2026-02-05T13:49:24-0500 / CBS新闻
美国司法部新公布的文件显示，调查人员在审查杰弗里·爱泼斯坦（Jeffrey Epstein）死亡当晚的监控录像时，于2019年8月9日晚上约10:39看到一个橙色物体沿着楼梯向上移动，走向他所在的隔离、上锁的囚室层。
大都会惩教中心（Metropolitan Correctional Center）的这段视频观察记录中的这一描述，似乎暗示了当局此前未报告的情况：”一个橙色的闪光看起来正在沿着L层楼梯上行——可能是一名被押解到该层的囚犯。”
根据美国联邦调查局（FBI）的一份备忘录，调查人员的审查还导致FBI与司法部监察长办公室（Office of Inspector General）对同一段视频的分析得出了不同结论。
FBI日志将这一模糊图像描述为”可能是一名囚犯”。
FBI对视频片段的分析将通往爱泼斯坦囚室层楼梯上的模糊橙色图像描述为”可能是一名囚犯”。美国司法部公布的文件
监察长办公室将其记录为一名携带橙色”亚麻布或床上用品”的官员，并在其最终报告中注明是”一名身份不明的[惩教官员]”。
司法部监察长办公室对视频片段的分析将通往爱泼斯坦囚室层楼梯上的模糊橙色图像描述为：”有人可能正将囚犯的亚麻布或床上用品带上楼梯。”美国司法部公布的文件
监察长的最终报告称：”大约在晚上10:39，一名身份不明的惩教官员（CO）似乎走上L层楼梯，然后在10:41 p.m.时再次出现在摄像头的视野中。”
官方报告称，爱泼斯坦在清晨6:30前自杀身亡，当时一名惩教官员正在为他送早餐时发现了他的尸体。但从未确定具体的死亡时间。近几个月来，关于调查人员调查其死亡情况的工作一直存在疑问。
CBS新闻此前在对监狱监控录像的深入分析中报道了楼梯上的身影，并咨询了独立视频分析师，他们表示该移动更符合一名囚犯——或穿着橙色囚服的人——而非惩教官员。
这些新记录引发了关于当晚晚些时候爱泼斯坦所在囚室层附近活动的更多疑问。官方对爱泼斯坦死亡的调查从未提及那个橙色身影，而包括当时司法部长比尔·巴尔（Bill Barr）在内的当局后来的声明称，爱泼斯坦死亡当晚没有人进入他所在的居住层。去年夏天，在”福克斯与朋友们”（Fox & Friends）的采访中，时任副FBI局长丹·邦吉诺（Dan Bongino）说：”有一段清晰可见的视频，他是唯一在里面的人，也是唯一出来的人。你能看到。”
CBS新闻采访的监狱员工表示，在那个时间押解囚犯会非常不寻常。由于这次目击发生在爱泼斯坦可能的死亡时间窗口内，对该人员的身份确认可能对重现事件至关重要。
通往他囚室层的楼梯被当晚已知的唯一一台正在工作的摄像机捕捉到，其位置部分遮挡了通往爱泼斯坦囚室层的入口。政府调查人员在重现事件时间线时高度依赖这段录像。但由于摄像头角度的问题，无法排除有人可以在不被清晰看到的情况下爬上楼梯进入该层的可能性。CBS新闻对这段视频的分析发现，视频显示的内容与官方声明之间存在额外的矛盾。
这段由CBS新闻放大并高亮显示的视频图像显示了通往杰弗里·爱泼斯坦囚室层楼梯上部分橙色物体的画面。美国监狱管理局（U.S. Bureau of Prisons）
隔离囚室（SHU）内部
上周作为司法部披露的更广泛的爱泼斯坦相关文件的一部分，数千页的材料被公布，这些文件总计超过300万份，提供了更多关于8月9日晚上爱泼斯坦最后一次在摄像机中被看到到次日早上发现他尸体之间几小时内发生的细节。
记录和采访描述了隔离囚室（SHU）内一个相对安静的夜晚，爱泼斯坦被关押在那里。几名囚犯告诉调查人员，他们在牢房内使用毒品，包括大麻和K2（一种合成物质，多名证人称该层上很常见）。
接受采访的包括当晚被分配到该单元的两名惩教官员，托娃·诺埃尔（Tova Noel）和吉托·博纳姆（Ghitto Bonhomme），以及一名此前未公开身份的物资管理员。文件显示，博纳姆在2019年9月接受了两次采访，这些采访是在没有大陪审团传票的情况下进行的。
