Alex Acosta, in a closed-door interview with lawmakers Friday, defended the widely criticized plea deal he brokered with Jeffrey Epstein while a U.S. attorney in Florida.
Acosta, who later served as Secretary of Labor during the first Trump administration, resigned from that post amid scrutiny of his handling of the Epstein case years earlier. He agreed voluntarily to sit with members of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee as part of the panel’s new probe into the circumstances surrounding the late, convicted sex offender.
“Alex Acosta cooperated with our questions today and provided information that will help advance our investigation into the federal government’s handling of the Epstein and Maxwell cases,” said House Oversight Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) in a statement. “This information will guide our next steps as we work to bring accountability, and we expect to announce new action soon.”
Comer also said the panel would release a transcript of the hourslong interview.
Earlier this week, FBI Director Kash Patel blamed Acosta for the “original sin” in the Epstein case: Many people have argued the non-prosecution agreement, signed in September 2007, was far too lenient, allowing the disgraced financier to continue to prey on young women and girls for years.
The agreement with prosecutors precluded the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Southern Florida from pursuing future charges. Epstein was also ultimately able to take part in a work release program after being sentenced in state court.
According to a summary of the conversation from the Oversight panel’s Republican majority, Acosta attested Friday that he never met Epstein or his co-conspirator Ghislaine Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year sentence for her part in the sex trafficking scheme. Acosta also pointed to a statement from a prosecutor who questioned whether evidentiary issues could complicate Epstein’s conviction at trial; the plea deal was intended to circumvent those challenges.
Acosta blamed Palm Beach County for Epstein’s work release and said his office would not have given up the case had they known how the state of Florida ultimately handled the Epstein matter. According to the GOP majority summary, Acosta expressed remorse — contrary to Democrats’ account, describing him as unrepentant.
He also said he did not see President Donald Trump’s name in documents or materials related to the Epstein case.
Democrats have repeatedly pointed to Trump’s long relationship with Epstein. The president has maintained he broke off their friendship prior to Epstein’s 2019 arrest for additional sex crimes, which led to apparent death by suicide behind bars.
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