Newly released documents from Jeffrey Epstein’s estate show the convicted sex offender appeared to be texting with a member of Congress during a 2019 House hearing with Michael Cohen, Donald Trump’s former fixer and personal attorney, and that those messages may have influenced the lawmaker’s questioning.
The documents provided to Congress this week include transcripts suggesting Epstein was in direct contact with the lawmaker as the hearing unfolded, the Washington Post reports.
Although the transcripts do not name the lawmaker Epstein was texting during the February 2019 hearing, an analysis by the Post suggests it was Stacey Plaskett, the US Virgin Islands’ non-voting Democratic delegate. By matching the timestamps of the messages with video of the hearing, the analysis concluded that Plaskett was the member of Congress in contact with Epstein.
At the time, Cohen was appearing before the House oversight committee to testify against Trump, accusing him of racism, financial fraud and directing hush-money payments to conceal his extramarital affairs. Trump denied all of these allegations.
Related: Bondi announces investigation into Epstein ties to Trump’s Democratic adversaries
“Cohen brought up RONA – keeper of the secrets,” Epstein texted the person, referring to former Trump executive assistant Rhona Graff, but misspelled her name.
“RONA??” the person responded. “Quick I’m up next is that an acronym,” the person added, suggesting they would question Cohen soon.
Plaskett’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Guardian. Her chief of staff told the Post that she was “not in a position to confirm or not” whether the congresswoman was texting with Epstein during the hearing.
When Plaskett questioned Cohen during the hearing, she asked about Trump associates that he had mentioned previously and if there were “other people that we should be meeting with?”
“So Allen Weisselberg is the chief financial officer in The Trump Organization,” Cohen replied.
“You’ve got to quickly give us as many names as you can so we can get to them,” Plaskett jumped in to say. “She is Ms Rhona, what is Ms Rhona’s – … ”
“Rhona Graff is the – Mr Trump’s executive assistant … She was – her office is directly next to his, and she’s involved in a lot that went on,” Cohen replied.
This interaction is part of the more than 20,000 pages released Wednesday that reignited a long-running scandal over Epstein’s relationship with the rich and powerful. Democratic lawmakers said the messages, along with three newly disclosed emails, suggest Trump may have known more about Epstein’s activities than he has suggested in public.
In another instance on the day of the hearing, Epstein texted the person: “Are you chewing”. One minute before, a live television feed of the hearing had cut to Plaskett, as she appeared to be chewing.
“Not any more,” the person replied to Epstein. “Chewing interior of my mouth. Bad habit from middle school.”
Plaskett was the first non-voting delegate to the House to serve as an impeachment manager during Trump’s impeachment trial in the Senate in 2021 for inciting the 6 January attack on the US Capitol. She represents the US Virgin Islands, a territory that does not have a vote in Congress.
