Jeffrey Epstein's cellmate says he found a handwritten note on yellow paper inside a graphic novel.
Jeffrey Epstein’s Secret Four-Word Note Finally Revealed After Nearly Seven Years Under Seal
A s----- note written by the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein has surfaced, years after it was kept under seal after his death in 2019. The note was found by a former inmate who shared his cell, Nicholas Tartaglione, who faced charges in a quadruple homicide case.
The news was first reported by The New York Times. The Department of Justice, according to the report, has said it has never seen the letter.
Tartaglione, who previously worked as a police officer, is serving four life sentences for killing four people. He found the note in July 2019, which was hidden within a graphic novel, after Epstein attempted self-harm by wrapping a cloth around his neck in a cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Center.
Tartaglione said he provided the note to his lawyers, as he believed it might help Epstein to support his claim that Epstein assaulted him. According to him, the note read, "What do you want me to do, bust out crying? Time to say goodbye."
Nicholas Tartaglione was Jeffrey Epstein’s cellmate in July 2019.
Jeffrey's note has been locked in a New York courthouse for nearly seven years
Epstein’s alleged note during his time in custody has reportedly been sealed for nearly seven years. The letter is reported to have been sealed in a vault at a New York courthouse, per The Mirror US.
The document is said to have been kept in a courthouse vault since a federal judge ordered its sealing amid a disagreement among lawyers for former officer Nicholas Tartaglione, who was Epstein's cellmate at New York City's Metropolitan Correctional Center following the financier's arrest on child s---trafficking charges in July 2019.
Although Epstein survived the apparent attempt, he was found dead weeks later. Investigators examining Epstein's death were deprived of what might have been a vital piece of evidence. A two-page file in the records outlines how the handwritten note was involved in Tartaglione's own court case.
Prison documents show that Epstein changed his statement a week after alleging that his cellmate assaulted him. He then said they "never had any problems".
The note contained the four-word phrase, "Time to say goodbye."
The former police officer discussed Epstein’s alleged note on a podcast last year, but the details of the message were not revealed, as calls for transparency grew regarding the investigation. Since December, the Justice Department has shared millions of documents, called the Epstein Files, related to the late financier's crimes.
How did Epstein die?
Questions have persisted about how Epstein died. According to many reports, he passed away on August 10, 2019, at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York City while awaiting trial for s-- trafficking charges. Initially, his death was ruled as a s----- but the medical examiner said that he died from strangulation rather than hanging.
According to NPR, the doctor said, "My opinion is that his death was most likely caused by strangulation pressure rather than hanging. Given all the information now available, further investigation into the cause and manner of death is warranted."