The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee is planning to seek testimony from a prison guard who was working on the night that Jeffrey Epstein died at a federal prison in New York City in August 2019.
Tova Noel has been accused of searching online for updates on Epstein the day he died and depositing $5,000 in cash 10 days before the convicted sex offender’s death, according to resurfaced records from the Justice Department. As a result, the committee wants to bring her in for questioning.
Rep. James Comer (R-KY), who chairs the House oversight committee, made the announcement on Fox News’s Jesse Watters Primetime Tuesday night.
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Epstein is believed to have died by suicide, but the congressional panel is not so sure.
“Because of the fact that, honestly, most people on the committee aren’t confident 100% that Epstein’s death was by suicide, we’re going to ask Ms. Noel to come in for a transcribed interview,” Comer said, stressing she is not accused of any wrongdoing.
Noel was one of two Metropolitan Correctional Center guards charged with falsifying records in which they lied about checking Epstein’s cell every 30 minutes as required. Their charges were later dropped as part of a plea agreement.
In a sworn statement to the DOJ, Noel denied using Google to search for Epstein updates.
A lot of questions remain regarding Noel’s behavior in the days leading up to Epstein’s death. Comer said he is especially concerned about the “mysterious” $5,000 cash deposit.
“The reason that stands out to me, Jesse, is because very seldom are suspicious activity reports even reported for sums less than $10,000. So that’s a mystery there,” he added. “And that’s something that, according to the DOJ documents, they never looked into, never asked her about.”
The congressman’s remarks came as New Mexico authorities started searching Zorro Ranch, a remote property once owned by Epstein. The search was conducted on Monday after New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez reopened a criminal investigation into the ranch last month.
The state’s initial investigation was closed in 2019. Comer admitted the DOJ may have had something to do with that.
“It perhaps was the Southern District of New York because they had taken over the investigation at that point,” he said. “So again, these are questions that we have. We want to get the answers, but I will say publicly, I’m glad that the New Mexico authorities are on the ground searching that property.”
Zorro Ranch is believed to have been the site of Epstein’s illicit activities, the extent of which was recently revealed by a state lawmaker.
“We have people coming forward saying they were drugged, had sex organs and sperm harvested from their bodies, and woke up around medical equipment not knowing where they were or what happened to them,” Democratic New Mexico state Rep. Andrea Romero told the Daily Mail.
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Years after Epstein’s death, Zorro Ranch got new ownership. In 2023, a limited liability company connected to the family of Texas businessman Don Huffines bought the property from Epstein’s estate.
Just days before the renewed state investigation started, Huffines announced he wants to convert the property into a Christian retreat. New Mexico’s Department of Justice said the current owners cooperated with the search this week.