根据诺埃尔的说法，博纳姆连续工作了多个班次，并在晚上10点至午夜之间的一段时间内在岗期间睡觉。
调查人员还询问了诺埃尔关于隔离囚室内记录的囚犯人数出现的不明变化的问题——该数字似乎在晚上10点至凌晨3点之间从73人降至72人。诺埃尔说她”可能”弄错了这个差异，并告诉调查人员她不记得人数有变化。
两名官员都没有被具体问及视频观察记录中提到的橙色身影。博纳姆告诉调查人员，他不记得晚上10点至午夜之间的时间段，也不记得大约晚上10:30左右有人走上楼梯走向爱泼斯坦所在的囚室层。他补充说，一名监狱员工独自进入一个囚室层将违反规定。
文件发布中包含的一份单独内部报告描述了一名惩教官员（调查人员认为是诺埃尔）携带亚麻布或囚犯衣物前往该层。2023年的监察长报告没有将诺埃尔确认为视频中出现的人物。在采访中，诺埃尔告诉调查人员分发亚麻布不是她的职责。”我从未分发过亚麻布。从来没有，”她说，”因为那是在前一个班次完成的。”
清晨发现
博纳姆在午夜结束值班，由另一名名叫迈克尔·托马斯（Michael Thomas）的惩教官员接替，后者几小时后发现了爱泼斯坦的尸体。诺埃尔继续连续工作第二个8小时班次。
托马斯和诺埃尔未能完成凌晨3点和5点的囚犯清点，也未进行爱泼斯坦的强制性30分钟健康检查。调查人员推测，这两名官员可能睡着了。
托马斯和诺埃尔后来被指控伪造记录，证明囚犯清点已完成。联邦检察官最终撤销了指控，以换取包括采访在内的合作协议。在最近披露的文件中发布的托马斯采访记录（在爱泼斯坦死后两年进行）显示，他对爱泼斯坦被发现那天早上的记忆存在重大空白。
托马斯告诉调查人员，他在8月10日清晨6:30后不久在他的牢房中发现了爱泼斯坦，并”将他从悬挂的位置解了下来”。
调查人员询问了绞索的去向。
“我不记得取下绞索了。我真的不记得，”他回答说，”我不记得把那个东西从他脖子上拿下来。”
站在牢房入口处的诺埃尔告诉调查人员，她看到托马斯将爱泼斯坦放低到地板上，但没有看到他脖子上有绞索。
爱泼斯坦据称使用的绞索从未被确定为致命工具。根据监察长的报告，现场收集的绞索后来被确定不是导致爱泼斯坦死亡的结扎物。
托马斯还描述说，他发现爱泼斯坦时他赤裸着上身。证据记录显示，一件据信是从爱泼斯坦身上剪下的衬衫后来从医院被装在一个个人物品袋中送回。
证据记录显示，一件据信是从爱泼斯坦身上剪下的衬衫后来从医院被装在一个个人物品袋中送回。美国司法部公布
新文件还显示，纽约市首席医疗检查官办公室（Office of the Chief Medical Examiner）在爱泼斯坦死后六天审查了监狱监控录像，作为调查的一部分，结论是视频太模糊，无法识别任何个人。几小时后，该办公室公开裁定爱泼斯坦的死亡是自杀。该医学检查官办公室没有提供爱泼斯坦在被发现尸体前可能已经死亡多久的估计。CBS新闻此前曾报道过该办公室对犯罪现场的非正统处理。
受爱泼斯坦兄弟聘请的法医病理学家迈克尔·巴登博士（Dr. Michael Baden）此前告诉CBS新闻，爱泼斯坦在被发现前可能已经死亡了几个小时，但由于尸体被移动，无法确定死亡时间。
当CBS新闻联系博纳姆时，他拒绝置评。诺埃尔的律师告诉CBS新闻：”诺埃尔女士不会发表任何声明或尝试澄清这一情况的任何方面。”此前通过其律师和在其家中尝试联系迈克尔·托马斯均未成功。
卡拉·塔巴尼克（Cara Tabachnick）对本报告有贡献。
Who entered Epstein’s jail tier the night of his death? Newly released video logs appear to contradict official accounts.
