Former US attorney general Pam Bondi testifies in congressional Epstein probe

Former US Attorney General Pam Bondi is appearing in front of a congressional panel probing convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Bondi, who was removed from her post as America's top law enforcement officer by US President Donald Trump in April, will testify on the US Justice Department's handling of its release of the Epstein files.

The testimony in Washington DC is taking place behind closed doors, but transcripts or video might be released at a later time.

Bondi was formally summoned by the House Oversight Committee in March, just before Trump announced her ouster as his administration's top prosecutor.

In opening remarks to the committee, Bondi said she was "proud" of the department's release of documents related to the convicted sex offender, for which she has been widely criticised.

"We demonstrated an unprecedented commitment to transparency in the Department's search for, collection, and review of the Epstein files, producing nearly 3 million pages of material, including thousands of videos and hundreds of thousands of images," she said.

The committee's Republican chairman, James Comer, wrote in a subpoena letter that they are investigating the "possible mismanagement" of the Epstein investigation and compliance with the Epstein Files Transparency Act. That bill - which mandated US Department of Justice to publicly release unclassified records - was signed into law by Trump.

Ahead of today's meeting, Comer told reporters that successive governments had failed Epstein's victims and that Bondi will be pressed about her handling of the release of the documents.

"We're going to try to determine whether or not there could be more documents legally turned over," Comer said. "I want every document. I don't want anything held back and I think the majority of the committee's the same way."

The committee's leading Democrat Robert Garcia also said his side was "incredibly disappointed of the decision to not have this interview videotaped and then released to the American public."

Bondi's summons came weeks after Nancy Mace, a Republican lawmaker, accused the justice department of a "cover-up" in releasing the files and introduced a motion to subpoena Bondi - the former attorney general of Florida and who served on Trump's 2020 impeachment defence team.

The Trump administration and Bondi have faced enormous bipartisan pressure to release all documents related to the probe of the sex-trafficking financier and faced criticism over its handling of the files, including its failure to redact the names of Epstein's victims. Epstein died in prison while awaiting trial in 2019.

In February 2025, Bondi declared during a Fox News interview that she had a list of Epstein's high-profile clients "sitting on my desk right now", only to have the justice department walk back the statement that July when it said there was no "client list" and that Bondi had meant the overall case file was on her desk.

While her tenure as the country's top law enforcement official was dogged by the Epstein files, Bondi also came under fire by Democrats for weaponising the justice department after Trump called on her to more aggressively investigate his political adversaries.

She was replaced as AG on an interim basis by Trump's personal lawyer Todd Blanche.

Earlier this week, it was revealed that Bondi, 60, had been diagnosed with thyroid cancer. She told the BBC's US media partner CBS News that she is undergoing treatment, which included surgery a few weeks ago.

Bondi is set to join the White House's new advisory council on AI, the Presidential Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.

When Bondi was ousted from the Department of Justice at the beginning of April, she said she was excited to be entering a role in the private sector. Bondi's inclusion on the president's council, known as PCAST, is the first news of her work beyond the department.