Overview
- The two women in the photo have been identified as Monica Guy and Nicola O’Brien, who served as Stephen Hawking’s full-time carers, according to the Hawking family estate.
- The original unredacted image was taken at the Ritz-Carlton in Orlando in 2007–2008 and was used by Guy in a blog highlighting wheelchair-accessible hotels.
- The US Department of Justice released the photo within millions of Epstein-related documents without contextual details, and its provenance in the cache has not been clarified.
- A spokesperson for Hawking’s family rejected any insinuation of wrongdoing, and coverage notes that references to him in the files do not constitute evidence of misconduct.
- Hawking attended an Epstein-funded 2006 science conference in the US Virgin Islands, and the files also contain a disputed allegation referenced in Epstein’s correspondence that he denied.