Epstein Files: Are the viral photos linking Zohran Mamdani to Jeffrey Epstein real? Here's what we know
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Epstein Files: Are the viral photos linking Zohran Mamdani to Jeffrey Epstein real? Here's what we know")
Jeffrey Epstein Photograph: (AFP)
AI-generated images falsely linking New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and his mother, Mira Nair, to Jeffrey Epstein were widely shared online despite clear AI watermarks
A series of viral images circulating on social media this week falsely purport to show New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani as a child alongside his mother, acclaimed filmmaker Mira Nair, in the company of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell. The images started spreading on Monday (February 2), on X, after the Justice Department released a new batch of Epstein-related documents on Friday. Although widely shared, the visuals are not authentic. They were generated using artificial intelligence and are clearly labeled with digital watermarks indicating AI involvement.
The images trace back to an X account that openly identifies itself as a parody page and describes its content as AI-generated memes and visuals. Several inconsistencies further undermine the credibility of the photos. One fabricated image shows Mamdani and Nair standing in the foreground of a nighttime street scene alongside Epstein, Maxwell, former President Bill Clinton, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates. Mamdani appears to be a pre-teen. Another AI-generated scene places a similar group in a tropical environment, with Epstein holding Clinton and Maxwell standing beside a younger-looking Mamdani.
Additional images show Mamdani as an infant in Nair’s arms while posing with Epstein, Maxwell, Clinton, and Bezos. Importantly, none of Epstein’s victims have accused Clinton, Gates, or Bezos of involvement in Epstein’s criminal activities. Google’s Gemini platform confirmed that all of the images contain SynthID, a digital watermark used to flag AI-generated or AI-modified content, indicating they were created or altered by Google’s AI tools.
The account responsible for posting the images did not respond to media inquiries, but appeared to acknowledge its role in a follow-up post. “I purposely made him a baby, which would technically make this pic 34 years old,” the account wrote, suggesting the images were intentionally fabricated. The false visuals surfaced shortly after reports about a 2009 film afterparty held at Maxwell’s townhouse, referenced in an email from publicist Peggy Siegal to Epstein. The email mentioned several well-known figures, including Clinton, Bezos, and Nair. However, Mamdani was 18 years old in 2009, contradicting depictions of him as a baby or young child in the images.
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The spread of the AI images has fueled additional misinformation online, including an unfounded claim that Epstein was Mamdani’s father. In reality, Mamdani’s father is Mahmood Mamdani, a respected anthropology professor at Columbia University.
The New York City Mayor’s Ooffice declined to comment on the matter.
