Despite being the most high-profile prisoner in the United States, Jeffrey Epstein was found dead in federal custody at New York's Manhattan Correctional Center on August 10, 2019.
The financier, who is awaiting trial on charges of sex trafficking of underage girls, was found in his cell shortly after 6:30 a.m., using an orange bed sheet tied to his cell bunk. He appears to have hanged himself.
Cameras in the secure housing unit where Epstein was being held had not recorded the entire previous night, and despite direct orders from a prison psychologist, correctional officers were asleep and Epstein was left without a cellmate.
Then-Attorney General Bill Barr later called the situation “a perfect storm of failure.”
Within a week, the medical examiner ruled the death a suicide, meaning no further investigation was needed. eventually, 128 page report The report, prepared by the Justice Department, concluded that prison officials made mistakes and that Epstein's death was due to “long-standing operational issues.”
But some, including Epstein's 69-year-old brother Mark, consistently dispute official events. He is campaigning for more information to be released, including videos from the cell block.
“I just want to see the facts, but given the available facts, more questions arise,” the real estate developer told the Post.
“It appears that no investigation was conducted after it was ruled a suicide, and we saw no reason to investigate further.
“Sounds like a cover-up. Why can't we find his pre-hospital treatment report or call 911?”
Below is a summary of publicly available information and Mark's four-year investigation into Epstein's death.
anatomy
Two medical examiners, Dr. Christine Roman and Dr. Michael Baden, attended Epstein's autopsy. The latter was sent by Mark to independently supervise the procedure.
They agreed to list the manner of death as “pending”, citing further investigation.
This opinion was reversed a week later by New York State Chief Medical Examiner Barbara Samson, who changed the verdict to suicide.
Samson said he had seen “additional evidence” but would not say what that evidence was.
Baden said Epstein had two injuries on either side of his thyroid cartilage near the Adam's apple and one injury on the left side of his hyoid bone above it, which is “highly unusual for a hanging due to suicide” and “an injury caused by murder. “It may occur more commonly with strangulation.” ”
Baden added: “I haven't seen that happen in 50 years with a suicide by hanging.”
Furthermore, no photographs were taken of Epstein's body at the time it was found, which multiple coroners agree is key evidence in determining exactly how he died. .
Autopsy photos showed that the ligature marks on Epstein's throat were from the middle to the bottom of his neck, straight, not raised, and pointing toward the side and back of his throat, more consistent with hanging.
Epstein's cell
A Justice Department investigation into Epstein's death found that Epstein was “suspended from the top of a bed in a near-sitting position, with his buttocks approximately 1 to 1 1/2 inches off the floor, and his feet in front of him.” It is said that he appeared on
This meant that most of his weight was on the neck ligature.
Guard Michael Thomas, who found him, claimed he tore or cut the sheets and began chest compressions until prison medics arrived.
Two ropes were found in the cell. According to the CBS show “60 Minutes”.
The noose introduced as evidence was not the one that the guards tore or cut to free Epstein's body.
The noose submitted and photographed was a piece of cloth with hemmed edges and was free of dirt and liquid, even though it was said to have been tied around Epstein's neck when he died.
Photos of Epstein's cell show a sleep apnea machine, which Mark points out had an electrical cord that would have been easier to use to hang himself than the sheets. .
The emergency medical technician (EMT) who attended the scene was not interviewed, which is standard procedure in such cases.
In particularly high-profile cases, emergency medical personnel and hospital staff are sometimes questioned by police, but in this case no one was questioned. Additionally, hospital staff said Epstein's pre-hospital treatment report was “not found.”
An autopsy revealed that Epstein had been dead for at least two hours, and possibly up to six hours, before he was found.
However, despite being clearly dead, he was taken to the hospital, put on a hospital gown and placed on a stretcher.
Meanwhile, 911 calls from the prison and their contents have not been made public.
inmates and evidence
Epstein was in prison on July 23, when he was placed under guard in the same cell as ex-cop and now-convicted quadruple murderer Nicholas Tartaglione for an incident in which he suffered a neck injury. member was called.
After the incident, Epstein told prison staff that he had been attacked by his cellmate. He then stated that he “doesn't remember” how he sustained the injury and refused to talk further about it.
After the incident, on July 30, the prison's psychology department announced that Epstein must have a cellmate at all times and be monitored.
A new cellmate, Efrain 'Stone' Reyes, was assigned and transferred from MCC to another facility less than 24 hours before Epstein's death.
Reyes told his family that Epstein seemed “depressed” and “didn't want to live anymore.” According to the New York Daily NewsHe also quoted another inmate as saying that Epstein “said he was going to kill himself because the government was going to kill him anyway.”
Video evidence from the night of Epstein's death was “limited.”
According to a Justice Department investigation, “video evidence recorded on August 9th and 10th in the SHU area where Epstein was being held was removed from one of the prison's surveillance cameras due to a malfunction in MCC New York's digital video recorder system. I could only get it.”
However, the report also states that “from approximately 10:40 p.m. on August 9 to approximately 6:30 a.m. on August 10, no one was observed entering Epstein's cell level from the SHU common area. ” also stated.
Despite Freedom of Information Act requests being filed, active camera footage, particularly from when Epstein's body was taken down the stairs in the morning, has never been released.
sleeping guard
Prison guards Tovah Noel and Michael Thomas were stationed 15 feet from Epstein's cell.
But on the night of Aug. 9, the day Epstein died, they fell asleep and never checked on the prisoners in the secure housing unit.
They later admitted that they had falsified records claiming they had completed the tests.
Both men were indicted by the federal government.But they struck a deal to drop the charges in exchange for pleading guilty and cooperating with the federal investigation into Epstein's death.
Neither man has spoken publicly about what happened that night or about Epstein.
The indictment against the officers also mentions the presence of two other correctional officers, “Officer-1'' and “Officer-2,'' who are also on duty at least part of the time, and who are also on duty at least part of the time, and who are also on duty for at least part of their shift. were supposed to accompany the group — their identities have never been released.
Mark said he had nothing to gain from his brother's death, it was not included in his will, he had incurred legal costs since 2019 and had to spend money to protect his family. .
“They had a hearing to appeal his bail restrictions days after his death, so why did Jeffrey commit suicide just days before that hearing? He will be released from prison and await trial at home wearing an ankle monitor,'' he told investigative journalists. Declan Hill appears on Crimewaves Podcast.
“Then why would you commit suicide? I would understand if you were denied bail again.
“Trust me, it would have been easier.” [the pathologists] “If I had just come out and said, 'This feels like suicide,' I could have forgotten all about this,” he added.
