Did any FBI interviews or subpoenas involve Trump in the Epstein investigation?
Executive summary
The public record shows that federal investigators served subpoenas seeking employment records from Donald Trump’s Mar‑a‑Lago property in connection with the Maxwell/Epstein probes, but there is no publicly released FBI Form 302 or other confirmed FBI interview report showing that Trump himself was interviewed by FBI agents; requests and lawsuits seeking any such interview records have been filed and the FBI has not publicly confirmed their existence [1] [2] [3].
1. What the released files actually say about subpoenas to Trump properties
Multiple mainstream outlets reporting on the Justice Department’s large document dump say the release included two subpoenas sent to Mar‑a‑Lago that sought employment records as part of the federal criminal case against Ghislaine Maxwell, indicating at least documentary steps inquiring of Trump’s organization rather than necessarily targeting Trump with charges [1] [2].
2. What the files show about references to Trump and investigative interest
The files contain hundreds of references to President Trump, including news reports, tips to the FBI, prosecutors’ notes about flights and social connections, and photographic material recovered from Epstein’s possessions, and some documents explicitly note allegations submitted to the bureau—though DOJ officials warned many of those were “untrue and sensationalist” tips provided before the 2020 election [4] [5] [6] [7].
3. No public FBI interview reports (Form 302s) have been produced
Despite repeated scrutiny, there are no publicly released FBI Form 302s or other official memoranda in the released batches that memorialize an FBI interview of Trump; watchdog groups have filed FOIA requests and at least one lawsuit seeking any such records because the FBI has refused to confirm or deny their existence in response to requests, citing privacy and other exemptions [3].
4. How investigators documented tips and possible co‑conspirators — and how that differs from witness interviews
The public files show FBI emails and lab requests, lists of “possible co‑conspirators,” and notes that several individuals had been served with subpoenas in 2019; those materials demonstrate investigative breadth and documentary requests (including subpoenas) but are distinct from the formal interview reports that would prove whether agents had actually interviewed a named individual such as Trump [8] [5] [8].
5. Conflicting signals from the Department of Justice and political actors
The Justice Department repeatedly cautioned that some of the material contained unverified or false allegations about Trump and removed or corrected items it deemed inauthentic (for example, calling at least one letter “fake”), while congressional Republicans and Democrats have clashed over whether redactions and missing records amount to concealment—Democrats alleging cover‑ups and Republicans arguing for selective release—so the political dispute over what was withheld complicates interpreting the released record [6] [4] [9].
6. What investigative steps remain and why the public record is incomplete
Oversight actors are drafting subpoenas and pressing for more full disclosure because DOJ has said large swaths remain redacted and that additional documents are still being reviewed; American Oversight’s suit explicitly seeks any interview records of Trump, underscoring that the absence of a public Form 302 is not the same as proof no interview ever occurred, only that no interview memos have been produced to date [4] [3] [10].
7. Bottom line: subpoenas to Mar‑a‑Lago, but no publicly released FBI interview reports of Trump
The verifiable and contemporaneous published materials show federal subpoenas to Mar‑a‑Lago for employment records related to the Maxwell case; by contrast, no confirmed FBI interview reports or 302s documenting an FBI interview of Trump have been released publicly, and FOIA litigation is underway to determine whether such records exist and, if so, whether they will be disclosed [1] [2] [3].