Hardly a day goes by without a new issue popping up in the ongoing investigations into Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged suicide.
Yesterday was no exception.
Now, comes word that at least one of the cameras that was monitoring the hallway outside of Epstein’s cell produced what federal officials have labeled “unusable footage”.
Before delving into this latest mess, let me first remind Frank Report readers of the circumstances leading up to Epstein’s demise.
*****
Epstein Was Originally Placed in the 9-South Wing
Because of his high-profile nature – and because he was facing sex trafficking charges – Epstein was initially placed in the 9-South Wing at the Manhattan Correctional Center (MCC).
The 9-South Wing is a designated Special Housing Unit (SHU) that generally houses inmates that violated prison rules; newly arrived inmates who have not yet been medically cleared for placement in a general population unit; and inmates who have been placed in Protective Custody – either at their request or at the direction of MCC administrators.
All the cells in the 9-South Wing are 2-man cells. Although there are no in-cell cameras, there are external cameras that continuously monitor the area outside each cell.
Epstein’s original cellmate in the 9-South Wing was Nicholas Tartaglione, a former policeman who is facing four murder counts and a host of other charges.
Shortly after Epstein was denied bail and returned to his cell in the 9-South Wing, he was found on the floor of his cell in a semi-conscious state with bruise marks on his neck.
Tartaglione told prison officials that he discovered Epstein on the floor – and thought that he had tried to commit suicide.
Epstein initially said he could not remember what happened to him – but later recanted that story and said he had been attacked by Tartaglione.
*****
Next Stop: Suicide Watch
As a precautionary measure, prison officials put Epstein on Suicide Watch. While there, he was under observation by an assigned prisoner who had been trained for that duty – and who made notations every 15-minutes in a logbook.
As is true for the vast majority of prisoners who end up on Suicide Watch, Epstein was only there for a few days (The average length of stay for such prisoners is usually 3-5 days).
Thereafter, at the request of his attorneys (who informed prison officials about Epstein’s claim that he had been attacked by Tartaglione) – and with the sign-off of a “doctor-level psychologist” – Epstein was taken off Suicide Watch and returned to the SHU.
*****
The Fateful Decision – and the Ensuing Fuck-Up
Once it was decided that Epstein would be returned to the SHU, MCC officials had two options: (1) place him back in the 9-South Wing in a 2-man cell or (2) place in the 10-South Wing which has single-man cells and in-cell cameras that keep the inmates until 24/7 observation via a closed-circuit television (CCTV) system.
For reasons that have not yet been explained, prison officials chose to put Epstein back in the 9-South Wing with a different cellmate.
In doing so, they gave explicit orders to at least 8 staff – including at least one lieutenant and at least one captain – that Epstein was never to be left without a cellmate.
Those orders were violated within days as Epstein’s new cellmate was transferred out of their joint cell on Friday, August 9th (It has not yet been announced whether the cellmate was transferred to another cell within the 9-South Wing, to another section of MCC, or to another prison).
Throughout the time that Epstein was in the 9-South Wing, he was also supposed to be visually observed in his cell every 30 minutes by one of the two guards who were assigned that duty. A record of all those observations was supposed to be recorded in the guard’s Observation Log.
Around 6:30 AM on Saturday, August 10th, the staff who were delivering breakfast to the inmates in the 9-South Wing discovered Epstein unconscious on the floor of his cell.
He was pronounced dead later that day – and a subsequent autopsy by the New York City Medical Examiner concluded that he died from a self-inflicted hanging.
*****
Conspiracy Theories vs. Bureaucratic Bungling
In the aftermath of Epstein’s demise, numerous people have voiced opinions as to what really happened to him.
Some have claimed that Epstein is not dead – and that he was covertly removed from MCC and transferred to Israel or some other foreign country.
Others have claimed that Epstein was taken out of MCC and then murdered so that he would never be able to reveal the many politicians and world leaders who were involved in his sex trafficking operation.
Still others have claimed that Epstein was strangled by another inmate or guard who had been let in his cell for that purpose.
Meanwhile, those who are familiar with MCC – and/or with the operations of other federal prisons – said this kind of bungling is not at all unusual.
– A prisoner transferred on a Friday night for no apparent reason? No big deal – it happens all the time.
