New accounts from inmates and prison records are shedding fresh light on Jeffrey Epstein's final weeks inside New York's Metropolitan Correctional Center, with newly reported details suggesting the disgraced financier may have made multiple apparent suicide attempts before his death in August 2019.
The revelations, reported by The New York Times, center on allegations that prison staff discovered several makeshift nooses fashioned from bedsheets and other materials in Epstein's cell during the weeks leading up to his death. The findings have renewed scrutiny of how federal authorities monitored one of the highest-profile inmates in the country while he awaited trial on federal child sex trafficking charges.
Epstein was found unresponsive in his Manhattan jail cell on Aug. 10, 2019. Authorities ruled his death a suicide, but questions surrounding the circumstances of his death have persisted for years, fueling public skepticism and numerous conspiracy theories.
At the center of the newly reported claims is Nicolas Tartaglione, a former police officer and convicted murderer who briefly shared a cell with Epstein. Speaking to The New York Times, Tartaglione alleged that Epstein repeatedly discussed suicide and sought information about how to construct a noose shortly after arriving in custody in July 2019.
According to Tartaglione, he later discovered what appeared to be several preparations for self-harm. In one instance, he claimed to have found a bedsheet tied to a grate above the cell window. In another, he said he uncovered a homemade noose hidden beneath Epstein's mattress.
The most serious incident allegedly occurred on July 22, 2019. Tartaglione told The New York Times that he found Epstein lying on the floor with a strip of orange fabric around his neck. Epstein initially claimed his cellmate had assaulted him, prompting an internal investigation.
Documents reviewed by reporters reportedly indicate prison officials treated the incident as a possible suicide attempt. One correctional officer wrote that staff responding shortly after 1:27 a.m. found Epstein on the floor and breathing heavily. Epstein was later transported to a specialized unit and placed under observation before being assigned to suicide watch.
Additional testimony cited in the report appears to support parts of Tartaglione's account. Another inmate, Peter Bright, reportedly told investigators that Tartaglione had described earlier incidents involving makeshift nooses shortly after Epstein's death.
The reporting also revisits operational failures inside the Metropolitan Correctional Center. According to The New York Times, Epstein was at times left without the level of monitoring typically associated with inmates considered at risk of self-harm. The newspaper further reported that questions surrounding the handling and cataloging of evidence recovered from his cell contributed to confusion after his death.
Attention has also returned to a handwritten note allegedly authored by Epstein before he died. The document, released through court proceedings, contained complaints about investigators and references to the criminal case against him. According to reports, the note stated that authorities had spent months investigating him and had "found nothing."
The message also included language referring to choosing when to say goodbye and ended with the phrases "NO FUN" and "NOT WORTH IT!!"
