New Mexico’s top prosecutor says federal officials are slow-walking key Jeffrey Epstein files, and it may be costing the state its chance to build a case. In a sharply worded June 30 letter released on Thursday, Attorney General Raul Torrez accused the Justice Department of blocking access to unredacted records tied to Epstein’s Zorro Ranch, warning that evidence degrades and witnesses disappear with each passing day, reports CNN. The agency’s refusal to release the files “is causing real and escalating harm,” Torrez wrote in a letter last week to acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche, per the New York Times.

The state reopened its criminal probe in February after the federal release of millions of Epstein-related documents, including an unverified tip about two foreign girls allegedly buried near the property at the behest of Epstein and a “Madam G.” The DOJ says it responded to New Mexico last month and stands ready to assist if the state uncovers possible federal crimes, notes Reuters.

Torrez counters that his office has made six attempts since February to secure documents or at least an in-person meeting, calling the more than 130-day delay “unreasonable,” per CNN. The dispute unfolds as lawmakers condemn heavy redactions in the Epstein files and an internal DOJ watchdog reviews the process. Zorro Ranch, near Santa Fe, has been named by multiple survivors, including Chauntae Davies and the late Virginia Giuffre, as a site of sexual abuse.