Eighteen survivors of millionaire sex offender Jeffrey Epstein accused acting Attorney General Todd Blanche of lying under oath on Tuesday during a Senate Appropriations hearing, claiming he met with the survivors and their lawyers when he never did.“Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has not met with any of us. As survivors, we previously sought a meeting with former Attorney General Bondi and Department of Justice officials, but no meeting occurred,” the survivors said in a statement. “We should not have to be this persistent to engage with DOJ—the department responsible for handling the Epstein files, protecting their privacy, and answering for years of secrecy and failure.“We have already reported abuse and allegations involving Epstein and associated perpetrators to the FBI and federal authorities many times over the course of years. We should not be asked to relive their trauma again and again because the system failed to act. The burden is not on us to keep making reports. It is on the DOJ to investigate credible allegations against perpetrators and co-conspirators, and to account for the government’s mishandling of these matters,” they continued. “Given Blanche’s comments, we are again asking DOJ to meet directly with survivors and their counsel not to ask survivors to start over, but to hear their concerns, explain how these failures occurred, and provide clear answers about the release, redaction, and withholding of Epstein-related records going forward.” Blanche claimed to have met with the survivors and their lawyers, during an exchange with Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen.“I spoke to the representatives of some of the Epstein survivors yesterday. They are extremely frustrated that you keep calling for people to come forward with more evidence, but you have not met with them to hear their stories,” Van Hollen said. “So simple question: If I connect you with these survivors, will you meet with them?”“Absolutely. And what you just said is false. I have met with them. I’ve met with many of the lawyers for the survivors of victims, as did Attorney General Bondi,” Blanche replied. “So whoever told you that unfortunately gave you bad information. I would encourage them to reach out to the Department of Justice.… We absolutely care for victims and we absolutely wanna hear from them and their lawyers.”“Well I’ve been told directly,” Van Hollen said. “They have not had a chance, at least this group, to meet with you.”Now it’s the word of the president’s former personal lawyer against the word of 18 Epstein survivors.Van Hollen: Some Epstein survivors are extremely frustrated that you keep calling for people to come forward with more evidence but have not met with them. Blanche: What you said is false. I have met with them. I have met with many of their lawyers. pic.twitter.com/3ycRdIDlGq— Acyn (@Acyn) May 19, 2026