New Mexico has filed a federal lawsuit against the Department of Justice and Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, accusing them of stonewalling a state criminal investigation into Jeffrey Epstein’s New Mexico operation and actively harming victims in the process.

State Demands Access to Federal Files

Attorney General Raul Torrez filed the lawsuit in Washington, D.C. federal court seeking judicial intervention to force the DOJ to turn over investigative materials. Torrez said his office has made ten separate requests for key information and has been repeatedly ignored or denied. The lawsuit alleges federal authorities are hiding information about Epstein and his co-conspirators when New Mexico represents one of the few remaining jurisdictions that could still hold Epstein’s associates accountable.

On the same day as the lawsuit filing, New Mexico released a report criticizing federal prosecutors in New York for never prioritizing New Mexicans. The report stated federal investigators focused exclusively on Epstein’s crimes in New York, Palm Beach, and the Virgin Islands while leaving his New Mexico offenses completely unexamined. Torrez accused the Justice Department of hiding behind victim privacy concerns despite providing ample legal justification for file access.

DOJ Defends Refusal to Share Evidence

The Justice Department defended its position by citing federal court orders that prohibit disclosing victim-identifying information without lawful justification. A DOJ statement emphasized that protecting victim privacy remains a top priority, though the department remains available to assist New Mexico’s investigation within legal boundaries. Torrez rejected this explanation, telling reporters his team has experienced anything but cooperation despite repeated federal promises. He stated Blanche could grant access with the stroke of a pen but has instead chosen to stonewall and conceal information.

Potential New Conspirators Under Investigation

The lawsuit references a Justice Department prosecution memo describing a sexual assault at Zorro Ranch involving a woman who was not Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s former girlfriend currently serving twenty years for sex trafficking. When asked whether another woman may have facilitated assaults similarly to Maxwell, Torrez acknowledged they cannot answer that question without full file access. Epstein died by suicide in federal custody in August 2019 while facing sex trafficking charges. His sprawling New Mexico estate, purchased in 1993 and located thirty miles south of Santa Fe, was sold in 2023 and renamed by its new owners.