– Not replacing the transferred prisoner – and leaving Epstein alone in his cell – even though there were explicit orders that he not be left alone? No big deal – it happens all the time.
– Guards sleeping during the overnight shift – and then falsifying their logbooks to make it look like they actually did their 30-minute checks? No big deal – it happens all the time.
– An untrained person being put on guard duty in the SHU? No big deal – it happens all the time.
And now, we have the question of the camera outside Epstein’s cell producing “unusable footage” on the night of his demise.
Was that part of some master plot that was designed to cover-up the truth about Epstein?
Or was it just another example of the general incompetence that permeates the Bureau of Prisons?
Multiple investigations are currently underway to find out what REALLY happened to Jeffrey Epstein (At present, there are at least three active investigations: one by the FBI, one by the Bureau of Prison’s Inspector General; and one by the House Judiciary Committee).
Almost certainly, they will all conclude that Epstein simply committed suicide.
The inexplicable and unimaginable will be explained away as “human error”.
And a significant portion of the U.S. population will simply not believe that story.
*****
Author’s Note: This morning, U.S. District Court Judge Richard Berman, the judge who was presiding over the criminal case involving Jeffrey Epstein, is holding a hearing to determine whether to simply close the case (Upon Epstein’s death, all the charges against him were automatically dismissed). At least 10-12 of Epstein’s victims are expected to testify at the hearing.
[…] his attorneys stated he did not attempt suicide. He claimed Epstien’s cellmate, a convicted murderer, attacked […]
There hasn’t been a suicide at that jail for over 20 years. So, the “happens all the time” excuse doesn’t work there.
Krclaviger & Frank Parlato may be designated as terrorists shortly by the FBI ….. conspiracy theories to be labeled as terrorist threat.
Scary stuff…. very Orwellian
https://news.yahoo.com/amphtml/fbi-documents-conspiracy-theories-terrorism-160000507.html
So much for free speech….
I am not kidding!!!
Krclaviger QAnon is mentioned
a new development https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EqD9eIttzbc
In another interesting development, though people had assumed that the case against Epstein ended with his death, that’s not quite how it works:
Up to 30 Accusers to Speak at Hearing in Jeffrey Epstein Case as Prosecutors Ask Judge to Scrap Charges
https://time.com/5662421/accusers-jeffrey-epstein-hearing/
Today’s hearing was nothing more than an opportunity for Epstein’s accusers to vent their frustrations about what he did to them – and the fact that they will never be able to confront him face-to-face. By law, all the pending charges against Epstein had to be dismissed because he has been declared dead. Interestingly enough, the same would have been true had Epstein been convicted of any of those charges, appealed the conviction, and then died before his appeal had been adjudicated.
At least the accusers have been able to confront Epstein face-to-face during the trial. A similar situation occurred to Ken Lay of Enron fame, he died before he was sentenced, so the official record shows him never being convicted: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenneth_Lay But who cares, he was convicted and is dead, which means he saved taxpayers a lot of money keeping him in prison. He should have been held in jail until sentencing instead of vacationing in his house near Aspen, CO, THAT was the big error. He may have even lived longer in prison, since he probably would have been eating more healthy food, getting plenty of rest, less access to drugs, and not have the fear/worry of the unknown imprisoned felon lifestyle hanging over him, he would be living it.
Thanks for clarifying that. At the time I posted the link, I couldn’t find any news pieces that gave a clear explanation of what was going to happen, though of course it didn’t make any sense that a case against him would proceed post mortem.
Apparently it was rather exceptional that the judge allowed victim statements at that point. Only a NY Times piece gave a good accounting:
‘Judge Richard M. Berman had scheduled the hearing on Tuesday after federal prosecutors wrote to him last week, saying that in light of Mr. Epstein’s death, they planned to drop the criminal charges against him — a decision that requires a judge’s approval. Noting the intense public interest in the case, he invited victims to speak.
The judge, in a brief order, said he wanted to hold the hearing because the public might still have an “interest in the process by which the prosecutor seeks dismissal of an indictment.”
The judge did not elaborate, but his statement seemed to acknowledge the extraordinary public interest in the questions surrounding Mr. Epstein’s death and the future of the government’s broader investigation into his associates.
Judge Berman said in the order that he wanted to hear from the prosecution and the lawyers who had been representing Mr. Epstein, and he also invited Mr. Epstein’s accusers and their lawyers to address the court if they wished to.
