US judge releases Jeffrey Epstein’s purported suicide note

Warning: this story contains content which some readers might find distressing. A US judge has ordered the release of a document purported to be a suicide note written by convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein a month before his death. A copy of the handwritten note unsealed on Wednesday mentions a months-long investigation that “found nothing”, and says “it is a treat to be able to choose one’s time to say goodbye”.

Epstein’s former cellmate claims he found the note tucked into a book after Epstein tried to kill himself in July 2019. Epstein was found dead in his cell a month later. The BBC has not verified that the note was written by Epstein, and US authorities have not commented.

His death, which was ruled a suicide by authorities, came as he awaited a sex-trafficking trial. The purported note was placed under seal as part of criminal proceedings involving the former cellmate, Nicholas Tartaglione, who was being held in the cell at the time while awaiting trial for four murders. Tartaglione is a former police officer convicted of quadruple murder who was at one point accused by Epstein of attacking him, which he denied.

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He first mentioned the note’s existence last year on a podcast. A scan of the note in the court document unsealed on Tuesday shows a handwritten sentence saying, “They investigated me for month – FOUND NOTHING!!!”, and mentioned years-old charges. “It is a treat to be able to choose one’s time to say goodbye,” the note says.

“Watcha want me to do – Bust out cryin!!” it continues. “NO FUN – NOT WORTH IT.” The note amounts to only seven lines of text, leaving uncertainty over its purported meaning.

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