What claims did Jeffrey Epstein reportedly make about Donald Trump in recorded interviews?
Executive summary
Jeffrey Epstein’s recorded interviews — notably hours of tapes provided to Michael Wolff and millions of pages released by the Department of Justice — contain a mix of personal recollections, gossip and salacious allegations about Donald Trump, including claims about sexual encounters, social closeness, and Trump’s character [1] [2] [3]. Many of those statements come directly from Epstein’s own recorded comments, while other explosive allegations in the files are FBI tips or victim interview notes that the Justice Department has characterized as unverified or not credible [4] [3] [5].
1. What tapes and documents are we talking about, and who made them public
The published material includes audio recordings Michael Wolff says capture “some 100 hours” of Epstein speaking about Trump, plus DOJ releases of roughly 3 million pages of investigative files that contain notes, victim interviews and tips mentioning Trump [1] [3]. Broadcast excerpts and recirculated clips range from Wolff’s 2017 interviews at Epstein’s Manhattan townhouse to older deposition-style footage in which Epstein invoked his constitutional rights when asked about socializing with Trump in the presence of minors [2] [4] [6].
2. Direct claims Epstein reportedly made about Trump in recordings
In the Wolff-related tapes Epstein describes a longstanding social relationship with Trump and offers character assessments — calling him “charming…in a devious way,” “self-aware” and prone to “delusions of grandiosity,” while also saying Trump was “funny” and “not vulgar” [2]. Epstein’s recordings include sexualized anecdotes: Wolff and other reporting relay Epstein saying Trump and others “chased women together” and asserting that Trump bragged about sexual activity, including an alleged boast framed as “I’m f---ing all these Black women,” language captured in the audio transcripts released to Congress [1] [2]. Epstein also claimed, according to reporting, that Melania and Trump had sex on one of Epstein’s planes — a specific anecdote Epstein placed in the context of his own jet travel [2].
3. Allegations in the broader file set that reference Trump but are not Epstein’s direct on-tape statements
Beyond Epstein’s voice, the DOJ packet includes unverified FBI tips and victim interview notes linking Trump to alleged abuse or contact — for example, a redacted victim account saying she was “presented” to Trump by Ghislaine Maxwell at a party, and a handwritten jail-note alleging transport to Mar-a-Lago to meet Trump [7] [3]. Media coverage flagged sensational tips — such as claims that a girl bit Trump after an alleged forced act — but the Justice Department has described some of those leads as “untrue and sensationalist,” and the FBI summary of tips did not itself corroborate them [5] [3].
4. Corroboration, denials and official framing
Officials and outlets note important limits: DOJ’s deputy attorney general said investigators did not find “credible information” to merit further investigation of allegations tying Trump to Epstein’s sex crimes, and many of the claims in the files remain uncorroborated tips or redacted victim notes rather than substantiated evidence [3]. Trump and his allies have strongly denied wrongdoing and sought to discredit Wolff’s portrayal and parts of the release; Trump has threatened legal action against Epstein’s estate and Wolff and called the coverage “fake news,” and multiple outlets note Trump’s denials [8] [9].
5. Why the distinction between Epstein’s remarks and other claims matters
Epstein’s own on-tape material is largely anecdotal social commentary and salacious gossip about Trump’s personality and sexual behavior — valuable as insight into their social circle but not equivalent to corroborated criminal allegations [2] [1]. Separately, the DOJ files aggregate tips and victim statements that mention Trump; those items have driven much attention but are explicitly described by law enforcement and several news outlets as unverified or redacted, leaving open significant evidentiary gaps [3] [7]. Reporting to date therefore documents what Epstein said on tape, what others alleged in tips and interviews, and how officials characterized those items, but does not establish criminal conduct by Trump as proven in the public record [3] [5].