As if to underscore the wide interest in the matter, the hearing was moved from the judge’s regular courtroom to a much larger one that is typically used for the high-profile cases.’
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/27/nyregion/jeffrey-epstein-hearing-victims.html
A number of victims expressed dismay that Epstein had, in a sense, escaped again. That to me adds to the list of reasons for Epstein to have killed himself – to have stayed in control in a certain sense (similar to those who seek euthanasia), and even sort of put one over on his victims on last time.
It also seems like there is part of a lot of pressure being brought to bear, to continue to go after Epstein’s accomplices, co-perpetrators and enablers.
And almost buried at the bottom of the list of stories I was looking at, was this:
Virginia Giuffre addresses Prince Andrew following Jeffrey Epstein hearing
“He knows exactly what he’s done, and I hope he comes clean about it”
https://nypost.com/2019/08/27/virginia-giuffre-addresses-prince-andrew-following-jeffrey-epstein-hearing/
I heard several news accounts today that totally butchered the purpose of the hearing. I think it was a great gesture on the part of the judge – and probably intended to put some pressure on the SDNY prosecutors not to just walk away from this case.
That’s a clear and pretty even-handed laying out of the facts, thanks.
I do want to object to the labeling of MCC staff as incompetent – though I’m not sure there’s a better term for it, either. I have personal experience from serving in the military, including a tour at the Pentagon, to working or consulting for companies from IBM to smaller family-run businesses; and I’ve known quite a few civil servants, from law enforcement officers (including at least one who spent some time “kicking cages,” as he referred to guard duty) to bureaucrats and politicians. Along with the stereotypes, there are lots of good people who try to do their jobs as best they reasonably can under conditions that are often less than ideal if not actually hampering them – and that applies as much to large bureaucracies (including private sector ones like IBM) as to smaller family-run operations that can be surprisingly dysfunctional.
The improperly-working cameras could, for instance, be traced to something like contractors who didn’t get paid during the government shutdown, and who are either still catching up on backlogs or who gave up and left the BOP without service vendors at all – that’s another point where it would help to know whether it was an isolated and possibly suspicious situation, or a systemic problem as staffing turned out to be. Related to that and back to staffing, the BOP is apparently still affected by a hiring freeze that prevented them from replacing departing guards, demonstrating the lasting impacts of policy and leadership failures. And in general, particularly in metro areas like NYC and DC, it’s very hard for government to get good help, either technical staff or outside vendors, when they’re competing with a private sector willing to pay top dollar for the best talent and offer attractive working conditions (at many companies in NYC, if you work past 9 pm they will call a car service to take you home).
So what do you call it when the actual workers trying to do a job, aren’t given the support and resources necessary to do it properly? Rather than exotic conspiracy theories, I’m more concerned that there’s a sort of banal attitude of neglect that is turning our prisons into gulags like those in places such as Russia, Brazil and the Philippines, where the death of inmates is common – so much so that the occasional actual assassination, no longer even stands out.
Diane’s new report adds that the defense heard that the tape system was broken for six months – not yet established as a fact, but indicative of yet further systemic problems likely at work if true.
Those sort of problems trace back to political appointees of the current administration, and yet oddly the focus does not seem to be on where the responsibility actually lies.
You forgot that he invoked a Trust. That to me makes me think that he is still very alive. See you on Sunday….indeed!
Today’s New York Times has yet another disturbing story about Epstein and his Chief Pimp Ghislane Maxwell.
Twenty-five years ago an aspiring painter named Maria Farmer went to New York City to attend art school.
She soon became acquainted with Epstein and his Pimp Ghislane Maxwell.
Both Epstein and Pimp Maxwell allegedly engaged in sexual relations with Maria Farmer.
In fact Pimp Maxwell was described in the story as being particularly aggressive.
Pimp Maxwell would be driven around Manhattan in a chauffeured car cruising around for females to pick up.
Maxwell would announce that she needed to pick up a girl for Jeffrey.
Ultimately Maria’s younger sister, who was still a teenager was recruited into Epstein’s weird universe.
Supposedly both Bill Clinton and Donald Trump were visiting Epstein in Manhattan in the nineties.
When Maria Farmer reported Epstein to Eileen Guggenheim opf the New York Academy of Art, the Guggenheim family is big in New York’s art world, Farmer was ignored.
