Autopsy shows Epstein had broken bones
Preliminary findings from an autopsy of Jeffrey Epstein, the financier who reportedly took his own life in a New York City jail last week while facing sex trafficking charges, show that bones in his neck were broken, a person familiar with the autopsy report said Thursday.
Epstein’s body was found Saturday morning in his cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Center, touching off investigations into how a high-profile inmate might have died by suicide only weeks after he had reportedly made an earlier attempt and was placed on a watch.
On Sunday, the office of the New York City medical examiner said it had completed the autopsy of Epstein but indicated it was waiting for more information from investigators before releasing a determination about the cause of death. A city official said at the time that the office was confident that the cause of death was suicide by hanging.
A medical examiner who performed the autopsy determined that Epstein had a broken hyoid bone, which is near the Adam’s apple, the person familiar with the report said.
Such an injury can occur in a suicide by hanging, especially in older people like Epstein, who was 66. But it is more commonly found in cases of strangulation, experts said. The Washington Post first reported Thursday that Epstein’s hyoid had been broken.
In a statement Thursday, the office of the medical examiner, Dr. Barbara Sampson, cautioned about jumping to conclusions about any single finding in the autopsy.
“In all forensic investigations, all information must be synthesized to determine the cause and manner of death,” the office said. “Everything must be consistent; no single finding can be evaluated in a vacuum.”
Epstein’s death stirred theories across the ideological spectrum, as people speculated online about the circumstances of his death. Over the decades, he had developed relationships with numerous luminaries in politics, business, science and academia, among them Great Britain’s Prince Andrew, L Brands CEO Leslie H. Wexner, former President Bill Clinton and President Donald Trump.
Epstein was awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. An indictment accused him of sexually abusing dozens of adolescent girls at his mansions in Manhattan and Palm Beach, Florida, in the early 2000s.
In 2008, Epstein pleaded guilty to two state prostitution charges in Florida under a plea agreement that let him avoid federal prosecution.
He served 13 months in a local jail, but was allowed to leave for 12 hours a day, six days a week, as part of a work-release program.