• Former police chief Michael Reiter says Trump called him in 2006, expressing relief over the Epstein investigation.
• Trump reportedly told Reiter, "thank goodness you’re stopping him, everyone has known he’s been doing this."
• The details emerge from newly released documents amid ongoing scrutiny of Trump's ties to Epstein.

A former police chief from Palm Beach, Florida, Michael Reiter, has disclosed in a newly released FBI interview summary that Donald Trump called him in 2006 expressing relief that police were investigating Jeffrey Epstein. During the call, Trump reportedly said, "thank goodness you’re stopping him, everyone has known he’s been doing this," suggesting prior knowledge of Epstein's actions, which he has since denied, according to ABC News, India Times, and BBC.

The discussion surrounding Trump and Epstein has intensified following the release of millions of pages of documents by the Justice Department as part of compliance with the Epstein Files Transparency Act. Reiter confirmed that Trump had told him that people in New York "knew [Epstein] was disgusting," and emphasized the need to focus on Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein's associate, whom Trump referred to as "evil," according to documents cited in Reuters and India Times.

In his account, Reiter noted that Trump was one of the "very first people to call" the Palm Beach Police when the investigation into Epstein's alleged sexual exploitation of underage girls began in 2006. Trump’s assertion that he had thrown Epstein out of Mar-a-Lago after discovering inappropriate behavior further complicates his previous statements, especially as he has consistently claimed he was unaware of Epstein's crimes, according to BBC and Reuters.

Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt commented that the authenticity of Trump's call may be uncertain but affirmed that Trump's consistent stance has been that he expelled Epstein from his club due to inappropriate behavior. The Justice Department stated it was "not aware of any corroborating evidence" supporting the claims made by Reiter about Trump's communication with law enforcement at that time, as reported by ABC News and Reuters.