New Mexico state investigators arrived at a desert ranch once owned by Jeffrey Epstein on March 9 and began examining the property.
The New Mexico Department of Justice (NMDOJ) confirmed they launched the search of the convicted sex offender’s Zorro Ranch with support from other state and local law enforcement in a statement to the Daily Caller. The department began a criminal inquiry Feb. 19.
The search is potentially the first thorough examination of the ranch and comes after a renewed effort to investigate Epstein’s alleged crimes in New Mexico, The New York Times (NYT) reported. State leaders said the allegations against the late sex offender have never been fully investigated.
Unverified tips emerged in the U.S. Justice Department’s (DOJ) most recent release of the Epstein files, including one that claimed Epstein ordered the burial of two abused girls in the hills outside the ranch property, according to the NYT. It’s not certain whether the FBI investigated the tip.
NEW: Investigators are now searching Jeffrey Epstein’s Zorro Ranch for the bodies of two girls who were allegedly strangled to death, according to the Daily Mail.
The search comes after an email claimed that a former staffer had information that two girls were buried outside the… pic.twitter.com/Db6HjwNgaS
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) March 10, 2026
Individuals alleged abuse and trafficking took place at Zorro Ranch by alleged victims. New Mexico authorities alleged that federal authorities could have overlooked the 30,000 square foot estate and the grassland around after assuming control of a 2019 inquiry into Epstein’s actions.
It is not clear which portions of the ranch are being looked into, or how long the investigation at this particular property is expected to last.
New Mexico lawmakers unanimously voted in February to form a bipartisan, four-member “truth commission” inside the state legislature and give it subpoena power to probe what may have occurred at Zorro Ranch.
🚨New Mexico Department of Justice Conducts Search of the Former ‘Zorro Ranch’ New Mexico property owned by Jeffrey Epstein
Statement from NMDOJ spokesperson regarding today’s search :
“At the direction of Attorney General Torrez, the New Mexico Department of Justice initiated…
— Ashley Brasfield (@BrasfieldAshley) March 9, 2026
“I’m very glad to know the N.M.D.O.J. is doing what should have been done years ago,” Democratic New Mexico state Rep. Andrea Romero, who is leading the commission, said. “Finally we are able to take a look inside a property that has created a yearslong mystery.”
The newly launched mission comes with challenges that have been complicated by the passage of time — namely that Zorro Ranch is now owned by Dallas real estate tycoon Don Huffines, who has agreed to comply with the state’s investigation, according to the NYT.
Huffines has renamed the property San Rafael Ranch and said he intends to turn it into a Christian retreat.
In this handout, the mug shot of Jeffrey Epstein, 2019. (Photo by Kypros/Getty Images)
Huffines said he and his relatives are “fully cooperating with the New Mexico D.O.J. to organize a thorough and legitimate investigation into any possible wrongdoing by the property’s former owner,” according to the NYT.
Democratic New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez wrote in The Albuquerque Journal that there would be “real obstacles” to unearthing and examining evidence after such a prolonged time, noting the challenges of prosecuting any allegations. Despite that, the official said he remained committed to seeing the investigation through and releasing a report after. (RELATED: Epstein Allegedly Signed Off On Horrific Medical Act Against Woman)
“The people of New Mexico, and those who were harmed, are entitled to a complete and transparent accounting of what we found and what we did not,” Mr. Torrez wrote.