The House Oversight Committee accused federal authorities Tuesday of repeatedly failing victims of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.

Nov. 10 (UPI) -- The House Oversight Committee accused federal authorities Tuesday of repeatedly failing victims of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, calling on the Justice Department to further investigate allegations involving Epstein's associates.

The committee released a 137-page report alleging decades of failures by law enforcement, prosecutors and financial institutions that allowed Epstein to continue sexually abusing and trafficking young women and girls.

"The federal government has failed the survivors of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell's horrific crimes for decades," committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., said in a statement.

The report urged the Justice Department to interview or reinterview witnesses who may have undisclosed information about Epstein's trafficking operation.

Investigators should also examine allegations of criminal activity involving Epstein's associates and provide survivors with unredacted access to their personal investigative records, the committee said.

The report criticized a 2007 non-prosecution agreement negotiated under former U.S. Attorney Alexander Acosta, which allowed Epstein to avoid federal charges in exchange for pleading guilty to state offenses in Florida.

Committee investigators concluded the agreement, along with Epstein's unusually lenient treatment during his imprisonment, allowed him to continue abusing women for years.

The committee also accused financial institutions of overlooking suspicious transactions linked to Epstein despite warning signs of possible trafficking and financial crimes.

"Financial institutions possessed substantial information about Epstein's criminal history and repeatedly identified transactions and activities presenting heightened compliance risks," the report said.

The committee urged the Treasury Department and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network to review whether banks are adequately reporting suspicious activity.

Investigators also examined Epstein's death in a New York federal jail in August 2019, identifying staffing shortages, inadequate training and failures to follow security procedures.

The committee said its findings concluded that Epstein died by suicide.

Lawmakers recommended legislation that would prevent confidentiality agreements from silencing sexual abuse survivors, along with stronger oversight of federal prosecutors and reforms to non-prosecution agreements.

Maxwell, who was convicted in 2021 of crimes involving the sexual exploitation and trafficking of minors, is serving a 20-year federal prison sentence.