Who were the 10 alleged co‑conspirators identified by the FBI in Epstein’s 2019 investigation?
Executive summary
The FBI’s July 2019 internal emails referenced “10 co‑conspirators” linked to Jeffrey Epstein, but the released files are heavily redacted and do not provide a public, complete list of those ten names; only a few individuals appear unredacted in the documents released so far, most notably Ghislaine Maxwell and Les (Leslie) Wexner (with caveats from Wexner’s representatives) [1] [2] [3]. Reporting and DOJ releases show investigators were trying to locate and serve grand‑jury subpoenas to ten people identified by geography in an email, but the identities for most remain obscured in the public record [4] [5].
1. What the FBI email actually said and what it did not say
An FBI email dated July 7–8, 2019, circulated internally with the subject “Co‑conspirators” and asked for an “update on the status of the 10 CO conspirators,” indicating agents were working to contact ten people to serve grand‑jury summonses and gather testimony as part of post‑arrest investigative work [4] [5]. The document releases from the Department of Justice that contained these emails are heavily redacted, meaning the email set out locations and statuses rather than a clear, attributable roster of ten named individuals in unredacted text [5] [6].
2. Names that do appear unredacted — and the limits around them
Two names that appear without redaction in some released documents are Ghislaine Maxwell — Epstein’s longtime associate who was later convicted in 2021 for sex‑trafficking related offenses — and Leslie “Les” Wexner, the Ohio billionaire once closely associated with Epstein; Maxwell’s involvement is established in court records, while Wexner’s inclusion in an FBI email has been publicly noted alongside denials from his legal team that he was a co‑conspirator or a target [2] [1] [3]. Reporting also points to French modeling agent Jean‑Luc Brunel as a subject of investigation in related probes; Brunel was separately accused by French authorities and later died in custody in 2022, but the released DOJ files do not present an unambiguous, unredacted “top‑10” list linking each name to the July 2019 email [7].
3. Geographic hints, not a roll call
One of the key emails identifies the ten alleged co‑conspirators by geography — for example, “three in Florida, one in New York City, one in Boston, one in Connecticut and another a wealthy businessman in Ohio” — suggesting investigators were mapping witnesses or suspects by location rather than publishing names in that thread; that geographic shorthand is why some outlets report an Ohio businessman (widely interpreted as Wexner) without a definitive unredacted roster [5] [8].
4. Why public reporting differs and why names remain scarce
News organizations and advocacy groups have pushed for fuller disclosure under the Epstein Files Transparency Act, but the DOJ’s public releases contain heavy redactions to protect victims, ongoing investigations, or grand‑jury material, which the department has cited to justify withheld names and details [6] [9]. Different outlets have therefore emphasized different elements — the mere existence of ten “co‑conspirators” in FBI correspondence versus named individuals appearing elsewhere in the sprawling file dumps — leading to divergent headlines and reader confusion [10] [11].
5. Competing claims and official responses
Where names like Wexner appear in emails, his legal representatives have said prosecutors told him at the time he was “neither a co‑conspirator nor target,” and the Justice Department has also warned that some materials in the files contain “untrue and sensationalist claims,” underscoring that being named or mentioned in the files is not itself proof of criminal liability [2] [11]. Survivors’ advocates and some lawmakers argue the redactions shield powerful people and demand further declassification and congressional oversight to determine who was investigated and why prosecutions did not follow [4] [5].
6. Bottom line: the ten remain unidentified publicly
Public records released to date confirm the FBI was pursuing ten alleged co‑conspirators in July 2019 and provide geographic and partial name clues, but they do not furnish a complete, validated list of those ten individuals; therefore any definitive naming beyond the limited unredacted references would extend beyond the released documents and into conjecture [4] [5] [2].