FBI Agents Were Allegedly Trained to Flag Trump's Name in Epstein Files — DOJ Won't Release the Videos

The FBI has identified nine training videos responsive to a Freedom of Information Act request concerning the review of Jeffrey Epstein-related records. The Justice Department is withholding the recordings in an ongoing lawsuit brought by MSW Media, the organisation founded by journalist Allison Gill.

Gill says confidential sources told her that personnel reviewing Epstein-related records were instructed to flag documents containing President Donald Trump's name for supervisory review. The FBI's publicly filed descriptions confirm that two training videos addressed a SharePoint process for flagging documents, but they do not identify Trump as a name included in that process.

FBI Identifies Nine Training Videos

The latest development stems from MSW Media's FOIA lawsuit against the Justice Department. In a declaration filed on 2 October, the FBI said it had identified nine responsive training videos connected to the review of Epstein-related records.

Two videos are described as screen recordings showing Information Management Division personnel how to flag a document for additional supervisory review through the bureau's SharePoint system.

On 5 October, Gill said confidential sources familiar with the review told her the training materials instructed personnel to flag records containing Trump's name and log them for supervisory review.

The available FBI descriptions do not independently confirm that Trump's name was specifically included. They also do not establish why any Trump-related document may have been flagged, whether such records were withheld from public release or whether any review process was improper.

Flagging a document, escalating it to a supervisor, redacting information and withholding a record are separate actions. The public material does not establish that records mentioning Trump were removed from public disclosure.

DOJ Withholds Recordings During FOIA Case

The Justice Department is withholding all nine videos while the FOIA case proceeds. According to reporting on the FBI filing, the government is relying on several FOIA exemptions, including provisions covering internal government material, personal privacy and law-enforcement procedures.

The withholding means the public can examine written descriptions of the videos but not the recordings themselves. Gill has argued that the footage could clarify what reviewers were told to identify and when a document had to be escalated to supervisors.

The FBI filing confirms that a training process existed for flagging documents through SharePoint. It does not state that the process was devised for Trump-related records or that it involved an unlawful instruction.

Durbin Raised Similar Allegation

On 18 July 2025, months before the FBI's October filing, Senator Dick Durbin said his office had received a protected FBI whistleblower disclosure alleging that personnel reviewing Epstein-related records had been instructed to flag documents mentioning Trump.

Durbin asked the Justice Department whether records identified through that process had been logged and how they were handled. The disclosure did not establish that the alleged instruction occurred, that it was improper or that any Trump-related material was removed from public release.

Gill's account and the disclosure described by Durbin are separate reports of a similar alleged instruction. Neither is confirmed by the FBI's publicly released descriptions of the training videos.

Millions of Epstein Records Released

The dispute concerns the review process and should be distinguished from the Justice Department's later release of Epstein-related material.

On 30 January 2026, the department said it had published more than 3 million additional pages under the Epstein Files Transparency Act, bringing the total production to nearly 3.5 million pages. The release also included more than 2,000 videos and 180,000 images.

The department said its redactions were intended primarily to protect victims and their families. It also said some material was withheld because of privilege, statutory exceptions, duplication or because it was unrelated to the Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell cases.

The DOJ said it had not redacted notable individuals or politicians from the materials released under the Act. That was the department's account of its disclosure process, rather than an independent audit of every record.

The existence of the nine training videos does not, by itself, establish that Trump-related records were omitted from the January release.

What the Filing Establishes

The FBI's public filing establishes that nine training videos were identified as responsive to the FOIA request and that two addressed a SharePoint process for escalating documents to supervisors.

Whether Trump's name was among the names subject to that process remains an allegation reported by Gill and previously raised by Durbin. The FBI's public descriptions do not answer that question.

Until the videos, further court filings or additional official records provide more detail, the allegation should remain distinct from the limited facts formally confirmed by the FBI.