Congress to probe guard who watched Epstein about his final hours, 'moving orange flash'

Six and one-half years have passed since the death of Jeffrey Epstein, who, at 66, was found dead in his cell in a federal detention center in New York City on August 10, 2019. And his crimes continues to generate a great deal of discussion as the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) releases, with redactions, thousands of files on the late billionaire financier and convicted sex offender.

Many questions about Epstein remain unanswered, including questions about the final hours of his life. NBC News reporter Erik Ortiz addresses some of them in an article published on March 25.

"Within a week of his death," Ortiz explains, "the city's medical examiner determined Epstein, 66, died by suicide from hanging, and the official who performed the autopsy later told authorities that she had no doubt about this conclusion. But the official finding did not stop conspiracy theories from spreading suggesting Epstein was murdered because of his high-profile connections and potential for implicating others. The release this year of millions of pages of the Epstein files — some previously unseen, some heavily redacted and many already made public through lawsuits and court filings — has only renewed speculation by highlighting inconsistencies in the official account and uncovering new questions."

Tova Noel, one of the guards at the federal detention center where Epstein was being held, was the last person to see him alive the night before he was found dead. Noel was asked to testify at a House Oversight Committee hearing this Thursday, March 26.

"If Noel doesn't show up to testify this week, Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., the chair of the committee, said he would subpoena her," Noel notes. "The committee is examining Noel's actions ahead of Epstein's death and wants to ask her about whether she searched online about Epstein shortly before he was discovered in his cell and why she deposited $5000 in cash into her bank account days before he was found dead."

Interviewed by Fox News, Comer said of that $5000 deposit, "No one is accusing this prison guard of any wrongdoing, but we have a lot of questions about Epstein."

Dave Aronberg, a frequent guest on MS NOW and former Palm Beach, Florida prosecutor, told NBC News, "In his final hours, I still believe Epstein killed himself. But as with a lot of investigations, there are gaps and holes that have not been fully answered."

Questions about the end of Epstein's life, according to Ortiz, involve things ranging from a "moving orange flash" to the noose that ended his life.

"Just before 10:40 p.m. August 9, 2019, several hours before Epstein was discovered hanging in his cell, surveillance video in his unit captured something peculiar: a blur of orange moving up a staircase that led to a hallway of cells behind metal doors," Ortiz reports. "One of those cells was Epstein's…. Two questions have lingered in the years since Epstein's death: How long was he alone in his cell before he hanged himself and what exactly did he use to make a noose?.... Noel said Epstein's neck was bare by the time she arrived at his cell, according to a transcript."