Busra Nur Cakmak
12 February 2026•Update: 12 February 2026
ANKARA
The FBI destroyed its master copy of surveillance footage from the night Jeffrey Epstein died and later reconstructed the video from a separate copy, resulting in a publicly released version that initially contained a one-minute gap, according to documents reported by CBS News on Wednesday.
Records show that in June 2024 an FBI agent received authorization to destroy an evidence item labeled 1B60, described as the master recording of archived video images from the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Manhattan, where Epstein was found dead in August 2019. The footage had been stored at a warehouse in the Bronx.
In a February 2025 document, an agent wrote that the case had been closed and that a prosecutor concurred with standard evidence-handling procedures. Under FBI policy, if evidence remains undisposed, the investigative file must remain open, the agent wrote, according to CBS News.
By mid-2025, as public pressure mounted for greater transparency regarding Epstein-related records, the Justice Department sought to reconstruct the destroyed footage.
According to a July summary prepared by an FBI digital forensics section chief, agents located another copy stored in two files on a NiceVision digital video recorder system used at the jail.
On May 21, 2025, an agent used a screen-capture tool to re-record the footage. The reconstructed video consisted of two segments — one ending at 11.58.58 pm and another beginning at midnight — leaving a 62-second gap.
After the video was released in July, observers noted the missing minute. Then-Attorney General Pam Bondi said the gap was caused by a nightly system reset that resulted in a lost minute. However, the FBI specialist who reviewed the system described that explanation as a theory that could not be tested. Security experts told CBS News that such a recurring recording gap would be unusual.
The documents also addressed other discrepancies flagged by media outlets, including trimmed “padding” at the end of one clip and an adjusted aspect ratio. Officials described those as standard steps during screen recording and formatting.
Congress released the complete footage, including the previously missing minute, in September. The recording showed no unusual activity during that period, CBS News reported.
Last month, the Justice Department released more than 3 million pages, 2,000 videos and 180,000 images under the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which was signed into law in November.
Epstein was found dead in his New York City jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. He had pleaded guilty in 2008 to procuring a minor for prostitution. Critics have described that earlier plea agreement as overly lenient.
Victims have alleged that Epstein operated a broad sex trafficking network involving wealthy and politically connected individuals. Some have criticized the latest document release as heavily redacted, saying key records remain undisclosed.
