The Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama on February 8 rejected social media claims trying to link the Tibetan spiritual leader to late US financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
In a statement issued from Dharamsala, the office said it could “unequivocally confirm” that the Dalai Lama had never met Epstein and had never authorised any interaction with him on his behalf. It noted that recent posts referring to the so-called “Epstein files” were falsely attempting to draw a connection between the two.
The clarification follows the January 31 release of a massive cache of investigative material related to Epstein by the US Department of Justice. According to officials, the release included more than three million pages of records, over 2,000 videos and around 180,000 images tied to the case.
US Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said the move fulfilled a transparency requirement passed by Congress last year. He described it as the conclusion of an extensive review process aimed at ensuring legal compliance while making the documents available to the public.
The disclosure came after Congress passed the Epstein Files Transparency Act in November, mandating the publication of all federal records connected to Epstein. The Justice Department had earlier missed a December 19 deadline for the full release, as reported by Al Jazeera.
Officials said hundreds of lawyers were tasked with reviewing the documents to determine what needed to be redacted, particularly to protect victims’ identities and avoid affecting ongoing investigations. Blanche said any material that could expose victims or interfere with inquiries was withheld.
Among the newly released material are images showing several well-known public figures socialising with Epstein, including Bill Gates, Steve Bannon, Woody Allen and former US President Bill Clinton. None of them has been charged in connection with the case.
Epstein, who was indicted on federal sex trafficking charges involving minors, died by apparent suicide in a New York jail cell in August 2019, about a month after his arrest. He had previously served 13 months in prison in Florida under a controversial 2008 plea agreement.