Donald Trump 'told his name features multiple times in Epstein files'

Attorney General Pam Bondi is said to have told the US President of his name's appearance in the files at a meeting at the White House in May.

Trump was also allegedly notified that many other high-profile figures were named, claims that his spokesperson has since denied.

A mention in the records does not indicate any wrongdoing.

During the briefing, Trump is said to have been informed that Justice Department officials did not intend to release documents concerning Epstein.

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It comes weeks before the department announced it would not unseal documents due to secrecy guidelines.

The materials remain sealed due to claims that they contain child pornography and sensitive personal information about victims.

In response to claims Trump is named the notorious Epstein files, White House spokesperson Steven Cheung said in an emailed statement seen by The Guardian: “The fact is that the President kicked him out of his club for being a creep.

"This is nothing more than a continuation of the fake news stories concocted by the Democrats and the liberal media."

According to the Wall Street Journal, the meeting in May was routine and its focus was not Trump's alleged inclusion in the Epstein files.

Earlier this week, Trump directed the Attorney General to release grand jury materials related to Epstein after mounting pressure from the public.

However, on Wednesday, US district judge Robin Rosenberg rejected the bid due to guidelines governing grand jury secrecy.Under US law, grand jury materials are generally kept confidential unless exceptions warrant their release - conditions that Ms Rosenberg said did not apply in this case.

The judge ruled that the government's argument of 'extensive public interest' and the need for 'transparency to the American public 'did not satisfy the legal threshold for unsealing documents under 'special circumstances'.

The materials relate to grand juries held in Florida in connection with an investigation into Epstein in 2005 and 2007.

Meanwhile last week, rump filed a $10 billion (£7.5 billion) lawsuit against the Wall Street Journal's parent company Dow Jones and its owner Rupert Murdoch over claims he wrote a 'bawdy' birthday note to Epstein.

He denied writing the message, calling it a 'fake thing', after the major US newspaper reported his name appeared on the note.

It was supposedly part of a leather-bound album gifted to Epstein for his 50th birthday, roughly three years before sexual abuse allegations emerged about the infamous financier and socialite.

The alleged letter includes a hand-drawn image showing the silhouette of a naked woman with a typed letter of an imagined conversation between the two.

The paper claimed the letter concludes "Happy Birthday - and may every day be another wonderful secret", and featured the signature "Donald".

The note is part of several documents that were examined by the Department of Justice when it first investigated Epstein and Maxwell years ago, according to sources familiar with the issue.

Earlier this month, a joint investigation between the FBI and the Department of Justice said there was 'no credible evidence' that Epstein kept a ‘client list’ to blackmail prominent political and business leaders.

There have been conspiracy theories swirling around for years regarding the nature of Epstein's death and who was involved in his activities.

Epstein was found dead in his cell at a federal jail in Manhattan in August 2019 while he awaited trial on sex trafficking charges.

The death was ruled a suicide.