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Russia’s Matryoshka bots begin Epstein-themed disinfo campaign, focusing false claims against Ukraine and France
The Kremlin-linked bot network known as “Matryoshka” has launched a disinformation campaign following the release by the U.S. Justice Department of new documents in the case of Jeffrey Epstein.The campaign was identified by researchers from the Bot Blocker project (@antibot4navalny), who shared their findings with The Insider.
Social media posts presented in the guise of content from major Western media outlets included the false claims that:
- Ukrainian children allegedly became a key resource in Epstein’s operations following the country’s 2014 Revolution of Dignity. A fake video said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was aware of the situation and that he communicated with visitors to Epstein’s island.
- In a video posing as a report from France 24, actress Catherine O’Hara, who died on Jan. 30, was said to have accused French President Emmanuel Macron of protecting a “lobby of perverts.” In reality, the late actress made no such statements.
- RFI allegedly reported that information about ties between French officials and Epstein had been removed from the released documents under an agreement between Macron and Donald Trump.
- A video bearing the Al Jazeera logo claimed that in 2025, 1,005 Ukrainian refugee children went missing in France and that Bill Gates was involved in human trafficking.
- A video falsely attributed to Reuters claimed New Caledonia had become a “new Epstein island” under French protection. It cited fabricated figures of visits by Bill Gates (112) and Prince Andrew (91).
- A fake Socialblade report claimed that the release of the files “triggered a new wave of interest among conservative Europeans in relocating with their families to the CIS countries,” with the number of search queries about obtaining a residence permit supposedly rising by 8000%.
- Gallup allegedly claimed that a video by Vladimir Putin, in which he called European elites “Satanists,” had “garnered more than 4 billion views in the European segment of TikTok.”
- Libération supposedly published a report claiming Epstein financed 55% of Emmaniel Macron’s 2017 election campaign.
The Insider checked the social media accounts of the named outlets and verified that none of the videos or reports had been published by them.
The network is also spreading disinformation through fabricated covers of French newspapers. A fake cover of La Croix (actual cover available here) claimed the Élysée Palace refused to comment on Macron’s visits to Epstein’s island. Fake covers of Le Parisien (actual cover) and Libération (actual cover) dated Feb. 2, 2026, claimed Macron visited Epstein’s island 18 times over the course of 18 months while serving as France’s Minister of Economics and Finance, a post he held from 2014 to 2016.
The Insider has obtained links to the original posts and evidence provided by Bot Blocker. These confirm that the accounts spreading the disinformation narratives belong to the Matryoshka network. The Insider is not publishing these links so as to avoid the further dissemination of disinformation.
Release of the Epstein files
On Jan. 30, 2026, the U.S. Justice Department released more than 3 million pages of documents, along with 180,000 images and 2,000 videos related to investigations into Jeffrey Epstein. The department said this marked the completion of the disclosure required under the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which was passed by the U.S. Congress in November 2025.
The law required the Justice Department to publish all materials by Dec. 19, 2025. The first batch of documents released on that date was criticized for having extensive redactions, with more than 500 pages completely blacked out. The Jan. 30 release was by far the largest disclosure of documents to date.
The published materials include Epstein’s correspondence with former White House advisers, billionaires including Bill Gates and Elon Musk, and Bill Clinton. Donald Trump’s name is mentioned repeatedly. The documents also contain information about Epstein’s friendship with former Prince Andrew, email correspondence with former Trump adviser Steve Bannon, and contacts with other influential figures.
The Justice Department said it had fulfilled all its legal requirements. Some members of Congress, however, disputed that claim, noting that more than 6 million potentially relevant pages had initially been identified, while only around 3 million have been made available to the public.
Epstein died by suicide in a New York jail in August 2019 before his case went to trial.
What is Matryoshka?
The “Matryoshka” hybrid operation is a coordinated Russian disinformation campaign that experts link to a network of bots, “trolls,” and affiliated anonymous media outlets. Its goals are to spread large volumes of fake content, create artificial waves of information, and shape public opinion both inside and outside Russia. The Bot Blocker project coined the operation’s name, describing the structure as being layered like a matryoshka nesting doll: each “doll” hides another, with one set of bots masking others and disinformation circulating on multiple platforms and channels, making it harder to trace.
The operation includes several core components. The first is the creation of numerous bot accounts styled as real users, research initiatives, and independent regional media outlets. These accounts generate dozens — sometimes hundreds — of posts daily, mimicking local language, tone, and context. The second component involves the coordinated dissemination of fake stories across multiple platforms, such as X (Twitter), Telegram, Bluesky, and closed chat groups. The bots use logos of Western media outlets or human rights organizations in order to make their posts appear credible.