Rep. Ro Khanna (D., Calif.) said in an interview released Monday that he is "so careful" not to spread "conspiracy theories" about Jeffrey Epstein. He then claimed that Epstein visited CIA headquarters, seemingly citing a viral photograph that almost certainly shows Epstein at a design studio for Hermès, the luxury French leather goods company of which he was a connoisseur.
Khanna made the claim and other unsubstantiated allegations in an interview with the left-wing YouTube host Andrew Callaghan. The two discussed the left-wing congressman's efforts to force the Department of Justice to release millions of documents related to Epstein, who was indicted in July 2019 on charges that he trafficked dozens of underage girls.
Khanna appeared to surprise Callaghan with his claim about the existence of a photograph depicting Epstein at CIA headquarters in Langley, Va.
"It shows that he has a picture at the CIA headquarters," Khanna said. The California lawmaker is eyeing a 2028 presidential bid and has used the Epstein files—he authored the law that required the Justice Department to unseal them—to build a national profile. "I think it's inside, I mean, but the picture is out there publicly. Like, why?"
The photo Khanna appeared to be referencing, and which Callaghan flashed on screen as Khanna spoke, shows Epstein with an unidentified woman in a large room. The purported evidence that the photograph does in fact show Epstein at the CIA is the appearance of gray bins in the background emblazoned with the acronym "CIA." The picture went viral on social media platforms and appears to be the only one of Epstein purportedly at the CIA.
Epstein, who killed himself in jail in August 2019, visited Hermès's headquarters in 2013 and 2014, according to emails released by the Justice Department. A photo of Epstein's 2013 Hermès visit, in which he met the company's CEO while on a tour with filmmaker Woody Allen, shows Epstein wearing the same sweater as in the photo seemingly referenced by Khanna. In the lower-right-hand corner of the photo is a gray bin with "CIA" written on it. It is unclear what the letters denote, but in the world of high-end luxury design, "CIA" is an acronym associated with the quality-control process—"control inspection assemblage"—that is used by many design houses.
Allen's wife, Soon-Yi Previn, invited Epstein to join the couple for breakfast with the CEO of Hermès, according to a March 27, 2013, email. Epstein wrote in a Nov. 27, 2013, email that "dumas showed woody allen and i around hermes last trip."
A 2024 Vogue video showing a tour of a Hermès design studio in Paris also shows matching gray bins with "CIA" printed on them. The office shown in the Vogue video closely resembles the one shown in Khanna's Epstein photo. The Vogue tour video and Epstein photo also show matching lighting and ceiling designs, with fluorescent office lights held up by suspension wires.
The photo shown during Khanna's interview also shows signs along the wall printed with the term "Porosus," a type of crocodile leather that Hermès uses to make some of its priciest handbags.
Epstein's emails include photos of the business cards of Hermès's director of operations and the company's artistic director for its "women's product universe."
Reached for comment, a spokeswoman for Khanna, Sarah Drory, offered inconsistent statements about Khanna's claim and what evidence, if any, he has to support it.
Drory said Khanna was referring not to the viral photograph but to a July 9, 2017, email in which Epstein asked former Obama White House counsel Kathryn Ruemmler to arrange a meeting with former CIA director John Brennan. That email does not include a photograph and makes no mention of a visit to CIA headquarters. There's no indication that the meeting occurred.
Drory also pointed to a Jan. 8, 2015, email in which Ruemmler told Epstein that she had received a CIA award from Brennan. There is no mention of a visit to CIA headquarters or any photographs in that email, either.
Pressed on those inconsistencies, Drory said, "Off the record, Ro did not see the pictures that they [Callaghan] posted. They must have edited that later." The Free Beacon did not agree to speak off the record.
Callaghan, the interviewer, told the Free Beacon that Khanna did not provide his show with the Epstein photo and that a third-party contractor added it to the show. "A lot of these tweets made their way into the influencer orbit and caught the eyes and ears of politicians," Callaghan told the Free Beacon. "Photo was not provided by Ro, though." Callaghan offered to add a "fact check slide" to the interview if the Free Beacon could prove that the photo was not taken at CIA headquarters, an interesting way of fact-checking a show.
Khanna has a history of elevating false Epstein file claims from influencers, including during his interview with Callaghan. His guest at Tuesday evening's State of the Union will be Haley Robson, he announced, a victim of Epstein's abuse who also helped recruit other teenage women into his orbit.
Khanna has claimed that emails from Epstein's inbox made references to the rape of a nine-year-old Brazilian girl and questioned why the Department of Justice "blocked out names of people who have said … 'I saw a nine-year-old Brazilian,'" referencing a Jan. 17, 2013, email sent to Epstein by an unknown sender. That claim that Khanna cited originated from Jake Shields, an anti-Semitic MMA fighter who has denied the Holocaust. The website "Lead Stories" debunked the email days before Khanna's interview. According to the report, the email sent to Epstein refers to a "19-year-old" Brazilian woman, not a 9-year-old girl.
Khanna last week committed a major blunder in a speech on the House floor, naming six "powerful" men whose identities were redacted in the Epstein files. The Guardian reported that four of those had no connection "whatsoever" to Epstein and only served as participants in an FBI lineup as part of the Epstein investigation.
Khanna admitted that he identified innocent people but blamed the Department of Justice for not explaining to him why the names were redacted.
Khanna insists that his focus on the Epstein files has nothing to do with partisan politics, though he has largely shied away from criticizing his Democratic donors and colleagues over their controversial appearances in the files.
"I do think every person who's talked about going to these places should be investigated, asked questions," Khanna said.
While Khanna has criticized Trump allies mentioned in the files, such as Elon Musk and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, he has not called for scrutiny of two political allies: LinkedIn cofounder Reid Hoffman and Virgin Islands congresswoman Stacey Plaskett (D.).
Hoffman, who has contributed $35,600 to Khanna's campaign, spoke and met with Epstein through at least 2018, three years longer than he had claimed, the Free Beacon reported. Hoffman visited Epstein's private islands in the Virgin Islands and sent emails referencing gifts he purchased for young women.
Khanna was seated next to Plaskett at a February 2019 House hearing in which Plaskett exchanged text messages with Epstein. Plaskett insisted in November that she never had "a friendship" with Epstein, who was her constituent in the Virgin Islands. But text messages show that Plaskett referred to Epstein as "a friend" in an exchange on Sept. 24, 2018, just after Plaskett visited Epstein at his New York City townhouse, the Free Beacon reported. Plaskett visited Epstein at his Virgin Islands office in May 2019, just weeks before he was arrested for sex trafficking dozens of minors.
The CIA did not respond to a request for comment.
