New Mexico state investigators have searched Jeffrey Epstein's former Zorro Ranch near Stanley, New Mexico, as part of a recently reopened criminal probe into the late financier and convicted sex offender's alleged activities at the property.

According to the New Mexico Department of Justice (DOJ), the search, which began on Monday (March 9), was carried out with the assistance of New Mexico State Police and the Sandoval County Sheriff's Office.

DOJ spokeswoman Lauren Rodriguez confirmed the search but declined to say what investigators were looking for, or how long the search might continue. "The New Mexico Department of Justice will continue to keep the public appropriately informed, support the survivors, and follow the facts wherever they lead," Rodriguez said in a statement. She also urged the public to stay away from the area and avoid flying drones that could interfere with law enforcement activities.

The current owner of the property, Texas businessman Don Huffines, granted investigators access to conduct the search. Huffines purchased the ranch from Epstein's estate in 2023 and renamed it San Rafael Ranch. He has said he plans to convert the property into a Christian retreat center.

The search comes less than a month after New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez announced his office was reviving its criminal investigation into activities at the ranch. The state DOJ cited "revelations outlined in the previously sealed FBI files" as justification for reopening the probe, and said it would seek access to the complete, unredacted federal case file.

The search follows new information contained in documents released in January by the U.S. Department of Justice, including a serious accusation that Epstein ordered the bodies of two foreign girls buried in hills near the remote property.

Epstein purchased Zorro Ranch from the family of former New Mexico Governor Bruce King in 1993. The sprawling 7,500-plus-acre property features a 33,339-square-foot mansion, pool, hot tub, and other structures, and sits about 30 miles south of Santa Fe.

Court documents and civil cases have accused Epstein of sexually assaulting teenage girls and women at the ranch. Multiple women have publicly said they were abused there as teenagers. Annie Farmer, one of four accusers who testified at the sex-trafficking trial of Epstein's associate Ghislaine Maxwell, said she was given a nude massage at the ranch at age 16, and described Epstein climbing into her bed the following morning. A witness identified only as Jane testified that she was taken to Epstein's bedroom at the ranch at age 15 or 16 against her will. Virginia Giuffre, among the most prominent Epstein accusers, also alleged she was abused at Zorro Ranch. Giuffre died by suicide last spring.

New Mexico closed its previous Epstein investigation in 2019 at the request of federal prosecutors in New York, who promised to share evidence that was ultimately never provided.

The state is also moving forward on a separate accountability track. The New Mexico House of Representatives approved the formation of a legislative "truth commission" to examine what took place at the ranch during the 26 years Epstein owned it. The four-member commission has already held one meeting and could begin issuing subpoenas in the coming weeks. It is charged with filing a full report by the end of the year.

Democratic state representative Andrea Romero, who chairs the commission, said: "It is my sworn duty to do everything within our power to seek answers for the public about what occurred at Zorro Ranch, and to pursue justice for every victim who was allegedly harmed there."

Bill Handel