Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell are seen at a charity event at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City on March 15, 2005. Credit – Joe Schildhorn—Patrick McMullan via Getty Images

The Justice Department is preparing to meet with Ghislaine Maxwell, the imprisoned longtime associate of Jeffrey Epstein, as the Trump Administration faces pressure to unearth new evidence in the case of the deceased financier and release long-promised files related to Epstein’s network.

“Justice demands courage. For the first time, the Department of Justice is reaching out to Ghislaine Maxwell to ask: what do you know? Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said in an X post on Tuesday. “At @AGPamBondi’s direction, I’ve contacted her counsel. I intend to meet with her soon. No one is above the law—and no lead is off-limits.”

Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence for child sex trafficking and related offenses, has long been viewed by federal investigators as a potential source of information about Epstein’s network.

Her lawyer, David Oscar Marcus, wrote on X: “I can confirm that we are in discussions with the government and that Ghislaine will always testify truthfully. We are grateful to President Trump for his commitment to uncovering the truth in this case.”

Separately on Tuesday, the House Oversight Committee approved a motion by Rep. Tim Burchett, a Tennessee Republican, to subpoena Maxwell to testify before Congress “as expeditiously as possible.”

“Since Ms. Maxwell is in federal prison, the Committee will work with the Department of Justice and Bureau of Prisons to identify a date when Committee can depose her,” the committee said in a statement.

Both the Justice Department’s outreach and the Congressional action comes as the Trump Administration faces backlash over its handling of the Epstein case after a joint DOJ-FBI report said there was no further evidence to release. Soon after the report, Trump lashed out at his own supporters who continued to call on him to release the files. “My PAST supporters have bought into this ‘bull—t,’ hook, line, and sinker,” he wrote on Truth Social last week. “I don’t want their support anymore!”

Trump has since directed the Justice Department to make public years-old grand jury testimony against Epstein.

The sudden decision to release grand jury testimony and seek a meeting with Maxwell marks a notable shift for Bondi and appears aimed at appeasing a political base that remains fixated on Epstein’s ties to the powerful and the still-unanswered questions surrounding his death. During Trump’s presidential campaign, many of his surrogates who now occupy top posts in his Administration repeatedly stoked expectations that explosive revelations in the Epstein case were imminent, often suggesting prosecutions were coming and that thousands of pages of damning material would be released if Trump were elected.

Still, even some of Trump’s staunchest allies have expressed skepticism over the DOJ’s timeline and transparency. “Today’s statement by Pam Bondi seems like a massive cope,” right-wing activist and Trump loyalist Laura Loomer wrote on X. “Why wasn’t this ‘interview’ with Ghislaine Maxwell done on day 1?” Loomer questioned whether the Justice Department had ever previously interviewed Maxwell, adding, “Shouldn’t they have already done this?”

Administration officials now appear to be suggesting that Maxwell could help fill in those gaps. “If Ghislaine Maxwell has information about anyone who has committed crimes against victims, the FBI and the DOJ will hear what she has to say,” Blanche wrote in a statement also shared by Bondi.

Maxwell was convicted in 2021 of conspiring with Epstein to recruit and groom underage girls for sexual abuse.

Alan Dershowitz, Epstein’s former defense lawyer, suggested recently that Maxwell is prepared to testify before Congress if offered immunity. “She is the Rosetta Stone. She knows everything. She arranged every single trip with everybody,” Dershowitz said on Fox News Sunday.

“If she were just given use immunity, she could be compelled to testify,” he added. “I’m told that she actually would be willing to testify, and there’d be no reason for her to withhold any information.”

Write to Nik Popli at nik.popli@time.com.

The Justice Department plans to reach out to Ghislaine Maxwell, the disgraced socialite and longtime associate of Jeffrey Epstein, to see if she has additional information about the highly-scrutinized case.

U.S. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche announced Tuesday that his department plans to contact Maxwell as questions build over the Trump administration’s handling of the so-called “Epstein Files” after the DOJ and FBI announced earlier this month that there were no more significant disclosures to be made in the case.

“Justice demands courage. For the first time, the Department of Justice is reaching out to Ghislaine Maxwell to ask: what do you know? At AG Pam Bondi’s direction, I’ve contacted her counsel. I intend to meet with her soon. No one is above the law—and no lead is off-limits,” Blanche posted on X. He expects to meet with her in the coming days, the deputy AG said.

“Until now, no administration on behalf of the Department had inquired about her willingness to meet with the government. That changes now,” Blanche added.

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Maxwell, 63, was sentenced to 20 years after being convicted in 2021 for her role in a scheme to abuse multiple female minors with Epstein. She is being held at the Florida Correctional Institution-Tallahassee.

The Justice Department plans to reach out to Ghislaine Maxwell, the disgraced socialite and longtime associate of Jeffrey Epstein, to see if she has additional information about the highly-scrutinized case (US District Court for the Southern District of New York)

On July 7, the DOJ and FBI issued a two-page memo explaining that its “exhaustive” review of documents related to the Epstein case “ did not expose any additional third-parties to allegations of illegal wrongdoing.”

The review found no evidence of a “client list” of high-profile associates linked to the sex offender’s trafficking scheme, the FBI and DOJ said. The memo also confirmed an earlier investigation’s findings that Epstein had died by suicide in a Manhattan jail cell.

“This Department of Justice does not shy away from uncomfortable truths, nor from the responsibility to pursue justice wherever the facts may lead. The joint statement by the DOJ and FBI of July 6 remains as accurate today as it was when it was written. Namely, that in the recent thorough review of the files maintained by the FBI in the Epstein case, no evidence was uncovered that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties,” Blanche’s statement continued.

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“President Trump has told us to release all credible evidence. If Ghislane Maxwell has information about anyone who has committed crimes against victims, the FBI and the DOJ will hear what she has to say. Therefore, at the direction of Attorney General Bondi, I have communicated with counsel for Ms. Maxwell to determine whether she would be willing to speak with prosecutors from the Department.”

David Oscar Markus, one of Maxwell’s attorneys, told CNN that the DOJ and his client were “in discussions.”

Convicted sex offender and former socialite, Ghislaine Maxwell, is being held at the Florida Correctional Institution-Tallahassee. (Federal Bureau of Prisons)

“I can confirm that we are in discussions with the government and that Ghislaine will always testify truthfully. We are grateful to President Trump for his commitment to uncovering the truth in this case,” Markus said.

Last week, President Donald Trump called for the release of “any and all pertinent” grand jury testimony. In motions filed in the Epstein and Maxwell cases, DOJ senior officials asked the court to unseal the transcripts.

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The motions, filed last week in the Southern District of New York, ask a judge to lift any protective orders and release the grand jury transcripts “as a matter of public interest.”

“Public officials, lawmakers, pundits, and ordinary citizens remain deeply interested and concerned about the Epstein matter. Indeed, other jurists have released grand jury transcripts after concluding that Epstein’s case qualifies as a matter of public concern,” the filing states.

The Justice Department said it would work with the Southern District to make sure victim-related information, and other personal identifying information, was redacted before release.

The announcement comes after prominent Republicans and Trump’s MAGA supporters alike have demanded increased transparency around the case. The DOJ’s July 7 memo disappointed many who had anticipated a second tranche of Epstein files to be made public following the release of “Phase 1” in February.