The DOJ was responding to judges' requests for further information about its push to unseal grand jury transcripts related to Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.

The revelation was made in a late-night filing that urged a Manhattan judge to unseal the transcripts and release the documents to the public, given the “abundant public interest.”

A Florida federal judge on Wednesday declined to release additional grand jury documents from the criminal investigation into Jeffrey Epstein, marking the first roadblock in the Justice Department’s efforts to quell the public backlash over the handling of the case.