Donald Trump broke his silence on the Epstein files the day after the US Department of Justice (DOJ) released millions of documents related to investigations into the late convicted sex offender. The US president said the latest trove “absolve” him, though – he went on to claim – “the radical left” actually hoped for “the opposite” outcome.

He said: “I didn’t see it myself but I was told by some very important people that not only does it absolve me, it’s the opposite of what people were hoping, you know, the radical left.” The name of the Republican leader appears multiple times in the millions of documents released. One of the documents released appears to be internal emails dating back to August last year by federal investigators looking into allegations involving the president and late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The emails give no indication that any claims had been substantiated.

Other mentions of Trump include references to the president in emails as well as clippings from news outlets’ articles.

Being named in the files does not indicate any wrongdoing, and Mr Trump has consistently denied any knowledge of Epstein’s crimes.

The emails Mr Trump is named in also give no indication that any claims were substantiated, and investigators deemed several of the accusors not credible. The DOJ said in a statement on Friday: “This production may include fake or falsely submitted images, documents or videos, as everything that was sent to the FBI by the public was included in the production that is responsive to the Act. Some of the documents contain untrue and sensationalist claims against President Trump that were submitted to the FBI right before the 2020 election. To be clear, the claims are unfounded and false, and if they have a shred of credibility, they certainly would have been weaponized against President Trump already.”

Mr Trump had a well-documented social relationship with Epstein from the late 1980s until the early 2000s, and have been pictured together in New York and Florida.

In 2002, he described the late pedophile as a “terrific guy” who liked women “on the younger side”.

However, following Epstein’s death in 2019, Mr Trump said they “had a falling out” around 2004 after a dispute over a Palm Beach mansion.

He later claimed he banned him from Mar-a-Lago for being a “creep” and harassing a member’s daughter.