EXCLUSIVE: Stephen Hawking's Family 'Sickened' DOJ Didn't Redact Image of Genius Flanked by Bikini-Clad 'Carers' From Epstein Files Dump
The Hawking estate has called out the DOJ after the late genius appeared with bikini-clad women.
Feb. 26 2026, Published 2:00 p.m. ET
Stephen Hawking's family are said to have been left "sickened" the U.S. Department of Justice failed to redact an image of the late physicist flanked by bikini-clad women in its mass release of Jeffrey Epstein files – insisting the women were his long-term carers and condemning any suggestion of impropriety as grotesque.
As RadarOnline.com has reported, the photograph, taken in 2006 at the Ritz Carlton Hotel on the Caribbean island of St Thomas, shows Hawking, who died in 2018 aged 76, slumped between two women holding what appear to be cocktails.
Epstein funded the five-star symposium at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in St. Thomas, where the photo of Hawking was taken.
The image was included in millions of pages of material published by the Justice Department in January relating to Epstein, who died in 2019 aged 66 while awaiting trial on federal s-- trafficking charges.
Hawking had traveled to the U.S. Virgin Islands in March 2006 as one of 21 prominent scientists attending a five-day conference on gravity – an event also attended by Epstein months before he was charged with soliciting prostitution from a minor.
Family Denounces 'Far-Fetched' Innuendo
Officials failed to redact an image of Hawking with two bikini-clad women.
A spokesperson for the Hawking family has now said: "Professor Hawking made some of the greatest contributions to physics in the 20th century while at the same time being the longest-known survivor of motor neurone disease, a debilitating condition which left him reliant on a ventilator, voice synthesizer, wheelchair and round-the-clock medical care. Any insinuation of inappropriate conduct on his part is wrong and far-fetched in the extreme."
The estate has said the two women in the photograph were Hawking's "long-term carers from the U.K.," who accompanied him on international trips due to his complex medical needs. Hawking lived with motor neuron disease for more than 50 years and required round-the-clock assistance.
A source close to the family told us the decision not to redact the image completely before the publication of the latest Epstein files had caused "deep distress."
The insider added: "They are appalled and sickened that a photograph showing Stephen with his carers was released without context. It invites salacious speculation he was hanging out with s-- trafficking victims, where none is warranted. The DOJ knew the sensitivity surrounding this image and the headlines it would bring. Failing to obscure that image in honor of the contribution Professor Hawking made to the planet has compounded his loved ones' pain."
Another family associate said, "This was a man almost completely paralyzed, who needed full-time medical support. To imply anything untoward because two carers are pictured beside him is both unfair and cruel. The family feel the authorities should have exercised far greater care."
A family spokesperson clarified the women in the photo were Hawking’s long-term carers.
Hawking left behind three children – Robert, Lucy, and Timothy – from his first marriage to Jane Hawking (née Wilde.) He also has grandchildren. While he was married twice, he divorced his second wife, Elaine Mason, in 2006 and re-established close, amicable ties with his children and first wife, Jane, before he died in 2018.
Hawking was never accused of any crimes.
'I Couldn't Imagine What They Were Doing'
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The Hawking estate emphasized the professor’s lifelong reliance on round-the-clock medical care.
The conference he attended when snapped with the bikini-clad women itself has also come under renewed scrutiny. Phillip Peebles, who won the Nobel prize in physics in 2019, attended the March 2006 meeting and later reflected on an unsettling memory.
"It was a good one," he said of the conference.
"We each spoke – it was a serious and intense discussion." Yet he recalled during a break, "there appeared comely young women who stood about, not saying anything" – adding: "I couldn't imagine what they were doing."
Peebles, who said he had no knowledge of Epstein's crimes at the time, estimated there were "six to 10" young women present and that they were "younger than any of the women (scientists) taking part in the conference."
"Were they 25? Were they 15? I had no idea," he said. He added, "I take it for granted that these young women were part of his collection of people who suffered."
Lawrence Krauss, a theoretical physicist who helped organize the event, disputed that recollection. He said, "It was no different than other really good small workshops I have been to. There were no young women around."
Krauss added, "There were no warning signs. It was a great meeting, and Jeffrey had a minimal presence at best. There was an event where a group of physicists (went) down in a submarine, because Stephen Hawking hadn't been underwater ... it was wonderful for him."
