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(NEW YORK) — While the latest release of Epstein files has touched off another round of controversy in the U.S., it has ignited a veritable firestorm in Europe, where the new tranche of emails, text messages, videos on photographs released by the Department of Justice has painted a far more comprehensive picture of the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s relationship with members of the global elite.

And while a mention in the files does not immediately imply wrongdoing, last week’s data dump has led to a chorus of high-profile figures explaining, and in many cases apologizing for, their connection to Epstein. Reputations have been tarnished, in some cases irrevocably.

These latest files show the range and depth of Epstein’s extraordinary reach into the upper echelons of society. Among the new names from the European elite are Norway’s crown princess and the Slovak national security adviser.

For now, the repercussions are being felt the most acutely in the U.K., where a prince of the realm has lost his title and his home, a senior member of the governing Labour party has lost his position in the House of Lords, a police investigation has been launched into misconduct in public office, and Prime Minister Keir Starmer — whose name has not appeared in the released files — is now fighting for his political survival.

The recently published files have laid bare the extent of Epstein’s contact with the former Prince Andrew and former British Ambassador Peter Mandelson — touching off a crisis at both the heart of the government and the monarchy.

“The scandal seems to matter more here, with graver consequences, because it strikes at the monarchy, the British establishment and the political elite. It’s not just about the behavior of one disgraced man,” Robert Jobson, royal author and ABC royal contributor told ABC News.

There are difficult questions for the monarchy to face, Jobson said, “If senior royal family members and courtiers knew about Epstein’s activities and did nothing” and if they “chose to protect the monarchy at the expense of vulnerable young women.”

“If they did not know, then the institution they oversee is not merely flawed but dangerously incompetent. Neither explanation is excusable,” Jobson said.

Buckingham Palace’s most recent statement on the matter, which came on Oct. 25, announced the stripping of Andrew’s titles and said, “Their Majesties wish to make clear that their thoughts and utmost sympathies have been, and will remain with, the victims and survivors of any and all forms of abuse.”

In rare public hecklings, both the king and queen have been asked whether they will help with the Epstein investigation. Neither responded. It is extremely unusual for them to be approached in this way, and royals very rarely respond to such questions.

The only senior royal to address these latest revelations has been Prince Edward, who responded to a reporter’s question by emphasizing his support for the victims, saying, “I think it’s all really important always to remember the victims and who are the victims in all this? A lot of victims in this.”

“The central issue in the Epstein scandal has never been Andrew alone,” Jobson said. “It is the question the Palace has spent more than a decade avoiding: What did the late queen and King Charles know? And when did they know it?”

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly Prince Andrew, was stripped of all his titles last October after some of his email exchanges with Epstein were leaked to the press. He vacated his home at Royal Lodge on Monday, and will now live on the King’s privately owned Sandringham Estate.

The scandal, which has hounded the royal family for decades, erupted after one of Epstein’s victims, Virginia Giuffre, accused Mountbatten-Windsor of sexual assault. In 2022, Mountbatten-Windsor, who has always denied any wrongdoing, settled a civil suit with Giuffre.

“The Queen personally funded Andrew’s legal defense. She later allowed him to walk beside her at the Duke of Edinburgh’s memorial service in 2022, a move widely interpreted as an attempt at rehabilitation. It has now backfired, blown up in the King’s face,” Jobson told ABC News.

Mountbatten-Windsor, then Prince Andrew, told the BBC’s Emily Maitlis that he cut off all contact with Epstein in 2010, shortly after Epstein completed his sentence for solicitation of a minor in Florida — but last week the Department of Justice released emails between the two dating from 2011 and correspondence between his team and Epstein as recently as 2017.  

“The press is piling on me in the states.. nothing to do. just want to make sure you’re ok,” Epstein wrote to Andrew on Feb 28, 2011.

“I’m just as concerned for you! Don’t worry about me!” Andrew replied to Epstein. “It would seem we are in this together and will have to rise above it!…keep in close touch and we’ll play some more soon!!!!”

In another exchange, Epstein sent Mountbatten-Windsor a message encouraging him to have dinner with a friend, about whom he said, “She 26, russian, clevere [sic] beautiful, trustworthy.”

Mountbatten-Windsor replied he would be “delighted.”

Last week, following the emails’ release, a second woman came forward to accuse Epstein of trafficking her to have sex with Mountbatten-Windsor, according to the BBC. Her lawyer, Brad Edwards told the BBC, “We’re talking about at least one woman who was sent by Jeffrey Epstein over to Prince Andrew. And she even had, after a night with Prince Andrew, a tour of Buckingham Palace.”

