New Mexico reopens investigation into Jeffrey Epstein's ranch after accusation of two allegedly buried bodies

The New Mexico state Justice Department on Thursday revived an investigation into alleged criminal conduct at a secluded ranch formerly owned by convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Chief of Staff Lauren Rodriguez said in a statement that state Attorney General Raul Torrez ordered the reopening of the review after examining materials included in the most recent batch of documents released by the U.S. Department of Justice.

"Although the prior investigation of the State of New Mexico was closed in 2019 at the request of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, the revelations described in the previously sealed FBI files warrant further examination. As in any potential criminal matter, we will follow the facts wherever they lead, carefully evaluate jurisdictional considerations and take appropriate investigative steps, including the collection and preservation of any relevant evidence still available. We are moving swiftly and deliberately on this matter and will provide updates as appropriate," Rodriguez said.

According to the department, a letter was sent last week to Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche requesting access to an uncensored version of a 2019 email sent by an anonymous source. The message alleged that two girls were buried in the hills near Zorro Ranch, located approximately 30 miles from Santa Fe. State authorities also requested identifying details of the sender, as well as information about the recipient, transmission and routing data, timestamps and any other uncensored documents that referenced the ranch.

The letter indicated that New Mexico public lands commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard had requested the investigation and that she told Reuters news agency that her office found the email while reviewing recently released Epstein records. The email, sent to a New Mexico radio host several months after Epstein's suicide death while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges, was allegedly written by someone claiming to be a former Zorro Ranch employee. As reported by Reuters, the sender alleged that two foreign girls who died "by strangulation during rough and fetishistic sex" were buried near the property on Epstein's instructions.