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This photo of Lutnick on Epstein's island was removed from Justice Department files
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This photo of Lutnick on Epstein's island was removed from Justice Department files

#Howard Lutnick #Jeffrey Epstein #Justice Department #Epstein files #Little St. James #Commerce Secretary #document removal

📌 Key Takeaways

  • Photo of Lutnick with Epstein on Caribbean island removed from DOJ website
  • Lutnick acknowledged 2012 visit to Epstein's island but claimed no wrongdoing
  • Documents show Lutnick and Epstein maintained business contact until 2018, contradicting Lutnick's claim of cutting ties in 2005
  • The authenticated photo was preserved by archiving services before DOJ removed it

📖 Full Retelling

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick's photo with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein on Epstein's private Caribbean island, which was released last month as part of the Justice Department's Epstein files, has been removed from the DOJ's website in February 2026, amid renewed scrutiny of Lutnick's ties to the disgraced financier who died by suicide in 2019 while facing sex trafficking charges. The authenticated photograph, showing Epstein, Lutnick, and three other men standing over an oceanside cliff, had been accessible under file number EFTA01230639 before the DOJ page returned a 'Page not found' error. The removal comes after CBS News confirmed the photo's authenticity and noted that it had been preserved by the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine on January 31 and by Jmail, a web interface created specifically to archive Epstein-related content. Lutnick, who has not been accused of any wrongdoing related to Epstein, testified before Congress earlier this month acknowledging he visited Little St. James with his family in 2012 for a lunch meeting that lasted approximately an hour, insisting 'there was nothing untoward' about the visit. However, the Epstein files reveal a more extensive relationship than Lutnick previously admitted, including business dealings through Adfin, an advertising company, as recently as 2018, with Epstein writing to Lutnick about the company's prospects and Lutnick responding to Epstein about neighborhood concerns regarding the Frick Collection art museum expansion.

🏷️ Themes

Government accountability, Epstein connections, Document transparency

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Entity Intersection Graph

Connections for Ministry of justice:

👤 Jeffrey Epstein 8 shared
🌐 Presidency of Donald Trump 8 shared
🌐 Epstein files 7 shared
👤 The Washington Post 4 shared
👤 Donald Trump 4 shared
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Original Source
Politics This photo of Lutnick on Epstein's island was removed from Justice Department files By Daniel Ruetenik , Daniel Ruetenik Producer, Investigative Unit Daniel Ruetenik is a producer with CBS News' Investigative Unit, reporting for all CBS News platforms. Read Full Bio Daniel Ruetenik , Faris Tanyos , Faris Tanyos News Editor Faris Tanyos is a news editor for CBSNews.com, where he writes and edits stories and tracks breaking news. He previously worked as a digital news producer at several local news stations up and down the West Coast. Read Full Bio Faris Tanyos , Elliott Ramos , Elliott Ramos Investigative Data Journalist Elliott Ramos is a senior investigative data journalist for the CBS Data Team based in Chicago. Read Full Bio Elliott Ramos , Matt Clark , Maddie Kornfeld , Maddie Kornfeld Verification Producer, CBS News Confirmed Maddie Kornfeld is a verification producer for CBS News Confirmed, focused on tracking misinformation and verifying user-generated content. Read Full Bio Maddie Kornfeld , Emma Li Emma Li Emma Li is a fact checker for CBS News Confirmed. She combines open-source techniques with traditional reporting to fact check misinformation and verify user-generated content. Contact Emma at emma.li@cbsnews.com. Read Full Bio Emma Li February 26, 2026 / 8:52 PM EST / CBS News Add CBS News on Google A photo released last month by the Justice Department as part of the Epstein files that showed Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein on Epstein's island in the Caribbean has been removed from the Justice Department's website. The photo, which has been authenticated by CBS News, shows Epstein, Lutnick, and three other men standing over an oceanside cliff. The Internet Archive's Wayback Machine, a nonprofit that preserves digital online content, downloaded the photo from the DOJ's website on Jan. 31. It was also archived by Jmail , a web interface that was created to archive Epstein content. The photo was release...
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