2026-02-05T13:49:24-0500 / CBS News
Newly released Department of Justice documents show that investigators reviewing surveillance footage from the night of Jeffrey Epstein’s death observed an orange-colored shape moving up a staircase toward the isolated, locked tier where his cell was located at approximately 10:39 p.m. on Aug. 9, 2019.
That entry in an observation log of the video from the Metropolitan Correctional Center appears to suggest something previously unreported by authorities: “A flash of orange looks to be going up the L Tier stairs — could possibly be an inmate escorted up to that Tier.”
It also appears, according to an FBI memorandum, that reviews by investigators led to disparate conclusions by the FBI and those examining the same video from the Department of Justice’s Office of Inspector General.
The FBI log describes the fuzzy image as “possibly an inmate.”
FBI analysis of video footage describes a fuzzy orange image on the stairs leading to Epstein’s cell tier as “possibly an inmate.” Document released by Department of Justice
The inspector general logs it as an officer carrying orange “linen or bedding,” noting it in their final report as “an unidentified [corrections officer].”
The DOJ Office of Inspector General’s analysis of video footage describes a fuzzy orange image on the stairs leading to Epstein’s cell tier as: “it is possible someone is carrying inmate linen or bedding up the stairs.” Document released by Department of Justice
The final report by the Inspector General stated: “At approximately 10:39 p.m., an unidentified CO appeared to walk up the L Tier stairway, and then reappeared within view of the camera at 10:41 p.m.”
Official reports state that Epstein died by suicide some time before 6:30 a.m., when his body was discovered by a corrections officer delivering his breakfast. No official time of death was ever determined. In recent months, there have been questions about the work of investigators probing the circumstances of his death.
In an in-depth analysis of surveillance video from the jail, CBS News previously reported on the figure on the stairs and consulted independent video analysts who said the movement was more consistent with an inmate — or someone wearing an orange prison uniform — than a corrections officer.
The new records raise more questions about activity near Epstein’s tier late that evening. Official reviews of Epstein’s death make no mention of the figure in orange, and later pronouncements from authorities including the attorney general at the time, Bill Barr, were that no one entered Epstein’s housing tier the night of his death. Last summer in an interview on “Fox & Friends,” then-deputy FBI director Dan Bongino said, “There’s video clear as day, he’s the only person in there and the only person coming out. You can see it.”
Prison employees interviewed by CBS News said escorting an inmate at that hour would have been highly unusual. The identification of the individual could have been crucial to reconstructing the events, given that the sighting occurred within the estimated window of Epstein’s possible time of death.
The staircase leading to his cell tier was captured by the only camera known to have been recording that night, positioned in a way that partially obscured the approach to Epstein’s tier. Government investigators relied heavily on that footage in reconstructing the timeline of events. But because of the camera angle, it was not possible to rule out whether someone could have climbed the stairs and entered the tier without being clearly visible. CBS News’ analysis of that video found additional contradictions between what the video showed and official statements.
This image from the video — zoomed in and highlighted by CBS News – shows a partial view of something orange on the stairs leading to Jeffrey Epstein’s cell tier. U.S. Bureau of Prisons
Inside the SHU
Thousands of pages released last week as part of a broader Justice Department disclosure of Epstein-related files, totaling more than 3 million documents, provide additional detail about the hours between the evening of Aug. 9, when Epstein was last seen alive on camera, and the discovery of his body the following morning.
