NEW: Orange County Register: Rep. Dave Min Meets With Survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s Abuse

Washington, D.C. — Following growing calls for the release of the Epstein files, Representative Dave Min (CA-47), along with a bipartisan group of lawmakers, met with survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse. In a new interview with the OC Register, Rep. Min asserted that there is more information about the Epstein operation that must be made public, and that both the survivors, and the American people, deserve full transparency and accountability. 

“What’s not clear to young women and girls right now is whether America is going to stand up and protect young girls and women from sex trafficking and sex assault,” said Rep. Min. “Can we get justice for Epstein’s survivors and send a message to the country that we’re not going to tolerate sex trafficking and sex assault even if it involves the rich and the powerful?”

As the chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus’s Anti-Corruption Taskforce and a member of the House Oversight Committee, Rep. Min continues to push for full transparency and the immediate release of the Epstein files. 

Orange County Register

Rep. Dave Min meets with survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse

Kaitlyn Schallhorn

• As part of his work on the House Oversight Committee, Rep. Dave Min this week met with several survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse.
• Min said he was struck by what several survivors noted was the “revictimization” of their experience, how there were times when they thought they would get justice, but then something would happen to cause additional trauma, such as the recent move of Ghislaine Maxwell to a minimum-security prison camp.
• Maxwell, Epstein’s former girlfriend, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for luring underage girls for his abuse.
• These survivors have been afraid to hope for justice, Min said, because of threats they had received and because of the impacts of revictimization.
• “First and foremost, we need to get a resolution,” for the survivors of Epstein’s abuse, Min said in an interview after meeting with the victims.
• Many survivors were in Washington, D.C., this week demanding that lawmakers release more details and files on the investigation into Epstein’s sex trafficking operation. They shared publicly, and candidly, how they were lured into the abuse.
• Meanwhile, President Donald Trump on Wednesday called the push for greater transparency into the Epstein investigation a “Democrat hoax that never ends.”
• The Oversight Committee on Tuesday released what it said was the first tranche of documents and files it has received from the U.S. Department of Justice on the Epstein case.
• But the hundreds of image files of years-old court filings related to Epstein contained practically nothing new.
• Min said there is more information about the Epstein operation and investigation that needs to be made public that “the survivors deserve access to, the American people deserve access to.”
• “Survivors want this, and we need to proceed in a way that’s respectful to the survivors,” said Min.
• He added that one victim told him, “Young women and girls around the country are watching very closely.”
• “What’s not clear to young women and girls right now is whether America is going to stand up and protect young girls and women from sex trafficking and sex assault,” he said. “Can we get justice for Epstein’s survivors and send a message to the country that we’re not going to tolerate sex trafficking and sex assault even if it involves the rich and the powerful?”
• Even though Maxwell is in prison and Epstein is dead — he died by suicide in 2019 while in jail awaiting trial — Min maintained there are still more people who were involved who need to be held accountable, whether they simply turned a blind eye to what was happening or actively aided and abetted Epstein.
• “We need to send a message that this is not tolerated in this country,” Min said. “And then going forward, we need to do a better job of protecting young girls and women.”

###