Beverly Hills real estate mogul sentenced in college admissions scandal dies by suicide in federal detention center
LOS ANGELES – Hollywood producer and billionaire pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, who was serving a seven-year prison sentence for child sex abuse, hanged himself under suspicious circumstances inside a federal detention center, authorities said Thursday.
A spokesperson for the federal Bureau of Prisons referred questions about Epstein’s death to the U.S. Marshals Service.
“This agent is trying to determine the circumstances of the death,” the statement read.
Two law enforcement sources said Epstein died in a federal jail cell in Brooklyn rather than on the streets of Los Angeles, where he lived while awaiting a verdict on a criminal case.
A lawyer who represented him asked that the details of Epstein’s death be withheld until he could report them to a judge, NBC News reported, citing court records.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department declined to comment on the death, citing an ongoing investigation.
‘SHE HAD BEEN DEVASTATED’
The circumstances of Epstein’s death came to light after he killed himself with a Taser, officials said.
Federal authorities had discovered the 68-year-old billionaire’s body in the jail cell that’s where he was being held when he died, according to FBI spokesman Kyle Loven.
The FBI had to remove the body because it posed too great a medical risk, Loven said, adding that it was later transferred to New York City to prevent any possible exposure to the public.
Loven said the FBI is working closely with the U.S. Attorney’s office to ensure the death is not exploited by any attorney, law enforcement official or news media outlet.
“This is a tragedy beyond compare and one that should not be used to further the cause of justice,” Attorney General Bill Barr said in a statement on Wednesday.
‘I WAS HURT ON THE INSIDE’
He spent more than seven decades on the FBI’s most-wanted list, including a stint in a high-security prison in New York state for recruiting underage girls for sex.
His suicide comes as dozens of accusers have spoken publicly about allegations that they had