How Federal Prosecutors Shut Down New Mexico’s Epstein Probe

The Epstein Chronicles · May 23, 2026 · 18m

In 2019, federal prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York asked New Mexico authorities to stop their own sex trafficking investigation into Jeffrey Epstein’s sprawling Zorro Ranch, located south of Santa Fe, in an effort to avoid potential conflicts with the federal case and the risk of “inconsistent statements” from parallel investigations. At the time, then-New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas agreed to pause the state probe and share investigative materials — including police reports and witness interviews — with the federal team, with the…