US President Donald Trump said on Friday (local time) that he will ask Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein's ties to many other high-profile figures, in an extraordinary step that comes just days after Democrats released emails from the late Epstein that mention him.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said that Democrats were using the 'Epstein Hoax' to deflect people's attention from the shutdown. "Thank you, Mr. President," she wrote in a post on X that included a screenshot of Trump's request. Bondi later on Friday confirmed she would launch the investigation on Trump's orders, assigning Jay Clayton, the top prosecutor in New York's southern district, to lead the federal probe, CNN reported.