A federal court on Wednesday released a suicide note that Jeffrey Epstein allegedly wrote prior to his death in 2019 as he awaited trial on sex trafficking charges. The nature of Epstein’s death has been hotly debated by observers, though officials concluded he died by suicide in August of 2019.
“They investigated me for month[s] — FOUND NOTHING!!!” according to the note, which was allegedly written before Epstein was found unresponsive but alive in his cell in July of that year.
“It is a treat to be able to choose one’s time to say goodbye,” the note continues. “Watcha want me to do — Bust out cryin!!”
“NO FUN,” the message concludes. “NOT WORTH IT!!”
Epstein later died by suicide that August.
Epstein’s cellmate, Nicholas Tartaglione, claims he discovered the message inside of a book in July after the first incident. Epstein claimed that Tartaglione, a former police officer convicted of leading a murder plot, tried to kill him, but the disgraced financier did not subsequently repeat the claim after he was removed to another cell.
Tartaglione later described the note to The New York Times and reporter Jessica Reed Kraus. The paper then petitioned for the document, sealed as part of the murder case, to be released publicly.
On Monday, the Justice Department backed the request.
Tartaglione’s “public statements constitute a waiver of the need for continued sealing as to the matters he has publicly disclosed,” Jay Clayton, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, wrote in a filing.
This is a breaking news story and will be updated with new information.
If you are based in the USA, and you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call or text 988 or visit 988lifeline.org to access online chat from the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. This is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If you are in another country, you can go to www.befrienders.org to find a helpline near you. In the UK, people having mental health crises can contact the Samaritans at 116 123 or [email protected]
