By Allison Morrow, Michelle Watson, Kara Scannell, Emma Tucker and Samantha Delouya | CNN
New York — The identities of dozens of people linked to Jeffrey Epstein are expected to be revealed as soon as Wednesday, potentially removing a cloak of anonymity that had shielded much of the accused sex trafficker’s prominent network of friends and business partners from public scrutiny.
An official with the Manhattan federal court said he expects the unsealing of documents to begin Wednesday.
“We have no specific timing, the information will be filed by the parties,” said Ed Friedland, district executive for the Southern District of New York, in a statement to CNN. “We expect it to begin today.”
The expected revelations in a trove of court documents come more than four years after Epstein, a convicted sex offender who nevertheless kept elite company, died in jail while awaiting federal sex-trafficking charges.
For years, the names of many of Epstein’s accusers and associates had been redacted in court documents, referred to only as a John Doe or Jane Doe.
But last month, a federal judge in New York ordered the documents to be released with nearly 200 names unredacted. Some names, including those of accusers who were under 18, will remain anonymous.
Many of the prominent figures in the documents have already been identified in the media, and several became public during the 2021 trial of Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s partner who was convicted of sex trafficking and who is serving a 20-year sentence in federal prison.
While there may not be a bombshell in the documents, any new details about Epstein’s activities could provide fodder for further lawsuits. With Epstein dead and Maxwell in prison, prosecutors could still pursue co-conspirators.
The unsealing also underscores the lack of a resolution for Epstein’s accusers. Prosecutors indicted Epstein in 2019, accusing him of preying upon and sexually abusing dozens of girls, some as young as 14,…
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