In late January 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) under Attorney General Pamela Bondi released a massive trove of documents related to the late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. This release, mandated by the Epstein Files Transparency Act signed into law by President Donald Trump in November 2025, was intended to shed light on Epstein's sprawling network of influence, which allegedly involved high-profile figures in politics, business, entertainment, and even royalty. However, the rollout has been mired in controversy, with discrepancies in the reported number of files, heavy redactions, and public scrutiny over what might still be hidden. Amid the chaos, online communities and conspiracy theorists have fixated on potential connections to historical events, including the 1997 death of Princess Diana, fuelled by recent claims from a former UK security service member and amplified by viral social media posts.
The Numbers Game: From 6 Million to 3 Million—and Questions About the Rest
Attorney General Pamela Bondi, in a letter to Congress dated January 30, 2026, stated that the DOJ had identified over 6 million pages of material potentially responsive to the Transparency Act. This figure was echoed in multiple official communications, including a press conference by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, who confirmed the department had reviewed more than 6 million pages, involving over 500 attorneys and staff. The law required the release of all unclassified Epstein-related files within 30 days of its passage, but the DOJ missed that December 2025 deadline, citing the sheer volume and the need to protect victims' privacy and sensitive privileges.
When the files finally dropped on January 30, the DOJ announced it was releasing approximately 3 million pages, along with 2,000 videos and 180,000 images. Some reports pegged the number slightly higher at 3.5 million pages, but the core message was that this constituted the bulk—or about half—of the identified material. Around 200,000 pages were redacted or withheld entirely, based on exemptions like attorney-client privilege, child sexual abuse material, and victim protections. The remaining roughly 3 million pages? According to critics, including Democratic lawmakers like Rep. Jamie Raskin and Rep. Ro Khanna, they appear to have been deemed non-responsive or otherwise excluded, raising suspicions of selective disclosure.
Public frustration boiled over. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer tweeted, "Your numbers keep changing. You say you collected 6 million pages but you’re only releasing 3 million. What’s in the 3 million that are missing?" Commentators accused the Trump administration of shielding powerful figures, with some pointing to Bondi's absence from the press conference as a sign of internal tensions. Bondi herself had emphasized transparency, but the gap between the 6 million identified and the 3 million released (with reports varying slightly to 2.7-3.6 million in initial announcements) fueled conspiracy theories. As one op-ed noted, "Millions of files are still unreleased," questioning why half the material remained in the shadows. The files themselves revealed Epstein's communications with elites like Donald Trump, Elon Musk, Bill Clinton, and others, including allegations of sexual misconduct and blackmail. But for many, the real intrigue lay in searching for "hidden gems"—connections to unsolved mysteries, like Princess Diana's fatal car crash.
Scouring the Files for Princess Diana: Mentions, But No Smoking Gun on Murder
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Princess Diana's name surfaces multiple times in the Epstein documents, but not in ways that directly implicate her in his crimes or prove foul play in her death. Epstein, ever the name-dropper, claimed in drafts of an unpublished article for New York Magazine that he had met Diana in 1994 at London's Serpentine Gallery event, where she wore her famous "revenge dress" after Prince Charles admitted his affair with Camilla Parker Bowles. One version of the draft described Epstein sitting "with his arm around" Diana; another said merely "next to" her. Fact-checking emails from 2015 confirm Epstein's boastful attempts to insert himself into royal circles, but there's no evidence Diana reciprocated or that they had a meaningful relationship.
Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein's convicted accomplice, added to the intrigue in a 2025 interview transcript. She claimed Epstein had been "set up" on a date with Diana through mutual friends like Rosa Monckton (a close confidante of Diana's) and her husband, journalist Dominic Lawson. Maxwell described Epstein attending a "big event" in London where he might have met Diana, but emphasized it was before her own involvement with him. Diana, who died in a Paris tunnel crash on August 31, 1997, alongside Dodi Fayed and driver Henri Paul, had no documented ties to Epstein's illicit activities. Conspiracy theorists, however, seized on these mentions, speculating that Epstein's files might hold clues to her "murder"—a theory long peddled by Dodi's father, Mohamed al-Fayed, who accused the British royal family and intelligence services of orchestrating the crash.
Public searches of the files for "Princess Diana murder" yielded little beyond these tangential references. Some pointed to Epstein's obsession with Diana: paparazzi photos of her were reportedly found on his walls, and he allegedly tried to meet her post-divorce through intermediaries, only to be rebuffed. X (formerly Twitter) erupted with posts claiming Diana appeared "8 separate occasions" in the files, often misconstruing mere name-drops as evidence of involvement. One viral thread alleged she boarded Epstein's planes eight times, but this appears unfounded—Diana died two years before Epstein's Lolita Express flights became notorious. Instead, her inclusion seems tied to Epstein's social climbing, not any conspiracy.
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The MI5 Angle: Annie Machon's Claims and the Palestinian Campaign Theory
Adding fuel to the fire is Annie Machon, a former MI5 intelligence officer who resigned in 1996 alongside her partner, David Shayler, after blowing the whistle on alleged agency misconduct. In interviews dating back to the 2000s and resurfacing in 2026 amid the Epstein release, Machon has claimed Diana's death was no accident. She points to eyewitness reports of a "major white flash" in the Alma tunnel, suggesting a strobe light was used to disorient the driver— a tactic she says was discussed in MI6 plans to assassinate Serbian leader Slobodan Milošević. (Note: footnote in source refers to a 2016 article.)
Machon ties this to Diana's evolving activism. After her landmines campaign, which embarrassed arms manufacturers (including those with Israeli ties), Diana was reportedly planning to advocate for Palestinian rights. "She was about to go into campaigning on behalf of the Palestinians," Machon stated in a 2016 interview, implying this threatened powerful interests, possibly including Israel or the British establishment. Diana's relationship with Dodi Fayed, an Egyptian Muslim, and her sympathy for Palestinian causes (evidenced by visits to Bosnia and Angola) fueled theories that she was "taken out" to prevent scandal or political disruption.
These claims echo older conspiracies: Mohamed al-Fayed alleged MI6 involvement on Prince Philip's orders, citing Diana's fears of a staged car accident in a letter she wrote. A 2008 inquest ruled her death accidental, blaming paparazzi pursuit and Henri Paul's intoxication. Yet Machon's assertions gained traction in 2026, with X posts like one from
@hippyygoat on February 3: "ISRAEL TAKE OUT PEOPLE WHO ARE A THREAT… British Mi5 agent says 'Diana was taken out' Israel had all the motives as 'she was about to go into campaigning on behalf of the Palestinians'." The post, which included a video clip (likely of Machon or a similar source), garnered thousands of engagements, with replies speculating on Epstein's files revealing more.
A Story of Shadows: Unresolved Questions and Viral Speculation
The Epstein release has not definitively linked to Diana's death—no "murder files" emerged, despite fervent searches. Yet the narrative persists, blending Epstein's royal pretensions with longstanding theories. Viral images juxtaposing Bondi (quipping "All the rest of it" about withheld files) and Diana's somber gaze symbolize the "hidden truth" for many. As one X user noted, "Princess Diana knew the hard truth about Royal Family and their indulgence in child sacrifice, pedophilia."
Critics dismiss this as baseless, pointing to official inquiries. But with half the files unreleased, demands for full transparency continue. House Democrats have requested unredacted access ahead of Bondi's February 11, 2026, testimony. Whether more revelations await remains unclear, but Diana's ghost—amplified by Epstein's shadow—ensures the story endures.
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