Some of the molestation occurred in Ohio near Les Wexner’s home.
Wexner, owner of Victoria’s Secret, was a close friend of Epstein.
Wexner is also the richest person in Ohio.
Maria Farmer tried to report Epstein and Pimp Maxwell to the NYPD.
Farmer was ignored.
Maria Farmer tried to report the story to the FBI in the nineties.
The FBI ignored her although ten years later FBI agents went to Farmer’s then home in North Carolina and interviewed her around the time of Epstein’s trouble in Florida.
Again the FBI and US DOJ ignored the problem.
Maria Farmer tried to tell Vicki Ward of Vanity Fair about the problems but Epstein pressured Vanity Fair’s editor Graydoin Carter to cover up the story.
Today Maria Farmer’s story appears in public in the New York Times for the first time ever, 24 years after she first reported it.
The Sisters Who First Tried to Take Down Jeffrey Epstein
Nine years before any police investigation, Maria and Annie Farmer reported the troubling behavior of Jeffrey Epstein and his companion, Ghislaine Maxwell. No one would act.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/26/us/epstein-farmer-sisters-maxwell.html
A painting by Maria Farmer that Jeffrey Epstein wanted to buy.
(I wonder why)
https://static01.nyt.com/images/2019/08/27/us/27epstein-farmer03/merlin_159746709_57f40d18-01f9-4cce-8cf6-ebdd072d6701-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&auto=webp
I’m still trying to figure out how someone who “hung” himself could be found laying on the floor.
My understanding is that Epstein was found on the floor after the first incident – the one that resulted in him being placed on Suicide Watch. But I think when he was found dead on August 10th, he was sitting in his lower-level bunk with a sheet tied to the upper bunk.
I’ll go back and see what I can find out in terms of those details…
If he was found sitting on his bed that wouldn’t really be a proper hanging. If the hyoid bone was broken where is the weight to support the coroners final report? I guess someone from the top bunk could have helped with his suicide while he sat down to die, but then that would be murder.
There was no one in the top bunk. Epstein was in the cell all by himself at the time of his demise.
Way to break it down, Claviger. I’m still puzzled too on some of the deets but you’ve already filled in more — way more — than the other media covering (or maybe covering up) this apparent suicide matter.
I want to know why those New York post pictures of Epstein’s carcass being wheeled away are so obscured?? Can’t even see his face with someone’s ass dead center in all the shots. And, where’s the suicide weapon? The sheet wasn’t fingerprinted? Analyzed for DNA? Surely there’s a sample of Tartaglione’s fine, genetic traits that might help clear his good name over any speculation he had anything to do with Epstein’s prior alleged attack if not this one. Poor guy.
And combined with the fact that the same clumsy rag — The NY Post — lied about “finding” Ghislaine alive and well and leisurely consuming spy novels and burgers all by her lonesome with her friend’s little poochy at an LA In & Out? [Btw, is their a pet finder tracking devise on that Bitch? I’d like to know where she’s been?].
A Staged Ghislaine photo = > potential for staged Deadstein photo by same source + missing Ghislaine == SEARCH ON for both their slimy asses and assests and cassettes. [How many library shelves of pedophile collateral were they storing compared to NXIVM’s stockpile?! One wonders? Anything stashed in those tunnels beneath Moloch on St. Jeff’s Island besides sacrificial bone remnants? JK!]
I wonder if Ghislaine and Epstein aren’t undergoing plastic surgery somewhere? Ghislaine sure needs a tit lift badly, anyhow! …Unless they’ve been cloned God spare us. (That’s a JOKE, btw, stalker asshole.)
Puzzled— Its easy to hang your self low to the ground.
FYI, I included a link below to the suicide of a semi famous individual an ex girlfriend of Mick Jagger.
https://nypost.com/2014/03/18/lwren-scott-used-necktie-and-scarf-to-ensure-suicide-worked-sources/amp/
Good example.
There are also quite a few people who inadvertently hang themselves while attempting autoerotic asphyxiation, demonstrating how relatively easy it can be.
Puzzled—
Here is your answer:
https://nypost.com/2014/03/18/lwren-scott-used-necktie-and-scarf-to-ensure-suicide-worked-sources/amp/
It’s easy.
