New Mexico lawmakers launch probe into Epstein’s Zorro Ranch
Al Jazeera
The ‘truth commission’ will interview victims who say they were abused at the sprawling property south of Santa Fe.
Lawmakers in the US state of New Mexico have approved the first fully-fledged investigation into Zorro Ranch, a sprawling property where the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein is alleged to have trafficked and sexually assaulted girls and women.
The legislation, which passed New Mexico’s House of Representatives by a unanimous vote on Monday, forms a bipartisan “truth commission”.
Its four members will seek testimony from victims and local residents about the ranch, located about 55km (34 miles) south of the state capital, Santa Fe.
Members are slated to begin work on Tuesday, with an initial update to be delivered in July and a full report by the end of this year.
The move comes in the wake of the release of more than three million previously unpublicised files related to the disgraced financier, who died by suicide in a New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges.
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