DOJ Includes Clip Of Disputed Epstein Jail Cell Footage In Files — But Quickly Kills Link

Several prominent social-media influencers on Monday circulated a video — claiming it came from the Department of Justice — that shows Jeffrey Epstein attempting to take his own life inside a jail cell.

The short clip circulated widely on X after users claimed it originated from a Department of Justice file release and carried a timestamp matching the day Epstein died in federal custody in 2019, though the DOJ-hosted link began returning an “access denied” error shortly after it spread. In a now-deleted post, Benny Johnson shared the video, describing it as “breaking” and framing it as newly released jail footage, while pointing to the on-screen date.

“BREAKING: DOJ releases jail footage that appears to show Epstein attempting suicide.
The date in the upper left corner matches the day he died,” Johnson wrote.

Nick Sortor shared similar claims in a separate post, then removed it as doubts mounted. In a follow-up message, Sortor wrote that the clip appeared “more and more like things a fake video,” while adding that users were linking to a page hosted on a DOJ domain. He later issued an update saying the video was fake.

Podcast host Alec Lace also confirmed the clip was not official jail footage, saying the circulating Epstein video was an old hoax likely generated with AI or CGI and resurfaced after appearing as an attachment in released DOJ files.

The video circulated just days after the DOJ missed the 11:59 p.m. Friday deadline set by the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which President Donald Trump