--- title: Epstein Suicide Video Is Fake, Posted by DOJ and Then Removed description: The fake video apparently made it into the FBI’s Epstein files because someone had emailed it to the FBI with a query asking if it was real. canonical: https://time.com/7342511/epstein-video-suicide-death-fake-fact-check/ author: Brian Bennett article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2025-12-23T21:22:30.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-03-31T13:09:48.615Z article:section: Politics og:title: Fake Video of Epstein's Suicide Released by DOJ Then Taken Down og:description: The clip was part of the latest batch of files the DOJ released related to Epstein, but was later taken down. og:url: https://time.com/7342511/epstein-video-suicide-death-fake-fact-check/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt60eb4c33dc9af012/6998cc8a1f67095040f570be/GettyImages-1393977679.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: Jeffrey Epstein Mug Shot og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Fake Video of Epstein's Suicide Released by DOJ Then Taken Down twitter:description: The clip was part of the latest batch of files the DOJ released related to Epstein, but was later taken down. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt60eb4c33dc9af012/6998cc8a1f67095040f570be/GettyImages-1393977679.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Fake Video Purporting to Show Epstein's Suicide Released by DOJ Then Taken Down > Sponsored content. 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Brief is TIME's Washington newsletter, written by senior correspondent Philip Elliott. It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. It reaches 85,000 subscribers with a 37.0% open rate as of August 2026. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters.  by [Brian Bennett](https://time.com/author/brian-bennett/)  ## Brian Bennett Bennett is the senior White House correspondent at TIME. Dec 23, 2025 9:22 PM UTC  Jeffrey Epstein's mug shot taken in 2019 Jeffrey Epstein's mug shot taken in 2019 Kypros—Getty Images  by [Brian Bennett](https://time.com/author/brian-bennett/)  ## Brian Bennett Bennett is the senior White House correspondent at TIME. Dec 23, 2025 9:22 PM UTC The Department of Justice on Monday released a fake video that purported to show convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s death by his own hands. The clip was part of the latest [batch of files](https://time.com/7342045/epstein-files-release-trump-bill-clinton-maria-farmer-1996-redactions/) the Trump Administration released related to Epstein, but was later taken down without an explanation from the department. The fake video apparently made it into the FBI’s Epstein files because someone had emailed it to the bureau with a query asking if it was real. According to analysis by [Wired](https://www.wired.com/story/the-epsteins-suicide-video-in-the-latest-doj-release-isnt-what-it-seems/) magazine, the 12-second video appeared to match footage uploaded to YouTube in 2019 with a description that read “rendering 3D graphics”; other outlets, including the [BBC](https://www.bbc.com/news/live/c3e0y1vqj09t), said they had traced the video back to footage posted on the platform in 2020\. A document that was posted just before the video in the Department of Justice’s initial release includes a message from outside the government asking if the video is real, Wired wrote. The Department of Justice did not respond to a request from TIME on Tuesday about why the footage was removed, or why it was released in the first place. The fake footage was shared widely on social media Monday and has been cited as an example of the challenges the Department of Justice has faced as it works to comply with the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which President Trump signed into law on Nov. 19, giving the department 30 days to make public all of its case files about Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell. Senior leaders at the agency have expressed difficulty with complying with the law, which requires reviewing hundreds of thousands of documents and redacting information that could compromise the privacy of victims or ongoing investigations. Critics have accused the agency of [engaging in a cover-up](https://time.com/7342034/epstein-files-release-survivors-lawmakers-trump-doj-bondi-criticism/) for not releasing all of the files by the deadline, and for some of its redactions. Some of Trump’s allies had spent years stoking conspiracy theories that Epstein, who apparently died by suicide in his cell in August 2019, was murdered in advance of his trial on sex-trafficking charges. Now, the team Trump put in charge of the FBI and the Department of Justice has had to face the skepticism some of them helped foment. In July, the FBI and Department of Justice released a report that concluded Epstein had died by suicide. That [report](https://www.justice.gov/opa/media/1407001/dl?inline) said investigators had reviewed 300 gigabytes of data and physical evidence and found “no incriminating ‘client list’” and no evidence that would warrant new criminal charges. The review found that Epstein harmed over 1,000 victims and said that sensitive information about those victims is included in the case materials. “One of our highest priorities is combatting child exploitation and bringing justice to victims,” the report states. “Perpetuating unfounded theories about Epstein serves neither of those ends.” On the Department of Justice website, the thousands of files released so far are posted under the headline “Epstein Library.” The files include grand jury transcripts, as well as photos from Epstein’s New York City townhouse and private island in the U.S. Virgin Islands and of various public figures who appeared at events with Epstein. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/7342511/epstein-video-suicide-death-fake-fact-check/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/7342511/epstein-video-suicide-death-fake-fact-check/"},"headline":"Fake Video Purporting to Show Epstein's Suicide Released by DOJ Then Taken Down","datePublished":"2025-12-23T21:22:30.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-31T13:09:48.615Z","description":"The clip was part of the latest batch of files the Trump Administration released related to Epstein, but was later taken down without an explanation from the department.","url":"https://time.com/7342511/epstein-video-suicide-death-fake-fact-check/","keywords":["Trump Administration","Explainer"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt60eb4c33dc9af012/6998cc8a1f67095040f570be/GettyImages-1393977679.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Brian Bennett","jobTitle":"Bennett is the senior White House correspondent at TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/brian-bennett/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt60eb4c33dc9af012/6998cc8a1f67095040f570be/GettyImages-1393977679.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Jeffrey Epstein Mug Shot","caption":"Jeffrey Epstein Mug Shot","creditText":"Kypros—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/trump-administration/","name":"Trump Administration"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/7342511/epstein-video-suicide-death-fake-fact-check/","name":"Fake Video Purporting to Show Epstein's Suicide Released by DOJ Then Taken Down"}}]}] ```