© Getty ImagesJeffrey Epstein (left) and Jackie Speier
Rep. Jackie Speier reportedly asked John Demers, the assistant attorney general of the national security division, the way off topic question at a House Intelligence Committee briefing on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, set to expire in several weeks, the Daily Beast reported.
She introduced her inquiry by noting the obvious — it was not on the agenda, the outlet reported. Demers answered that he had no knowledge of Epstein working for the agency, noting that he works for Justice, not the FBI, according to the report.
The lawmaker's question was reportedly sourced from a theory that law enforcement may have gone easy on Epstein in his 2007 Miami child sex abuse case, because he helped finger his powerful friends.
Epstein, who died by suicide in Manhattan federal lockup as he was awaiting trial on child sex trafficking charges, was granted a plea deal in that case.
His 18-month sentence — of which he served only 13 — was seen as lenient.
Some said the deal was a favor from federal prosecutors for providing tips to investigators described as "valuable consideration," the Miami Herald reported.
Speier's inquiry was not the first time law enforcement has been pressed about its ties to Epstein.
In July, former Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta — the US Attorney who granted Epstein the Miami deal — was asked by a reporter if the financier was an "intelligence asset."
"So, there has been reporting to that effect," he said, according to the Washington Examiner. "And let me say, there's been report to a lot of effects in this case. Not just now but over the years. And again, I would, I would hesitate to take this reporting as fact."
The DOJ and Speier declined to comment on the inquiry to the Daily Beast.
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