Records and interviews describe a largely quiet night inside the Special Housing Unit, or SHU, where Epstein was being held. Several inmates told investigators they were using drugs inside their cells, including marijuana and K2, a synthetic substance that multiple witnesses said was common on the tier.
Among those interviewed were the two corrections officers assigned to the unit that night, Tova Noel and Ghitto Bonhomme, a materials handler who had not previously been publicly identified. Documents show Bonhomme was interviewed twice in September 2019 in sessions conducted in lieu of a grand jury subpoena.
According to Noel’s account, Bonhomme had been working multiple consecutive shifts and slept while on duty for a period between approximately 10 p.m. and midnight.
Investigators also questioned Noel about an unexplained change in the recorded number of inmates in the SHU, which appeared to drop from 73 to 72 sometime between 10 p.m. and 3 a.m. Noel said she was “probably” mistaken about the discrepancy and told investigators she had no memory of a count changing.
Neither officer was specifically asked about the orange-colored figure noted in the video observation log. Bonhomme told investigators he did not remember the period between 10 p.m. and midnight and said he had no recollection of anyone walking up the stairs toward Epstein’s tier at around 10:30 p.m. He added that a jail employee entering a tier alone would have violated policy.
A separate internal presentation included in the document release described a corrections officer, believed by investigators to be Noel, carrying linen or inmate clothing up to the tier. The 2023 inspector general report did not identify Noel as the figure seen in the footage. In her interview, Noel told investigators distributing linen was not part of her duties. “I never gave out linen. Ever,” she said. “Because that’s done on the shift prior.”
An early morning discovery
Bonhomme ended his shift at midnight and was replaced by another corrections officer named Michael Thomas, who would discover Epstein’s body hours later. Noel continued on for a second consecutive 8-hour shift.
Thomas and Noel failed to complete inmate counts at 3 a.m., and 5 a.m. as well as mandatory 30-minute wellness checks of Epstein. Investigators speculated the officers may have fallen asleep.
Thomas and Noel were later charged with falsifying records certifying the inmate counts had been completed. Federal prosecutors eventually dropped the charges in exchange for cooperation agreements that included interviews. A transcript of Thomas’ interview, conducted two years after Epstein’s death and released in the recent document disclosure, shows significant gaps in his recollection of the morning Epstein was found.
Thomas told investigators he discovered Epstein in his cell shortly after 6:30 a.m. on Aug.10 and that he “ripped” Epstein down from the hanging position.
Investigators asked what happened to the noose.
“I don’t recall taking the noose off. I really don’t,” he replied. “I don’t recall taking the thing from around his neck.”
Noel, who remained standing at the cell entrance, told investigators she saw Thomas lower Epstein to the floor but did not see a noose around his neck.
The noose Epstein allegedly used has never been definitively identified. According to the inspector general’s report, a noose collected at the scene was later determined not to be the ligature used in Epstein’s death.
Thomas also described Epstein as shirtless when he found him. Evidence records indicate a shirt believed to have been cut from Epstein’s body was later returned from the hospital in a bag of personal belongings.
Evidence records indicate a shirt believed to have been cut from Epstein’s body was later returned from the hospital in a bag of personal belongings. Released by Department of Justice
The new documents also show that New York City’s Office of the Chief Medical Examiner reviewed the jail surveillance footage six days after Epstein’s death as part of its investigation and concluded the video was too blurry to identify any individuals. Hours later, the office publicly ruled Epstein’s death a suicide. The medical examiner did not provide an estimate of how long Epstein may have been dead before his body was discovered. CBS News had previously reported on the office’s unorthodox handling of the crime scene.
Dr. Michael Baden, a forensic pathologist retained by Epstein’s brother, previously told CBS News Epstein had likely been dead for several hours before he was found but because the body had been moved, determining the time of death was impossible.
Bonhomme declined to comment when contacted by CBS News. Noel’s attorney told CBS News, “Ms. Noel will not be making any statements [or] attempts to clarify any aspect of this situation.” Previous attempts to reach Michael Thomas on the phone, through his attorney and at his home, have been unsuccessful.
Cara Tabachnick contributed to this report.