Newly released Justice Department documents are raising serious questions about who may have entered’s jail tier the night before his death in August 2019. The records show investigators noticed a blurry, orange-colored figure moving up a staircase toward Epstein’s isolated housing tier at about 10:39 p.m. This observation conflicts with long-standing official statements that no one entered Epstein’s tier that night.
The documents were released as part of a broader disclosure of investigative records related to Epstein’s death at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York. Epstein was found dead in his cell on the morning of Aug. 10, 2019, while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges. His death was ruled a suicide, but unanswered questions have followed ever since.
A Figure in Orange on the Stairs
An internal observation log from investigators reviewing surveillance footage noted “a flash of orange” moving up the stairs toward Epstein’s locked L Tier. The log stated it “could possibly be an inmate escorted up to that tier.” The timing places the sighting within the estimated window of Epstein’s possible time of death.
However, different agencies reviewing the same footage reached different conclusions. An FBI memo described the figure as “possibly an inmate,” while the Justice Department’s Office of Inspector General said it was likely a corrections officer carrying orange bedding or linen. The final inspector general report described the person only as “an unidentified corrections officer.”
Contradictions With Official Statements
These findings appear to contradict repeated public statements from federal officials. Former Attorney General previously said there was no evidence anyone entered Epstein’s housing area that night. In a 2023 television interview, then deputy FBI director said surveillance video showed Epstein was alone the entire time.
Yet the newly released logs show investigators themselves flagged unexplained activity near the tier. Prison employees later told CBS News that escorting an inmate to that tier late at night would have been highly unusual and against normal procedure.
Camera Limits and Missing Clarity
The staircase to Epstein’s tier was monitored by the only working camera in that area, but the angle partially obscured the approach. Because of this limitation, investigators could not rule out that someone entered the tier without being clearly captured on video. CBS News analysts later said the movement seen on the footage appeared more consistent with an inmate wearing an orange uniform than an officer.
Despite the importance of the sighting, official reports did not address the orange figure in detail. The inspector general report focused instead on staff failures, including missed inmate checks and falsified records.
Unanswered Questions Persist
The two corrections officers on duty that night later admitted they failed to conduct required checks. Charges against them were eventually dropped in exchange for cooperation. Neither officer was directly questioned about the orange figure seen on the stairs, according to the new documents.
More than five years after Epstein’s death, the newly released records highlight lingering gaps and contradictions in the official timeline. For critics and survivors alike, the question remains unresolved: if no one entered Epstein’s tier, who was the figure investigators saw moving toward his cell that night?
As more documents continue to surface, scrutiny of the government’s handling of Epstein’s final hours is only intensifying.