UPDATE - Two Prison Guards Monitoring Epstein Charged With Falsifying Records - US Justice Dept.

WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 20th November, 2019) The two prison guards who were on duty and responsible for monitoring the high-security unit of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein at the time of his death have been charged for falsifying records, the US Department of Justice said in a press release.

"[The US authorities] announced today the unsealing of an indictment charging Federal correctional officers TOVA NOEL and MICHAEL THOMAS with making false records and conspiring to make false records and to defraud the United States by impairing the lawful functions of the Metropolitan Correctional Center," the release said on Tuesday.

Later on Tuesday, the New York Times reported that Noel and Thomas pleaded not guilty at a hearing in the US District Court in Manhattan. The judge set bail for both individuals at $100,000, the report said.

Noel and Thomas did not check on prisoners as required during their work shift, but signed false certifications attesting they conducted multiple rounds of check-ups on inmates, the release said citing the indictment.

As result of their conduct, Epstein was able to commit suicide while unobserved from the night of August 9 to the next morning, the release said.

The release noted that Noel faces up to 30 years in prison on five counts of making false records and one count of conspiring to defraud the United States and to make false records. Thomas faces up to 20 years in prison on three counts of making false records and one count of conspiring to defraud the United States and to make false records.

On August 10, Epstein died at the Metropolitan Correctional Center where he was held ahead of his pending trial on charges of sex trafficking of minors. The official cause of death was listed as suicide. However, the cause of death has been widely disputed in the media by forensic investigators and others.

The US authorities investigated Epstein for nearly two decades and arrested him in 2005 for molesting an underage girl, which he served a prison sentence of 13 months.

In July 2019, Epstein was arrested again for allegedly trafficking minor girls at his mansion for sex. Some of the charges dated back to the 2000s. Epstein pleaded not guilty to all charges against him, but faced up to 45 years in prison had he been convicted.