Newly examined records from Epstein’s final months show Jeffrey Epstein sought advice from associates as federal prosecutors secretly built the 2019 sex-trafficking case against him.
The CNN review drew on Justice Department files, FBI records, court documents, text messages and emails released through the Epstein files.
The Southern District of New York opened a covert investigation after the Miami Herald published stories in late 2018 about Epstein’s earlier plea deal.
Former U.S. Attorney Geoff Berman later wrote that prosecutors believed Epstein’s 2008 non-prosecution agreement applied only in Florida and did not block a New York case.
The Justice Department said in January 2026 that it had published more than 3 million additional pages tied to the Epstein Files Transparency Act, bringing total production close to 3.5 million pages.
The uploaded brief said FBI agents and prosecutors interviewed victims and witnesses in spring 2019 while keeping the investigation closely held.
The records reviewed by CNN show Epstein communicated with Steve Bannon, Kathy Ruemmler, Michael Wolff and others as he tried to respond to renewed scrutiny.
Bannon discussed a documentary project with Epstein and advised him on media strategy. Bannon later told The New York Times that he approached Epstein as a filmmaker interviewing a controversial subject.
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The review also says Epstein received legal and reputational advice from Ruemmler, a former White House counsel who knew him through professional circles.
Federal prosecutors secured a sealed indictment in New York in June 2019. Epstein was arrested on July 6, 2019, after returning from Paris. Epstein pleaded not guilty to sex-trafficking charges on July 8, 2019. He died in federal custody in August 2019.
The Associated Press has reported that later Epstein file releases included new details about his communications with wealthy and politically connected figures before his death.
