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Figure 5.5 The photographs of Epstein’s cell on August 10, 2019, show an excess of blankets, linens, and clothing. Some of the linens had been ripped into thin strips, which were tied to the desk and bunkbed inside the cell. Some of the strips were tied like a noose. When shown a picture of Epstein’s cell, Noel verified that it contained a lot of linen and extra clothing. Noel said the mattress on the floor was Epstein’s, as he always slept on the mattress on the floor. As detailed in the BOP policies section of Chapter 2, MCC New York SHU Post Orders required that COs assigned to the SHU during the daytime tours of duty conduct at least five cell searches each day, and that the entire SHU, including all common areas and cells, be searched every week. The OIG investigation revealed, however, that on August 9, 2019, the SHU staff logged only one cell search in TRUSCOPE, and Photograph of a Piece of Orange Cloth Tied into a Noose Recovered from Epstein’s Cell After His Death”” the search was not of Epstein’s cell.48 BOP records did not indicate when Epstein’s cell was last searched. The Day Watch SHU Officer in Charge told the OIG that at least five cell searches should be conducted on the day and night watch shifts within the SHU, and that cell searches are conducted in cells every time the inmate departs the cell. He said the SHU Officer in Charge was responsible for making sure the searches were conducted and logged into the BOP TRUSCOPE database. The Day Watch SHU Officer in Charge said that only one cell search was entered into TRUSCOPE on August 9, 2019, because cell searches were tedious to enter, and he was busy. He did not believe that it was a problem that only one cell search was logged on August 9 because he said the SHU staff would have gone into every cell when the inmates took their showers. He said that during the period of Epstein’s custody, SHU inmates showered on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. The Day Watch SHU Officer in Charge said that during showers, SHU staff searched every cell. He explained that all of the SHU cells should have been searched on Friday, August 9 because it was a shower day. He said SHU staff should also conduct cell searches when inmates go to the recreation area or for attorney visits. According to the Day Watch SHU Officer in Charge, Epstein’s cell should have been searched because both Epstein and Inmate 3 left the cell on the morning of August 9. He further stated that he believed that the majority of cells in the SHU were searched although, as noted above, the SHU staff logged only one cell search in TRUSCOPE on August 9 and the search was not of Epstein’s cell. Source: Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, City of New York 4” As noted previously, Epstein’s cell contained an excessive amount of linens, some of which had been ripped into thin strips and tied like a noose. Figure 6.5 depicts one such noose, which is illustrative of the types of linens found in Epstein’s cell; the noose depicted is not the ligature Epstein used to kill himself. 48 TRUSCOPE is a BOP database that provides institution staff with detailed inmate and institution security-related information and provides unit officers an electronic event log. 77 DOJ-OGR-00023444