Thames Valley Police released a statement saying, “We are aware of reports about a woman said to have been taken to an address in Windsor in 2010 for sexual purposes. We are assessing the information in line with our established procedures.”

Buckingham Palace has not commented on any of the latest revelations, telling ABC News that they no longer represent Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.

The former prince has yet to publicly comment on these latest documents.

“The scandal is not defined only by what Prince Andrew may have done,” Jobson said. “It is defined by what the institution chose to conceal. And that question has still not been answered.”

Peter Mandelson

While the monarchy has been trying to contain the damage, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has been fending off criticism for his appointment of Lord Peter Mandelson as the British ambassador to the U.S. in 2024.

“I regret appointing him. If I knew then what I know now, he would never been anywhere near government,” Starmer told the House of Commons on Wednesday.

Nicknamed the “Prince of Darkness” by the British press, Mandelson has long been a controversial figure and many questioned Starmer’s choice of ambassador at the time — but the prime minister maintains he did not know “the depth and the darkness” of Mandelson’s relationship with Epstein.

He apologized twice on Thursday for his misjudgment, telling reporters, “The victims of Epstein have lived with trauma that most of us can barely comprehend, and they’ve had to relive it again and again.”

“They have seen accountability delayed and too often denied,” Starmer said. “To them, I want to say this: I am sorry. Sorry for what was done to you. Sorry that so many people with power failed you. Sorry for having believed Mandelson’s lies and appointed him.”

The prime minister told the press that Mandelson had downplayed his friendship with Epstein, saying, “He portrayed Epstein as someone he barely knew, and when that became clear, and it was not true, I sacked him. Such deceit is incompatible with public service.”

Mandelson was removed from his post as British ambassador last September, following the release by the U.S. House Oversight Committee of Epstein’s so-called “Birthday Book,” in which Mandelson referred to Epstein as his “best pal”.

The emails released last Friday show that Epstein and the former ambassador and government minister communicated for years, including after Epstein had pleaded guilty to sex crimes in Florida in 2008. The exchanges between the pair have led police to launch an investigation into potential misconduct in office.

On May 9, 2010, while Epstein was still on probation in Florida, he emailed Mandelson to say that “sources tell” him about an imminent 500 billion euro bailout. A person whose identity is redacted replied that the bailout will “be announced tonight.” The person says later that they are “just leaving No10”, presumably referring to the prime minister’s residence at Number 10 Downing Street.

The European Union announced a 500 billion Euro fund to stabilize the Euro that day.

The Metropolitan Police said in a statement on Monday that it had “received a number of reports into alleged misconduct in public office including a referral from the UK Government” and that “the Metropolitan Police has now launched an investigation into a 72-year-old man, a former Government Minister, for misconduct in public office offences.”

The statement does not mention the Mandelson, 72, by name.

On Friday the Metropolitan Police announced they were searching two properties in connection with the investigation.

Bank statements also appeared in the recently released documents which appear to show Epstein transferred as much as $75,000 to Mandelson between 2003 and 2004.

Mandelson submitted his resignation to the Labour Party on Monday, writing in his resignation letter, “I have been further linked this weekend to the understandable furore surrounding Jeffrey Epstein and I feel regretful and sorry about this.”

The Speaker for the House of Lords in Parliament also announced that Mandelson had submitted his resignation from the chamber.

“Britain has dethroned a prince, forced Mandelson to resign, & lost confidence in Starmer because @RepThomasMassie & I forced the release of the Epstein files,” U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna posted on X Friday. “What is America doing to hold the Epstein class accountable?”

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(LOS ANGELES) — The second of two doctors who were convicted in connection with Matthew Perry’s ketamine death is set to be sentenced on Tuesday.

Mark Chavez is one of five people charged and convicted in connection with the “Friends” actor’s 2023 overdose death. He pleaded guilty last year to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine, admitting to selling fraudulently obtained ketamine to another doctor, Salvador Plasencia, that was then sold to Perry in the weeks before the actor died from an overdose.

The two doctors did not provide the ketamine that ultimately killed Perry, who was discovered unresponsive in a jacuzzi at his Los Angeles home in October 2023 at the age of 54. Though federal prosecutors said they knew that the actor had a history of substance abuse and that the drug would be administered without medical supervision.

