Kevin Rudd

Kevin Rudd is an Australian politician who served as Prime Minister of Australia from 2007 to 2010 and again in 2013. He later served as Australia’s Ambassador to the United States from 2023 to 2026.

Rudd’s name appears in a tranche of documents released by the US Department of Justice in early 2026. According to The Nightly, the release comprised more than three million pages of material, along with thousands of videos and images. SBS News reported that the documents included emails indicating Epstein had scheduled a meeting with Rudd for “Sunday, 8 June 2014 at 4.30pm,” though SBS noted there is no evidence the meeting took place. The Nightly reported additional references in the files, including a 6 June 2014 email in which Epstein told an assistant to arrange “non-vegetarian food, as now Kevin Rudd is also coming,” a September 2015 email in which Epstein described Rudd to a contact as the “former prime minister of australia,” and a 2013 message from a third party asking whether Rudd could bring his wife and son to a dinner. Al Jazeera reported that at the time of the scheduled June 2014 date, Rudd was not in government.

Rudd, through his office, has denied any meeting or relationship with Epstein. His spokesperson told SBS News: “Our office has no records of this meeting, and the published documents gave no indication about who was involved in organising it. In any case, they were unsuccessful in arranging the introduction.” The office added: “Most references to Dr Rudd in these latest documents mention him in passing. Others indicate there were attempts by mutual acquaintances of Jeffrey Epstein to introduce him to Dr Rudd. No introduction ever took place, and there is no evidence of any direct contact between Jeffrey Epstein and either Dr Rudd or his office.” The Nightly reported that Rudd “reiterates his previous statements that he has never corresponded with Jeffrey Epstein or ever visited any of Jeffrey Epstein’s houses,” and that his legal team is prepared to take action against any defamatory claims asserting a personal relationship between Rudd and Epstein.

Is Kevin Rudd in the Epstein files?

Yes. Kevin Rudd’s name appears in documents released by the US Department of Justice in 2026, including emails, a meeting schedule, and messages in which Jeffrey Epstein and associates referenced him — most often, according to SBS News, “in passing” or in connection with attempted introductions by mutual acquaintances. Rudd’s office has stated that no such introduction or meeting took place and that he never corresponded with or visited Epstein. Being named in the files is not evidence of any crime or wrongdoing. People appear in these documents in many contexts — correspondence, scheduling, contact references, or third-party messages — and Rudd has denied any direct contact or relationship. See the sources above for the documented context and Rudd’s full response.

Evidence

These passages come from the documents released by the U.S. Department of Justice in 2026 (emails and a meeting schedule), transcribed below as reported by SBS News and The Nightly, with our annotations tying each to what this profile states. Rudd’s office disputes that any meeting or contact took place — that response appears in the annotations.

Read the originals: DOJ Epstein Files release ↗

Documents

Primary-source records that reference Kevin Rudd. Inclusion in these documents is not, by itself, evidence of wrongdoing; Rudd’s office has denied that he ever met, corresponded with, or visited Epstein, and says attempted introductions by mutual acquaintances never took place.

• DOJ Epstein Files (Epstein Files Transparency Act release) — The Justice Department’s release of more than 3 million pages of investigative records (January 30, 2026) includes emails in which Epstein and associates reference Rudd, among them a June 2014 message to an assistant adding “kevin rudd is also coming” and a note describing him as the “former prime minister of australia,” plus a schedule entry for a meeting that, per the reporting, there is no evidence took place.