The previously released recording on the night of the sex offender’s death jumped by one minute to midnight
A US congressional committee has released the “missing minute” from security camera footage outside convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein’s prison cell on the night of his death. Its existence contradicts Attorney General Pam Bondi’s earlier assertion that one minute was deleted every day at midnight upon camera reset.
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee released more than 33,000 pages related to the Epstein case on Tuesday, amid mounting pressure on US President Donald Trump’s administration. The Justice Department (DOJ) and FBI have to date insisted that the late financier kept no ‘client list’ for his pedophile ring.
Previously released surveillance footage from Epstein’s cell block was missing one minute, from 11:59pm to midnight on August 9-10, sparking widespread speculation and accusations of a cover-up. His death has been officially ruled a suicide.
In the newly released video, shortly after 11:59, a man steps away from the guard desk and walks off screen. The limited field of view of the security camera does not show the entrance to Epstein’s cell.
The missing minute from Jeffrey Epstein’s surveillance footage has finally been released.
The original tape jumped from 11:58 p.m. straight to midnight—but the recovered clip reveals guards walking toward Epstein’s cell at 11:59:39, just seconds before midnight. pic.twitter.com/fi4yXML24X
The absence of a lapse in the recording contradicts the explanation previously given by Bondi. “What we learned from Bureau of Prisons was every night the video is reset, and every night should have the same minute missing,” she told journalists in July.
The newly released video is missing its metadata – technical information normally embedded in a file, that could help confirm that it was raw, unedited footage.
The “missing minute” is also far lower in quality, has a reduced framerate, and a different on-screen text format, CBS News said on Wednesday, citing video forensics experts.
The DOJ’s and the FBI’s conclusion that Epstein kept no “incriminating client list” has provoked widespread backlash from lawmakers and prominent commentators.
Trump, who had promised to release the Epstein files during his reelection campaign, has hit back at criticism over his handling of the case, arguing that only “stupid people” insist on seeing the sex trafficker’s supposed client list.