I share your bewilderment. Surely any coroners report or prison report would have to include the ‘mechanical’ details of how his ‘hanging’was achieved and details of any equipment or cell furnishings used. You need some kind of ligature to hang yourself and it would still be present.
It is my opinion that Mr. Epstein is in Witness Protection. Despite what Barr or anyone else says-Trump would never allow this to happen. Never. Also, I heard from a great source that Elton John was executed, yet they still have his tour scheduled. Should be interesting to see what happens. Peter Fonda got the No Name treatment.
Do you really think Trump was keeping track of Epstein’s situation while in jail?
Oh my, YES.
What if Trump wanted him dead, because Epstein knew too much about the mysterious E. Jean Carroll, case, and perhaps others that implicated his political circles? We’ve already seen Acosta sacrificed, and he hinted that the Epstein deal went higher up in the White House.
If you’re going to conspiracy theorize, you should consider all the possibilities….
William Jefferson held a frequent flier card on the Lolita express and most of us know about all the suspicious deaths related to folks that got on the bad side of the Clintons. But then again you were never known for your objectivity.
E. Jean Carroll???? Sweetheart, do your research. None of us is handed the right info, you have to DISCERN. Then do MORE research. Good luck
Can you tell us what conspiracy theory websites you go to to get your discernment?
I’d agree that that the Carroll case is questionable. But it’s hardly more dubious than quite a few other things being treated as somehow worthy of consideration and investigation – which is my point. Doesn’t the case deserve to be looked into and fully exposed, its basis and the reasons for its disappearance properly explained, so that we can actually discern what’s going on?
It sounds to me like what you’re talking about is more judgment based on ideological bias, than discernment.
Okay. I have been doing this research for three years. It took YEARS to DISCERN whom I could trust. Research QAnon, research The Patriot Hour and X22 Report, McAllister television and And We Know.
‘I heard from a great source that Elton John was executed, yet they still have his tour scheduled. Should be interesting to see what happens’
hahaha. You are precious.
Executed for what?
He was a known pedophile and human trafficker.
I am personal friends with an ex con (held in Cresent Bay, Ca for 14 years) and he says this reeks of total and complete BS.this was Not suicide, no way.
It is NOT usual to ALL of the things your “sources” claim is “no big deal”.
You are being led astray by anyone who says this is “norm”.
—Some have claimed that Epstein is not dead –
—Others have claimed that Epstein was taken out of MCC and then murdered
—Still others have claimed that Epstein was strangled by another inmate
You missed one:
Some claim that Epstein was the second coming of Jesus and died for our sins again.
“Some claim that Epstein was the second coming of Jesus and died for our sins again.”
That will be the story when Keith Raniere dies in prison.
Keith Raniere is the Albany Jesus.
Krclaviger,
I believe Jeffrey Epstein’s suicide has many suspicious elements.
Some of my acquaintances from high school and college went on to become correctional officers.
If you knew some of the same type of people nothing about the f*ck ups at MDC or MCC would surprise you. Prison personal and prison officials are basically the blind leading the blind leading the retarded.
I guarantee Shadowstate1958, Scott “Amway” Johnson, Bangkok, Soccermom SultanOfSix, and myself are more functional than 90% of current federal prison guards.
That should tell you something…..
Lol
Leave Shadowstate out of this. He’s currently enjoying an ongoing daydream of Allison Mack and Nicky Clyne walking around with “S/S 58” burned into their nether regions
“Leave Shadowstate out of this. He’s currently enjoying an ongoing daydream of Allison Mack and Nicky Clyne walking around with “S/S 58” burned into their nether regions’
REPLY
Is there any more room on Allison Mack’s and Nicki Clyne’s nether regions for new brands?
I understand they lead very active social lives.
I guarantee that me being on a list with all of the others you listed is for contrasting purposes, not commonality.
Scott,
Exactly! You were used for contrasting.
Scott, you are the line of demarcation!!!!
At Chicago’s MCC, the prisoners, particularly those in street gangs, could receive deliveries of street drugs and enjoy conjugal visits from their girl friends.
PRISON PROSTITUTION RING DETAILED
https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1993-05-25-9305250270-story.html
Whoever the guard and trustees passing out morning chow are also suspect. It wouldn’t be hard to give an inmate monies to carry out orders from a “shot caller.”