Chavez faces up to 10 years in prison, prosecutors said.

The government asked for a sentence of six months home confinement that includes a two-year term of supervised release as well as at least 300 hours of community service. Prosecutors said Chavez, a former operator of a ketamine clinic, provided Plasencia with vials of liquid ketamine and ketamine lozenges that had been obtained by submitting a fraudulent prescription in the name of a patient without that patient’s knowledge or consent. 

“As the Drug Enforcement Administration and Medical Board investigators closed in on defendant’s illegal ketamine sales, defendant initially lied and tried to evade responsibility,” the government said in a filing ahead of sentencing. “To defendant’s credit, however, his story continued, and became one of accountability.”

The government said that once confronted with his criminal acts, Chavez “expediently accepted responsibility and agreed to cooperate with the government’s investigation.”

Chavez’s defense attorneys asked for three years of supervised release, arguing in a filing ahead of sentencing that his conduct was “limited and peripheral” and “far removed from the tragic events of October 28, 2023.”

They noted that Chavez had never met Perry, entered his home or administered medication to him, and that he did not supply the ketamine that caused his death. They also said he “accepted responsibility early in this case and signed a plea agreement prior to any indictment, agreed to cooperate, and voluntarily surrendered his medical license even before his detention hearing.”

“The consequences Mr. Chavez has already faced are significant,” his attorneys, Matthew Binninger and Zach Brooks, wrote. “Once a practicing emergency room physician, he lost his profession, suffered public disgrace, and now earns a living as an Uber driver. He has remained compliant with all terms of pretrial supervision and continues to demonstrate sincere regret for his actions.”

Both Chavez and Plasencia gave up their medical licenses after pleading guilty. 

According to Plasencia’s plea agreement, one of his patients introduced him to Perry on Sept. 30, 2023, with the unidentified patient referring to the actor as a “‘high profile person’ who was seeking ketamine and was willing to pay ‘cash and lots of thousands’ for ketamine treatment,'” according to Plasencia’s plea agreement.

Plasencia contacted his mentor, Chavez, to discuss Perry’s request for ketamine and purchased vials of liquid ketamine and ketamine lozenges from him, according to the agreement.

In discussing how much to charge Perry, Plasencia said in text messages to Chavez, “I wonder how much this moron will pay” and “Lets [sic] find out,” prosecutors said.

Plasencia admitted to distributing 20 vials of ketamine, ketamine lozenges and syringes to Perry and the actor’s live-in assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, between Sept. 30, 2023, and Oct. 12, 2023. 

Plasencia administered ketamine to Perry at the actor’s home on several occasions and left vials and lozenges with Iwamasa to administer, according to the plea agreement.

Plasencia was sentenced to 30 months in prison earlier this month.

Iwamasa admitted in court documents to administering the ketamine on the day that Perry died, pleading guilty in August 2024 to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine causing death. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 14, 2026, and faces up to 15 years in prison.

Two other defendants in the case — Erik Fleming and Jasveen Sangha — admitted to distributing the ketamine that killed Perry.

Prosecutors said Sangha worked with Fleming to distribute ketamine to Perry, and that in October 2023, they sold the actor 51 vials of ketamine, which were provided to Iwamasa.

Fleming pleaded guilty in August 2024 to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 7, 2026, and faces up to 25 years in prison.

Sangha, allegedly known as “The Ketamine Queen,” pleaded guilty in September to one count of maintaining a drug-involved premises, three counts of distribution of ketamine, and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death or serious bodily injury. She is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 25, 2026, and faces a maximum sentence of 65 years in prison.

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(NEW YORK) — Ousted Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, made their initial appearance in Manhattan federal court on Monday following their capture by U.S. forces in a military operation in the Venezuelan capital of Caracas, with Maduro claiming, “I am innocent.”

Maduro told the court he is “still president of my country” and his attorney signaled they may try to assert Maduro is entitled to protection from prosecution as head of a sovereign state.

There are “issues about the legality of his military abduction,” his attorney Barry Pollack said.

Maduro and Flores — who are being held in federal custody at MDC-Brooklyn — appeared in front of Judge Alvin Hellerstein at noon.  

When he entered the courtroom, Maduro greeted the spectators, saying, “Buenos dias.” Maduro was escorted into the courtroom in shackles and orange jail slippers and sat two seats away from his wife.

The couple wore headphones to hear the court-provided interpreter.

