US Virgin Islands Governor Albert Bryan has denied that his administration granted any special treatment to the estate of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, pushing back against renewed scrutiny following the release of federal records linked to the Epstein Files Transparency Act.

Bryan addressed the issue during a media conference February 2, responding to reports about his administration’s interactions with Epstein’s estate after the US Justice Department released millions of pages of documents January 30.

The records include internal memoranda detailing a voluntary FBI interview with former Virgin Islands Attorney General Denise George.

George’s statement to federal investigators, memorialised in a four-page FBI report, outlines events she says occurred during her tenure as attorney general beginning in 2019, the same year Bryan took office.

In the interview, George alleged that she was instructed to settle litigation involving the Epstein estate for $80 million.

She also told investigators that she believed Epstein relocated assets to the Virgin Islands because of his relationship with a former governor.

Bryan told reporters that the documents published on the Department of Justice website consist of raw investigative materials and unverified claims, rather than prosecutorial findings or established facts.

He noted that several of the allegations contained in the documents have circulated publicly for years.

“The Epstein estate received zero, zero concessions from this administration. None, no special treatment, no favours, no backroom deals. This is a non-issue being dressed up like a crisis,” Bryan said.

“Claims are being circulated. Most of them are baseless and not rooted in any verified facts. Even the media reporting on them has pointed out the inconsistencies and errors, which is exactly why the public should view this noise with the appropriate caution and proper context.”

Bryan, who is in his final year as governor of the US Virgin Islands, said he would not allow what he described as “political distractions and the sideshows and recycled conversations” to divert his administration from its work.