As of July 16, 2025, a detailed thread by analyst Brian Allen (below) has sparked controversy over the handling of Jeffrey Epstein’s prison footage. Epstein, a convicted sex offender, allegedly died by suicide on August 10, 2019, at the Metropolitan Correctional Center (MCC) in New York while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges, according to a recent DOJ memo from July 7, 2025.
However, Allen’s investigation suggests a series of failures and intentional edits that point to a potential cover-up. The thread reveals that only one camera was recording the night of Epstein’s alleged death, with the others offline for 11 days due to an unfixed DVR crash. Metadata indicates the footage was edited using Adobe Premiere, with 2 minutes and 53 seconds—covering the critical “missing minute” before his death—trimmed by a technician identified as “MJCOLE~1.”
The nature of the edits suggests a deliberate attempt to obscure critical moments surrounding his alleged death. The 2-minute-and-53-second cut, precisely targeting the “missing minute” from 11:58:58 PM to 12:01:51 AM, was executed using Adobe Premiere, a professional video editing tool, indicating a calculated process rather than a random glitch. Metadata reveals the footage was stitched from two clips, with the excised segment likely containing pivotal evidence, possibly showing activity in Epstein’s cell during the crucial timeframe. This manipulation, attributed to an unidentified technician “MJCOLE~1,” raises suspicions of intentional tampering, further fueled by the DOJ’s failure to provide a clear explanation, casting doubt on the footage’s authenticity and the official narrative.
The chain of custody implicates MCC tech staff, the FBI, and the DOJ, with Attorney General Pam Bondi dismissing the edits as a “glitch.” MCC’s troubled history includes the accidental destruction of footage from Epstein’s earlier suicide attempt in July 2019 and a 2012 inmate escape, highlighting ongoing security issues.
The facility’s Manhattan branch closed in 2021 following Epstein’s death, and recent incidents, such as those involving Sean “Diddy” Combs in 2024, underscore persistent problems like overcrowding and inmate safety concerns.
Allen argues this case transcends Epstein, raising broader questions about evidence integrity and state accountability. The thread calls for the release of the unedited footage and the unmasking of “MJCOLE~1,” labeling the edits as evidence tampering—a criminal act involving the alteration or destruction of evidence to obstruct investigations. As public scrutiny intensifies, the demand for transparency grows louder.
🚨BREAKING: We now know exactly who had custody of the Epstein prison footage and how 2 minutes and 53 seconds vanished before the world saw it.
— Brian Allen (@allenanalysis) July 15, 2025
The cover-up has timestamps.
Let’s trace the chain. 🧵
https://www.wired.com/story/the-fbis-jeffrey-epstein-prison-video-had-nearly-3-minutes-cut-out