July 16, 2026 / 9:51 PM EDT
/ CBS/AP
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Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche met Thursday with accusers of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein following a request to do so by Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, whose support is crucial to advancing his nomination to lead the Justice Department.Blanche met for about an hour with a group of Epstein's accusers at Justice Department headquarters in Washington. After the meeting, Blanche told reporters that he encouraged the accusers to come to the FBI with any information that could help investigators.A Justice Department spokesperson told CBS News the meeting, which the spokesperson described as "productive," was attended by senior Justice Department officials, FBI special agents and victim services representatives."Blanche answered questions and walked through what is needed for investigations to proceed," the Justice Department spokesperson said in a statement. "While some victims said that they had not reached out to the FBI under this administration, he encouraged victims to meet with FBI investigators as the next step, and attendees spoke with agents after the meeting about scheduling interviews." Epstein accuser Annie Farmer said in a statement following her meeting with Blanche that she feels "even more confident in urging senators to vote against his confirmation as the United States' Attorney General."Farmer alleged that Blanche was "abrasive, condescending, and intentionally noncommittal to survivors," which she described as "a marked contrast" from his testimony at Wednesday's confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee.Dani Bensky, whose name and personal information were mistakenly made public in documents related to the federal investigation into Epstein that were released by the Justice Department last year, testified before the committee earlier Thursday before taking part in the meeting with Blanche.
