for himself or his family.
Jack Lang.Image: keystone
Lang told the AFP news agency that he met the US investor “about 15 years ago” through the US director Woody Allen. He “fully stands by the connections” he once built with Epstein. At the time, nothing indicated to him that Epstein “could be at the center of a criminal network.” He was “completely shocked” when he found out about Epstein’s crimes.
Slovakian former foreign minister Miroslav Lajčák
According to the latest documents, Epstein was also apparently connected in Slovakia: Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico accepted the resignation of long-time Foreign Minister Miroslaw Lajčák on Sunday because of alleged connections to Epstein.
Lajčák apparently communicated with Eptein through diplomacy – and women. An SMS history from October 2018 in the files shows this. Epstein shared a photo that does not appear in the files. Lajčák replied: «Why don’t you invite me to these games? I would take the girl with the ‘MI’,” says Lajčák. “Who wouldn’t want that?” Epstein replied.
«You can have both, I’m not possessive. And her sisters too.”
Miroslav Lajčák.Image: www.imago-images.de
Lajčák denied any wrongdoing. According to Slovak media reports, he said the communication was informal and light-hearted. He resigned “not because I did anything criminal or unethical, but because he did [der Premierminister] doesn’t have to face political consequences for something that has nothing to do with his decisions.”
Norwegian Crown Princess Mette-Marit
Norwegian Crown Princess Mette-Marit has admitted “embarrassing” mistakes after Norwegian media reported that her name appears at least a thousand times in the new files.
The latest revelations indicate that Mette-Marit knew the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein personally well and maintained active contact with him. One email caused particular outrage: Mette-Marit asked Epstein his opinion on a wallpaper with two naked women and a surfboard for her then 15-year-old son.
Mette-Marit said she broke off contact with Epstein in 2013. She claims to have known nothing about his criminal activities. However, Epstein had already been convicted five years earlier and pleaded guilty to providing clients with underage prostitutes. He avoided further proceedings because of a deal with the public prosecutor.
Princess Sofia of Sweden
Princess Sofia of Sweden was also mentioned in the files. The Swedish royal court confirmed that she had only had limited contact with Epstein in the past.
In the newly released files there is a picture of her in which Epstein refers to her as “Our Sofia”. The email said: “Soon Princess Sofia… the entire Swedish press is looking for her… while she is in Africa!” The email appears to have been sent in 2010, when the princess was still called Sofia Hellqvist, five years before she married Prince Carl Philip.
Princess Sofia was also mentioned in a file released in December. The Swedish royal court said at the time that Princess Sofia “had been introduced to the person in question a few times around 2005.” It went on to say: “The princess has not had any contact with the person in question for 20 years.”
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and ex-wife Sarah Ferguson
The documents also shed new light on the extent of the connections between Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson. “Thank you, Jeffrey, for being the brother I always wanted,” says an email that Ferguson wrote to Epstein in August 2009 – a year after his first conviction. In another email, “Fergie” wrote to Epstein:
«I am at your service. Just marry me.”
In an earlier interview, Ferguson apologized for accepting the equivalent of around 17,210 euros from the billionaire. She emphasized that she “never” wanted to have anything to do with Epstein again. She described the loan as a “giant mistake”.
The name of the former British prince also appears several times in the new files. This includes a photo that appears to show Mountbatten-Windsor on all fours over a woman lying on the floor. The woman’s face is unrecognizable and she is lying on her back. In one of the pictures he appears to have his hand on her stomach. The images are undated, have no caption and do not indicate any wrongdoing. Among other things, emails that Andrew sent to Jeffrey Epstein were also published. Andrew was also accused of rape and sexual abuse. He denies any allegations against him. Because of Andrew’s involvement, his brother, King Charles III, stripped him of all badges of honor, including his title of prince, last year.
Epstein was the head of a criminal network
The US investor Epstein was suspected of having abused thousands of minors and young women and of having introduced them to celebrities. He was first convicted in 2008 for using the services of underage prostitutes. Because of a controversial deal with the public prosecutor, he received only 18 months in prison.
In 2019 he was arrested again for, among other things, sexual abuse of minors. About a month later, he was found hanging in his New York prison cell. According to official information, he committed suicide.
Naming a person in the files does not mean that they are guilty of a crime. However, the papers contain some serious allegations against individuals, such as allegations of abuse against US President Trump. However, the US judiciary has decided not to file new charges. (t-online/afp/con)
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