Jeffrey Epstein was a wealthy American financier and convicted sex offender for sexually abusing and trafficking underage girls, using his links to powerful and influential figures. He was arrested in the US in 2019 on federal sex-trafficking charges but was found dead in a New York jail before his trial began. Authorities later ruled his death a suicide, though it triggered widespread controversy and conspiracy theories.
In 2026, the US Department of Justice released millions of documents, videos and photographs under the Epstein Files Transparency Act. The material, known as the “Epstein Files”, has reignited scrutiny after references to US President Donald Trump and other prominent individuals surfaced. Alongside this, several unverified and extreme claims have circulated online, fuelling renewed debate and criticism.
In the above context, a video is being widely shared online in which US President Donald Trump is seen visiting a class when a young child screams after seeing Trump. Those sharing the video claim that it was found in the Epstein files.
A social media user shared the video with a caption that reads, “What we considered as a simple memes video for so long was basically Epstein’s video.”
SouthCheck found that the claim is false. The viral video is a combination of two different videos. The first video is from 2016, when Trump visited a school and the second video is of a childcare centre.
Upon analysis of the video, we found that it had two clips. One in which Trump is seen entering a classroom and the other in which a kid is seen screaming.
Video 1
On a Google reverse image search, we found that the first video was shared by ABC News on October 6, 2016. The video was shared with a caption that reads, “First-grade students of the International Christian Academy, a private school in Nevada, react to Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump visiting their classroom on October 5, 2016.”
In the video, we can see Trump visiting a classroom. However, we could not find any child screaming at seeing him.
A comparison of the videos shows that the clip of the US president at the start of the viral video matches the opening segment of the original footage. In both, Donald Trump is seen entering the same classroom, wearing the same clothes and behaving the same way. However, the later scenes differ: the original video does not show children appearing frightened. Instead, it shows a child walking up to Trump and presenting him with a gift.
Video 2
On a Google reverse image search, we found the same video was shared by a YouTube channel, Inside Edition, on April 7, 2018. The video was shared with a caption that reads, “One mom is furious after video of her two-year-old daughter was posted online for the world to see. It shows little Surai looking terrified at the sight of the Easter bunny making a surprise entrance at her daycare. Cassandra Bryson was in disbelief when she learned that the video had gone viral and millions of people were laughing at the expense of her upset child. The video was taken eight days ago by an employee of Around the World Learning Centre in Florida.”
A closer view of the video shows that the children were startled when a rabbit entered their classroom. Further details confirm that the footage was recorded on March 30 that year at the Around the World Learning Centre, a daycare facility in Florida, USA. On that day, one of the children, dressed as an Easter bunny, walked into the classroom, surprising the others. The video was filmed by a daycare staff member and later went viral online.
However, the mother of one child featured in the clip expressed anger over the video being shared without her consent and can be heard in the footage criticising the school for allowing it to be posted.
The video was also shared by NBC on April 6, 2018.
Hence, we can ascertain that the viral clips show different incidents and are not related to the Epstein case.
