A perceived lack of transparency over the U.S. investigations into notorious sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has carved a rare chasm between President Donald Trump and his typically loyal Republican base.

As Trump struggles to quell his supporters' obsessions with the case — one long surrounded by conspiracy theories — here is an outline of its history and why it has caused so much outrage.

Jeffrey Epstein, a wealthy American financier, was first charged with sex offenses in 2006 after the parents of a 14-year-old girl told police that he had molested their daughter at his Florida home.