Former Attorney General Bill Barr arrived on Capitol Hill Monday for a closed-door interview with lawmakers as part of the House Oversight Committee’s investigation into Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking crimes, the Justice Department’s handling of an investigation into him, and his death in federal custody.
Barr, who twice served as attorney general and led the Justice Department during President Donald Trump’s first term, was subpoenaed by Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY) earlier this month. His appearance marks the first interview in a sweeping inquiry that also targets former President Bill Clinton, former Attorney General Eric Holder, and former FBI Director James Comey. Barr arrived one hour early for the interview, answering no questions from reporters in the hallway.
Standing outside the closed-door hearing room Monday morning, Comer said, “This will be our first deposition in our bipartisan investigation into the ‘Epstein Island’ saga.”
“We got a lot of questions for former Attorney General Bill Barr,” Comer said. “We appreciate his willingness to come in, and hopefully this will be the first of many.”
Epstein, a financier with ties to powerful political figures, was discovered dead in his Manhattan jail cell in August 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges that could have carried a life sentence. His death was ruled a suicide, though years of unanswered questions and mishandling by prison officials have fueled widespread suspicion.
Barr became directly involved in the aftermath, personally reviewing 11 hours of surveillance footage from Epstein’s cell block. He later concluded the video showed no evidence of foul play and backed the medical examiner’s finding of suicide, though last month’s release of the footage by the FBI raised new questions about whether it fully corroborated Barr’s account.
“I can understand people who immediately, whose minds went to sort of the worst-case scenario because it was a perfect storm of screw-ups,” Barr said in 2019, acknowledging the unusual circumstances around Epstein’s death.
The committee is likely to interview Barr about his involvement in the investigation of Epstein’s death. Barr previously said that the cell block footage showed no one had entered the area where Epstein was kept, concurring with the medical examiner’s finding that Epstein had died by suicide.
Comer has pledged the committee will press Barr on those inconsistencies as well as his decision not to recuse himself from the matter despite his past ties to a law firm that once represented Epstein.
The Justice Department has also been asked, as part of the committee’s Epstein investigation, to supply “all documents and communications relating or referring to” Epstein and his former girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell, including information contained in their respective court cases, by a Tuesday deadline.
HOUSE PREPARES FOR FUNDING DEADLINE AS PARTIES WAR OVER EPSTEIN, REDISTRICTING, AND DC TAKEOVER
In response to a question from reporters, Comer said, “I think we’ll receive the documents very soon; we’re working together in a good faith effort and everything is coming along.”
The Washington Examiner contacted the DOJ for a response.
