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Watch Operations Lieutenant told the OIG that she believed she told the SHU staff to conduct a new count and create a new count slip, but she did not know if they had actually done so. During his interview with the OIG, Senior Officer Specialist 6 reviewed BOP records relating to the inmate transfer, the 12 a.m. institutional count, and the housing unit count slips. Based on his review of this material, Senior Officer Specialist 6 said the 12 a.m. SHU count slip was inaccurate because it continued to list 73 inmates instead of the 72 inmates who were physically present in the SHU at that time. Senior Officer Specialist 6 reviewed the institutional counts and SHU count slips for the 3 a.m. and 5 a.m. counts and told the OIG that they were accurate because they listed the SHU as having 72 inmates. At approximately 12 a.m. on August 10, 2019, Material Handler Thomas replaced the other Material Handler, and he and Noel were the only two staff members on duty in the SHU. Noel and Thomas were responsible for conducting the 12 a.m., 3 a.m., and 5 a.m. counts in the SHU. Through review and analysis of the SHU security camera video, witness statements, and BOP records, the OIG determined that Noel and Thomas did not perform any of these counts. Nonetheless, Noel and Thomas completed and signed SHU count slips for each of the three counts, and in reliance on the count slips, the Control Center cleared the 12 a.m., 3 a.m., and 5 a.m. institutional counts at approximately 12:49 a.m., 3:24 a.m., and 5:30 a.m., respectively. Noel and Thomas both admitted to the OIG that they did not conduct the 12 a.m., 3 a.m., and 5 a.m. counts on August 10, and that they had falsified the respective count slips. Noel told the OIG that she signed the August 10 12 a.m., 3 a.m., and 5 a.m. count slips that Thomas had prefilled. Noel said she did not know why the 12 a.m. count slip documented that there were 73 inmates in the SHU, whereas the 3 a.m. and 5 a.m. slips documented there were only 72 inmates. Noel recalled that Thomas had spoken with someone and then they changed the count slips. Noel told the OIG that she and CO 3 conducted the 3 a.m. and 5 a.m. counts in MCC New York's 10 South Unit, which is the single-celled secure unit adjacent to the SHU. Noel said that when she left the SHU to assist CO 3, she took the SHU keys with her and that no one could have accessed the SHU while she was gone because she had to physically open the door for anyone who came into the SHU. Noel also told the OIG that when the Morning Watch Operations Lieutenant arrived to conduct a round at approximately 4a.m., Noel let her into the SHU. The OIG’s review and analysis of the SHU video shows that the Morning Watch Operations Lieutenant arrived in the SHU at approximately 4 a.m., visited the 10 South Unit at 4:04 a.m., returned to SHU at 4:11 a.m., and left the SHU at 4:14 a.m. According to Noel, no one other than the Morning Watch Operations Lieutenant and CO 3, as detailed later below, entered the SHU during her shift. Thomas told the OIG that since he had begun working with the BOP in 2007, he had worked in the SHU fairly regularly and he was familiar with how to work in the SHU and how the SHU operated. Thomas described his responsibilities while working in the SHU as to maintain the count of inmates, make sure the inmates are fed, and, depending on the shift, make sure they get their showers. Thomas's Overtime Schedule showed that he worked 21 shifts in the SHU during morning watch from May through August 2019. The overtime schedule also showed that Thomas worked 12 overtime shifts in the SHU when Epstein was assigned to the SHU in July and August 2019. 66 DOJ-OGR-00023433