Vietnam War image falsely linked to Jeffrey Epstein

"Kidnapped -- from the Epstein files," reads a Malay-language Facebook post on February 2, 2026, sharing a photo of a row of babies in boxes with a woman crouching by them.

It adds the wealthy financier kidnapped girls from Turkey after a major earthquake in 1999, and received US$300 for each abducted child.

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Screenshot of the false post taken on January 30, 2026

The picture was misrepresented in similar Facebook posts by users in India, Nigeria and Indonesia as the US Justice Department released millions of documents from its investigation into Epstein, who died in a New York jail in 2019 while awaiting trial for sex trafficking underage girls (archived link).

The latest release has caused international fallout involving high profile figures, highlighting the wealthy financier's staggering global web of influence.

Previous releases have shed light on Epstein's ties to leading business executives, celebrities, academics and politicians, including former US leader Bill Clinton and President Donald Trump.

The mere mention of someone's name in the Epstein files does not, in itself, imply any wrongdoing by that person. 

However, the documents made public show at the very least connections between Epstein or his circle and certain public figures who have often downplayed -- or even denied -- the existence of such ties.

In Turkey, MP Turhan Comez earlier took to X to call for an investigation, sharing a document with highlighted lines that read in part: "Upon information and belief, Defendant (Epstein) transported minor girls from Turkey, the Czech Republic, Asia, and numerous other countries, many of whom spoke no English."

But rather than citing DOJ documents, his call cited evidence from an old court case filed in Florida.

Florida case

A keyword search using the case number visible in the document found it was taken from a civil action case against Epstein filed before a Florida district court in May 2009.

The court filing -- which had been publicly available before the latest batch of Epstein files was released -- details allegations of sexual assault and exploitation of young girls including the complainant, referred to as "Jane Doe No. 102".

According to archives from the legal database Court Listener, the parties agreed to settle and the case was dismissed (archived link).

"Jane Doe No. 102" was subsequently identified in separate court cases as Virginia Giuffre, a US and Australian citizen and one of Epstein's main accusers, who took her own life in April 2025 (archived link). 

For almost 15 years, Giuffre spoke about being raped by the financier while she was a minor and claimed she was sexually exploited by some of Epstein's powerful friends, including Britain's former prince Andrew.

Misused picture

Contrary to the circulating posts, the picture of the babies in boxes is unrelated to Epstein.

A reverse image search led to an article on the US Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) website from April 3, 2014 commemorating the evacuation of Vietnamese infants in 1975, dubbed Operation Babylift, after the collapse of South Vietnam that year (archived link).

Further searches of the DIA's gallery found the circulating image published with the caption: "More than 3,000 Vietnamese orphans were evacuated from Saigon throughout April 1975 during Operation Babylift" (archived link). The photo is credited to the National Archives and Records Administration.

In the chaotic last days of the Vietnam War, the US airlifted thousands of children out of Saigon.

During the controversial mass evacuation, some 3,000 children were flown out of Vietnam to be adopted by families from America to Sweden.

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Screenshot of the US Defence Intelligence Agency taken on February 9, 2026

AFP has previously fact-checked other misinformation related to the Epstein files.