An inmate housed near convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein in the Special Housing Unit at the Metropolitan Correctional Center told the FBI he heard officers shouting on the morning Epstein died.
He later claimed the officers discussed a cover-up, adding a new allegation to the heavily scrutinized death that officials ruled a suicide.
The inmate said he woke around 6:30 a.m. on Aug. 10, 2019, to a loud commotion in the unit. He recalled officers yelling, "Breathe! Breathe!" and said he then heard a male officer say, "Dudes, you killed that dude."
A female guard replied, "If he is dead, we're going to cover it up, and he's going to have an alibi, my officers," the FBI interview notes reviewed by the Miami Herald said.
The inmate said the entire wing heard the exchange.
After learning Epstein had died, the inmate said others in the unit were saying "Miss Noel killed Jeffrey."
He identified the female officer as Tova Noel, one of two correctional officers later charged with falsifying records to make it appear they had completed required rounds that night. Those charges were later dropped, and both officers were fired.
The inmate's account has not been substantiated.
It cuts against the official findings in the case, which concluded Epstein died by suicide while in federal custody.
The Justice Department's inspector general said the FBI found no criminality in how Epstein died, and the report said none of the inmates interviewed had credible information suggesting his death was anything other than suicide.
The report also said three inmates with a direct line of sight to Epstein's cell door told investigators no one entered or exited the cell after he was locked in for the night.
The account is likely to intensify suspicion because it surfaced alongside other material that has kept questions about the case alive.
The New York medical examiner ruled Epstein's death a suicide, while forensic pathologist Michael Baden, who was retained by Epstein's estate, has publicly argued the injuries were more consistent with strangulation.
The inmate's allegation does not resolve that dispute, and no public filing establishes that Noel or any other officer killed Epstein.
The broader inspector general review, however, documented major failures inside the jail, including missed rounds, staffing breakdowns, and falsified records. Those failures, rather than evidence of homicide, remain the basis of the official account of what went wrong the night Epstein died.
Jim Thomas ✉
Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.
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