Epstein Died Under AG Barr: Cameras Failed, Guards Slept, Cellmate Removed
Jeffrey Epstein died in a federal jail under AG Barr's DOJ with an extraordinary series of failures: two cameras malfunctioned, guards slept for 3 hours, his cellmate was removed the day before, and he'd been taken off suicide watch after just 6 days.
Jeffrey Epstein was found dead in his cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York on August 10, 2019. The death was ruled a suicide by hanging. The circumstances involved an extraordinary convergence of security failures in a DOJ facility under Attorney General William Barr.
Every safeguard failed simultaneously:
- Cameras: Two cameras in front of Epstein's cell malfunctioned that night. A third had footage that was "unusable."
- Guards: The two guards assigned to check on Epstein every 30 minutes fell asleep at their desks for approximately 3 hours and later falsified records claiming they had made rounds. They were also shopping online during shifts.
- Cellmate removed: Epstein's cellmate was transferred out the day before (August 9), and no replacement was assigned — despite a requirement that Epstein always have a cellmate.
- Suicide watch removed: Epstein had been placed on suicide watch after a previous incident on July 23 but was removed after just 6 days.
Files released in March 2026 revealed that guard Tova Noel Googled "latest on Epstein in jail" less than an hour before his body was found at approximately 6:30 AM, and that she had made unexplained cash deposits around the time of Epstein's death.
Charges against the two guards were dropped under a deferred prosecution agreement requiring only community service. Five days after Epstein's death, a BOP "After-Actions team" shredded bags of documents at the same facility while multiple investigations were active.