When Maduro took his seat next to Pollack, he immediately began writing on a notepad. Flores sat next to her attorney, Mark Donnelly.

Maduro stood before the judge.

“Are you, sir, Nicolas Maduro Moros?” Hellerstein asked.

Maduro declared, through an interpreter, “I am the president of Venezuela.” He added, “I was captured at my home in Caracas, Venezuela,” before the judge interrupted and told him there would be time later to challenge his custody.

Maduro then affirmed he is who the judge said he is.

Hellerstein read Maduro the standard rights.

Maduro said, through an interpreter, “I did not know of these rights. Your Honor is informing me of them now.”

“How do you plead to the indictment?” Hellerstein asked.

Maduro responded, “I am innocent. I am not guilty. I am a decent man. I am still president of my country.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said he believes Maduro is not the legitimate president of the country. That was also the position of the Biden administration, which offered a $25 million reward for his arrest in January 2025.

“I am innocent. I am not guilty of anything mentioned here,” Maduro responded, through an interpreter, when asked to repeat his plea to the charges.

Hellerstein then turned to Maduro’s wife.

“I am Cilia Flores,” she said. “I am first lady of the Republic of Venezuela.”

Hellerstein interjected, saying, “The purpose today is just to ask you who you are.” The judge then explained her rights to remain silent and to be represented by an attorney.

“Yes I understand and I’ve heard it,” Flores said.

Asked how she pleaded to the three counts of the indictment she faces. Flores responded, “Not guilty — completely innocent.”

“As citizens of the state of Venezuela, you have the right to consult with consular officials,” Hellerstein informed Maduro and Flores.

“We understand it and we would like to have such consular visits,” Maduro said.

Maduro took notes during the proceeding and he asked the judge for permission to keep them.

Maduro and Flores did not ask for bail. The judge said he is open to receiving a bail application in the future, but the couple will otherwise remain detained at MDC-Brooklyn.

Donnelly said Flores was injured during the military operation and requested a medical briefing. A bruise was evident on Flores’ head.

“She sustained significant injuries. There’s worry she may have a fracture or severe bruising on her ribs,” Donnelly said.

As Maduro was being led from the courtroom, someone in the gallery stood and shouted in Spanish, in part, “You will pay in the name of Venezuela.”

Maduro stopped and responded in Spanish, “I am the elected president. I am a prisoner of war. I will be free.”

The next court date is set for March 17.

Before Monday’s hearing, dueling groups of protesters gathered across the street from the courthouse, One group held signs urging President Donald Trump to “Free President Maduro,” and the other supported of his capture.

Maduro and Flores are among six defendants named in a four-count superseding indictment that accused them of conspiring with violent, dangerous drug traffickers for the last 25 years. Maduro has long denied all the allegations.

Maduro’s son, two high-ranking Venezuelan officials and an alleged leader of the Tren de Aragua criminal gang are the other defendants.

Trump said on Saturday that the U.S. “successfully carried out a large-scale strike against Venezuela” in which Maduro and Flores were “captured and flown out of the Country.”

Trump said the operation was carried out in conjunction with U.S. law enforcement. Members of Congress said the military, which sources said included the elite Delta Force, was in place to support that law enforcement operation.

In a move that alarmed some observers, Trump, who campaigned on “America First” and against foreign entanglements, said during a press conference at Mar-a-Lago the U.S. would “run” Venezuela for an unspecified “period of time.”

He said a team comprised of some of his Cabinet officials along with a local team in Venezuela would be “running the country” because there is “nobody to take over.”

“We’ll run it properly. We’ll run it professionally. We’ll have the greatest oil companies in the world go in and invest billions and billions of dollars and take out money, use that money in Venezuela, and the biggest beneficiary are going to be the people of Venezuela,” Trump said.

Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez has been sworn in as interim leader to lead the country after what the Venezuelan Supreme Court described as Maduro’s “kidnapping.”

Rodriguez demanded Maduro’s return and vowed to defend Venezuela against American aggression.

On Sunday, Rodriguez posted a statement to social media in which she appeared to soften her tone, inviting “the U.S. government to collaborate with us on an agenda of cooperation oriented towards shared development within the framework of international law to strengthen lasting community coexistence.”

Trump told reporters on Sunday that the U.S. is “in charge” of Venezuela.

The president said he had not yet spoken to Rodriguez. Asked if he wanted to, Trump said, “At the right time, I will.”

ABC News’ Meghan Mistry and Hannah Demissie contributed to this report.

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