Donald Trump's Epstein nightmare: Memo alleges 2015 meeting just before presidential run

 A new flood of documents has revealed the murky connections between the powerful and the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, reviving questions about past ties. For years, the story from the Mar-a-Lago camp has been that there was a clean break — a clear end to a friendship that had soured long before the world fully understood Epstein's crimes. But a new FBI memo suggests the timeline of this high-society split may be far more complicated than previously thought.

The revelation comes as part of a massive release of more than three million items from the Department of Justice on Jan. 30, 2026. Buried within the classified files is a memo dated Dec. 13, 2017, detailing an interview with a confidential human source (CHS).

This informant, with whom the FBI had recently established a relationship, dropped a bombshell: Donald Trump reportedly met Epstein for lunch at one of the financier's properties in spring 2015 — just months before he descended the golden escalator to announce his historic presidential campaign on June 16, 2015 at Trump Tower in New York City.

New FBI Memos Challenge the Donald Trump Timeline

The timing of this alleged lunch is particularly sensitive for the Trump administration. The official line has long maintained that the association ended in the early 2000s, well before Epstein's 2006 indictment for solicitation of prostitution.

In July 2025, the president reiterated that he had expelled Epstein from his Palm Beach club, Mar-a-Lago, after the financier repeatedly tried to poach spa workers despite being warned not to hire Trump's employees.

However, the FBI memo presents a different account. Met by two special agents whose names remain redacted, the informant stated, 'Epstein knew former President Bill Clinton, and was very close to current President Donald Trump.'

The claim that the pair were sharing a meal as late as spring 2015 directly contradicts the narrative of a decades-long estrangement. If true, it suggests the man who would become the 45th and 47th president of the United States remained in the social orbit of a convicted sex offender even as he prepared to launch his first successful bid for the White House.

The White House was quick to dismiss the allegations as 'nothing more than a false claim that has no basis in reality'. A spokesperson noted that the Justice Department's massive document release included various public tips that 'may include fake or falsely submitted images, documents, or videos'. The DOJ also clarified that many of the sensational claims were submitted just before the 2020 election and lacked a 'shred of credibility'.

Financial Ties to Dictators and 'Dirt' on the Elite

Beyond the mentions of Donald Trump, whose name appeared more than 1,000 times in the document release, the informant provided a chilling glimpse into Epstein's broader operations. The source claimed Epstein functioned as a wealth manager for two of the world's most notorious leaders: Russian President Vladimir Putin and the late Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe. According to the memo, Epstein built his staggering fortune by 'charging his clients fees to hide their money offshore'.

The informant also described the leverage Epstein allegedly held over his powerful associates. The memo corroborates details that have since become public, including a private island and a compound in New Mexico where the financier allegedly 'lured and video-recorded underage women' to gather 'dirt on other people'.

Despite the more than 1,000 mentions of Trump in the newly released documents, his inner circle remains defiant. Chief of Staff Susie Wiles recently downplayed the significance of the files, telling Vanity Fair that the two men were simply 'young, single playboys together' in the 1990s social scene following Trump's divorce from Marla Maples and before he met Melania. She insisted that while his name appears in the files, he is 'not in the file doing anything awful'.

As investigators and journalists continue to sift through millions of pages, the question remains whether these documents contain a 'smoking gun' or are merely a collection of unverified claims. For now, the administration is betting on the latter, even as the shadow of Jeffrey Epstein continues to loom over American politics.