Jeffrey Epstein Prison Guard ‘Unexplained Cash Deposits’ Weeks Before His Death

NEW YORK, NY. (THECOUNT) — Tova Noel, a former federal correctional officer assigned to monitor Jeffrey Epstein at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Manhattan, conducted internet searches about the convicted sex offender just minutes before his body was discovered in his cell — and received thousands of dollars in unexplained cash deposits in the weeks leading up to his August 10, 2019 death, according to newly released Justice Department documents.

Noel was one of two MCC employees later accused of fabricating prison logs to conceal the fact that they had failed to conduct required welfare checks on Epstein throughout the overnight hours before his death. Both Noel and her fellow officer, Michael Thomas, lost their jobs following the incident. Criminal charges against both were eventually dismissed by prosecutors.

According to FBI forensic analysis of Bureau of Prisons computers contained in the newly released DOJ files, Noel entered the search term “latest on Epstein in jail” at 5:42 a.m. on August 10, 2019, and repeated the query ten minutes later at 5:52 a.m. Thomas discovered Epstein hanging in his cell at 6:30 a.m. — less than 40 minutes after Noel’s final search. Prosecutors stated that during the overnight shift, Noel browsed furniture websites and slept rather than performing the required inmate checks every 30 minutes. Thomas spent time looking at motorcycle listings online.

The New York Post first reported that federal investigators produced a 66-page forensic report examining the desktop computers used by both officers. The Epstein-related search was the sole query the FBI chose to highlight in its analysis. During sworn questioning by Justice Department officials in 2021, Noel disputed the FBI’s findings. “I don’t remember doing that,” she stated in the transcript. “I don’t recall looking him up.” Noel also asserted that the failure to conduct proper monitoring was widespread at the facility. “I’ve never worked in the Special Housing Unit and actually done rounds every 30 minutes,” she told investigators.

Separate DOJ files reveal that Chase Bank submitted a suspicious activity report to the FBI in November 2019 regarding a series of cash transactions in Noel’s account. The bank documented 12 deposits beginning in April 2018, with the largest single transaction of $5,000 occurring on July 30, 2019 — just 11 days before Epstein’s death. Available bank records beginning in December 2018 document seven separate cash deposits totaling $11,880. Notably, Noel began her assignment in the Special Housing Unit where Epstein was held on July 7, 2019 — approximately one month before his death. DOJ interviewers never questioned Noel about the cash transactions, according to the documents. Records also indicate Noel operated a 2019 Land Rover Range Rover valued at approximately $62,000.

An internal FBI briefing contained in the released files indicates the bureau concluded that Noel was most likely the unidentified orange figure visible in grainy security camera footage near Epstein’s cell at approximately 10:40 p.m. on the night before his death. “At approximately 10:40 pm, a correctional officer, believed to be Tova Noel, carried linen or inmate clothing up to the L-Tier, last time any correctional officer approached the only entrance to the SHU tier,” federal agents documented. Investigators determined that Epstein used strips of orange fabric to hang himself. In her sworn testimony, Noel stated she last observed Epstein alive “somewhere around after 10” that evening, but maintained that she “never gave out linen, ever” and stated that such distributions occurred during earlier shifts. She could not explain why Epstein had additional bedding in his cell. She also noted that Thomas was asleep from 10 p.m. until midnight, and that facility protocols prohibit staff from entering the cell area without accompaniment.

The blurred orange shape captured on security video has fueled public speculation since the FBI made the footage available last year. A 2023 inspector general report described the figure only as “unidentified correctional officers” — making the newly released FBI documents the first official record to connect a specific name to the image. When investigators directly asked whether she played any role in Epstein’s death, Noel answered “no.” Legal representatives for Noel offered no comment.

Noel currently faces a separate civil lawsuit in Westchester County Supreme Court alleging she committed assault while employed as a medical office assistant at Montefiore Einstein Advanced Care, according to the New York Post.

The newly released documents are part of a broader, ongoing release of Epstein-related files by the Justice Department. On January 30, 2026, the DOJ released over three million pages of documents, 180,000 images, and 2,000 videos related to Epstein under the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which was signed into law by President Trump following unanimous passage in the U.S. Senate. The Metropolitan Correctional Center in Manhattan, where Epstein was held pending trial on federal sex trafficking charges, was permanently closed in 2021. Epstein’s death was officially ruled a suicide by hanging by the New York City Medical Examiner, a conclusion that has been disputed by Epstein’s brother and legal team, as well as by a private pathologist hired by the family.

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