House Oversight Committee documents released Monday include a hand‑drawn image from a 238‑page scrapbook compiled for Jeffrey Epstein’s 50th birthday that appears to show the financier handing balloons to young girls in 1983 and, in a separate illustration, lying nude while surrounded by topless women roughly two decades later.
The scrapbook, which House staff posted after lawyers for Epstein’s estate turned over materials in response to a congressional subpoena, contains a mixture of written tributes, photographs and hand drawings. The page in question portrays three youngsters receiving balloons from a man identified in the drawing as Jeffrey Epstein, followed by a sexually charged scene dated roughly 20 years later showing a smiling, naked man reclining as several nearly nude women attend to him. A private jet marked with letters similar to those used to identify Epstein’s aircraft appears in the background of the later sketch.
The scrapbook was compiled by Ghislaine Maxwell for Epstein’s 50th birthday in 2003, according to House materials. It was among a large batch of documents described by Oversight Committee staff as the so‑called "Epstein files" that were made public after the committee obtained them via subpoena. The collection includes signed or inscribed pages bearing the names or signatures of several prominent figures, including messages that appear to reference former President Bill Clinton and former President Donald Trump.
One entry that appears to bear Trump’s signature was first reported in July by the Wall Street Journal and is included in the materials released by Congress. The Wall Street Journal’s reporting prompted public scrutiny and a legal response from Trump, who has denied that the handwriting and messages are his. "These are not my words, not the way I talk. Also, I don't draw pictures," Trump said in a statement, and he filed a lawsuit against the outlet that first published details of the letter.
Jeffrey Epstein, a financier who was awaiting trial on federal sex‑trafficking charges, died in his Manhattan jail cell in August 2019. Ghislaine Maxwell was convicted in 2021 of crimes related to Epstein’s sex‑trafficking scheme. The newly released pages from the scrapbook add to a body of material that has been the focus of congressional and public attention because of the scope of allegations surrounding Epstein and the high profile of some individuals whose names appear in related documents.
The Oversight Committee said in a release accompanying the documents that it made the materials public after receiving them from Epstein's estate. Committee members have cited the release as part of a broader effort to examine how federal and state authorities handled allegations against Epstein and to review connections between Epstein and others who appear in his records.
Legal and political fallout over the contents of Epstein‑related files has continued since the financier’s death. Some advocates for survivors of sexual abuse and members of Congress have pushed for fuller public disclosure of documents to clarify the extent of the network that facilitated Epstein’s crimes. Defense lawyers and representatives for individuals whose names appear in the materials have in several cases disputed the authenticity or context of particular entries.
Oversight Committee staff did not immediately respond to requests for additional comment Monday. The release of the scrapbook pages is likely to prompt further review of the materials by investigators, journalists and counsel for individuals mentioned in the files as lawmakers continue to weigh oversight options and possible legislative responses tied to the handling of the Epstein case.