New Mexico reopens criminal probe related to Jeffrey Epstein’s Zorro Ranch 

New Mexico has reopened an investigation into possible illegal activity at a ranch formerly owned by disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Attorney General Raul Torrez made the announcement on Thursday. He referenced new information revealed in documents recently released by the United States Department of Justice.

More than three and a half million government files related to Epstein were published online on January 30, in response to a law compelling their release.

The New Mexico’s office said “revelations outlined in the previously sealed FBI files warrant further examination” of an earlier state investigation into Epstein’s Zorro Ranch, near the town of Stanley.

That probe had been ended at the request of federal prosecutors in New York in 2019, the same year Epstein was arrested and charged with trafficking minors for sex.

Months later, in August 2019, Epstein was found dead in his cell at a federal detention facility in Manhattan, in what medical examiners described as a suicide.

New Mexico’s announcement came hours after Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, a former prince in the United Kingdom’s royal family, was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office.

The arrest was connected to allegations that the ex-prince sent confidential government documents to Epstein.

The Epstein scandal has also forced high-profile resignations in the UK government. But in the US, critics point out that no such government shake-ups have occurred following the files’ release.

Mountbatten-Windsor’s arrest on Thursday has renewed calls for accountability for those in the US involved in Epstein’s crimes.

There has long been speculation about the financier’s influential social circle, which included a past friendship with US President Donald Trump and ties to foreign governments, including Israel.

Critics have questioned how those relationships might have shielded Epstein during his lifetime.

In 2008, he was convicted of solicitation and procuring a minor for sex in Florida, but he entered into a plea deal widely considered lenient. He ultimately served 13 months of an 18-month sentence.

The US Department of Justice has maintained that it has found no evidence of criminal conduct beyond the charges against Epstein and his former girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year sentence.

US lawmakers, however, have repeatedly accused the Justice Department of not being fully transparent.

In New Mexico, pressure has been intensifying to investigate Epstein’s connections to the state. A truth commission launched by state lawmakers held its first meeting earlier this week.

The four-member panel of state representatives is tasked with probing allegations that the Zorro Ranch may have been a site of sexual abuse and sex trafficking.

State lawmakers have also called for answers as to why Epstein was not registered as a sex offender in New Mexico after he pleaded guilty in 2008 in Florida.

Torrez’s office said it would work with the commission and seek access to the complete, un-redacted federal case files related to Epstein.

“As with any potential criminal matter, we will follow the facts wherever they lead, carefully evaluate jurisdictional considerations, and take appropriate investigative action, including the collection and preservation of any relevant evidence that remains available,” the office said in a statement.

Epstein purchased the 2,480-square-metre (26,690sq ft) Zorro ranch in 1993 from Democratic Governor Bruce King. The property was sold by Epstein’s estate in 2023.