(WASHINGTON) –Attorney General Pam Bondi said Monday that Deputy Attorney Todd Blanche will meet with Ghislaine Maxwell, the convicted associate of deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, sometime in the “coming days.”
“President Trump has told us to release all credible evidence. If Ghislane Maxwell has information about anyone who has committed crimes against victims, the FBI and the DOJ will hear what she has to say,” Blanche said in the statement posted by Bondi on X.
Blanche also said that the joint statement from the Justice Department and FBI on July 6 — which stated they would not release any additional files on Epstein and that they determined there was no Epstein “client list” — “remains as accurate today as it was when it was written.”
“Namely, that in the recent thorough review of the files maintained by the FBI in the Epstein case, no evidence was uncovered that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties,” Blanche said.
He added that up “until now, no administration on behalf of the Department had inquired about her willingness to meet with the government.”
The statement comes as a growing chorus of lawmakers have called for Maxwell to testify about her relationship with Epstein, and while the department is actively opposing Maxwell’s efforts to appeal her conviction for conspiring with and aiding Epstein in his sexual abuse of underage girls.
David Oscar Markus, the appellate counsel for Maxwell, confirmed to ABC News that they are in talks with the government.
“I can confirm that we are in discussions with the government, and that Ghislaine will always testify truthfully,” Markus said. “We are grateful to President Trump for his commitment to uncovering the truth in this case.”
Maxwell was convicted of sex trafficking and other charges and sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2022.
Amid growing calls from Republicans to release the Epstein files, an Oversight subcommittee approved a motion on Tuesday morning to direct Chairman James Comer to issue a subpoena for Maxwell testimony.
The motion was offered by Republican Rep. Tim Burchett during an unrelated hearing in the Subcommittee on Government Operations. Burchett’s motion was approved by a voice vote with only a few members present in the room.
“It’s about to get real,” Rep. Burchett posted on X.
Comer said he plans to subpoena Maxwell “as expeditiously as possible,” according to a committee spokeswoman.
“Since Ms. Maxwell is in federal prison, the Committee will work with the Department of Justice and the Bureau of Prisons to identify a date when Committee can depose her,” the spokeswoman said.
House Speaker Mike Johnson brought up the Epstein files during a GOP House news conference Tuesday and reiterated his calls to release the files, but emphasized that there needs to be protection for the victims.
“There are innocent victims of those sex crimes,” Johnson told reporters.
Johnson also slammed Democrats for calling out the administration for not being transparent in the Epstein case.
“What we refuse to do is participate in the Democrats’ political games,” he said.
Several hours later, when asked about the meeting between Maxwell and Blanche, Trump said he “doesn’t know a thing” about it, but said the meeting “sounds appropriate to do.”
“I don’t really follow that too much,” Trump said, calling the demand for the release of the files to be a “witch hunt.”
Last week, President Donald Trump ordered the DOJ to “release all Grand Jury testimony with respect to Jeffrey Epstein, subject only to Court Approval,” he said on social media.
The DOJ requested in its filing, which was signed by Bondi and Blanche, for the court to “conclude that the Epstein and [Ghislaine] Maxwell cases qualify as a matter of public interest, release the associated grand jury transcripts, and lift preexisting protective orders.”
ABC News’ Lauren Peller contributed to this report.
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