Which public reporting outlets or law enforcement agencies have investigated claims tied to the individuals or events named in Riley’s testimony?

Checked on January 31, 2026
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Executive summary

Several online outlets and independent writers have published or amplified the audio testimony attributed to Sasha (Sascha/William) Riley, but there is no public record that federal law‑enforcement agencies or mainstream courts have authenticated or launched confirmed investigations into the specific claims he makes; reporting outlets that have covered the viral material include Hindustan Times, Times Now/US News, News24, Newsinterpretation and a Substack narrative by Tracy Rigdon, while claims that the Department of Justice or other official bodies have verified the allegations are explicitly contradicted by those same outlets [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6].

1. Who has published or reported on Riley’s audio — mainstream and independent outlets

Multiple news organizations and online publishers ran stories about the circulating audio recordings and Riley’s claims: Hindustan Times published pieces summarizing who Riley is and noting the viral audio and the lack of verification [7] [1], Times Now/US News ran explanatory coverage that traced the audio’s spread on Substack and social platforms and flagged the absence of court confirmation [2] [6], News24 produced a package on the origins and online reaction to the testimony [3], and Newsinterpretation and other digital outlets amplified discussion of the allegations while reporting that no official confirmation has emerged [4]. Separately, investigative or narrative material presenting Riley’s account in depth appears on Substack — notably Tracy Rigdon’s “The Riley Files,” which publishes hours of recorded interviews and frames the material as the interviewee’s testimony rather than independently corroborated fact [5].

2. Which reporters or publishers claim to have direct source material

The audio wave largely traces back to published phone interviews; several outlets note that Lisa Noelle Voldeng says she recorded six interviews with Riley between July 19 and July 24, 2025, and that the raw audio is being shared on platforms such as Substack and Threads [2] [5]. Tracy Rigdon’s Substack reproduces extensive excerpts and frames the work around those recorded interviews while explicitly disclaiming independent verification of Riley’s claims [5]. Mainstream pieces by Hindustan Times and Times Now summarize those published interviews and the social‑media propagation without asserting vetting by courts or law enforcement [7] [2] [1].

3. What law‑enforcement agencies have been reported as investigating — and what they have actually done

Public reporting collected so far makes clear that neither the Department of Justice nor courts have authenticated Riley’s records or confirmed his involvement in existing Epstein‑related prosecutions; several outlets explicitly state that the claims remain unverified by law enforcement and that the named figures do not appear in indictments or court records tied to Riley’s audio [1] [6] [7]. Some publisher summaries and social posts reference “ongoing international investigations” or protective measures for Riley, but those assertions are reported as claims from publishers or Riley’s backers rather than as confirmed actions taken by named agencies in the public record [2] [4]. No source in the provided reporting documents a confirmed FBI, DOJ, or other formal criminal probe launched specifically in response to Riley’s audio.

4. How outlets frame verification and competing perspectives

Across the reporting, outlets uniformly emphasize that the testimony is unverified: Hindustan Times and Times Now/US News repeatedly note the absence of court filings or verified probes tied to the names Riley mentions and stress that the recordings have not been authenticated by law enforcement [1] [2] [6]. Tracy Rigdon’s piece presents an extended first‑person timeline and explicitly warns it has not independently corroborated claims, which highlights the divide between publishing survivor testimony for public scrutiny and making investigatory claims [5]. Other publishers and commentators have pointed to the high risk of misinformation in viral audio, and the reporting ecosystem to date reflects a mix of amplification, cautious caveating, and calls for official FOIA or subpoenaed records to allow verification [4] [3].

5. Bottom line and reporting gaps

Public reporting to date consists mainly of amplification by digital outlets and a long-form Substack dossier based on recorded interviews; multiple mainstream summaries stress that neither DOJ nor courts have independently verified Riley’s accounts or begun confirmed prosecutions tied to the specific allegations he names, and no provided source documents an FBI or other formal public law‑enforcement investigation launched as a direct result of the viral audio [1] [6] [5]. The evidentiary question remains open: the available reporting recommends documentary subpoenas, release of unredacted Epstein files, or official agency statements to move the matter from viral allegation to verified investigation [6] [5].

Want to dive deeper?
Have federal agencies (FBI/DOJ) publicly responded to or opened probes after other viral survivor testimonies in Epstein‑linked cases?
What standard processes do law‑enforcement agencies follow to authenticate and investigate decades‑old abuse allegations tied to large conspiratorial networks?
What is the track record of Substack and independent investigators in producing verifiable evidence in high‑profile abuse cases?