Ex-cellmate alleges he found suicide note by Epstein in 2019
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A federal judge overseeing the case of Nicholas Tartaglione, who was once Jeffrey Epstein’s cellmate, has given parties until Monday to respond to an unsealing request by The New York Times about a purported suicide note written by the late financier and found by Tartaglione seven years ago.
Judge Kenneth Karas said that no extensions would be granted for replies to the letter submitted by the news outlet, seeking to make public a document it contends has been held hidden by the court.
In its filing, an attorney for the Times pointed to a document released by the Justice Department within the past few months as part of its disclosure of some 3.5 million records about its investigations into Epstein and his longtime confidant, Ghislaine Maxwell. A convicted sex offender, Epstein is believed by authorities to have abused more than 1,000 young women and girls over the course of decades.
The record, which has the word “Chronology” as its header, includes an entry that says “Sometime between 7/23 and 7/27, NT found the note.”
Nicholas Tartaglione. Photo courtesy the Department of Justice
The document also has another entry dated about two weeks after Epstein’s death saying, “Disclosure of note to trial team w/BS present. He revealed he visited NT and NT told him a letter was left in my book, etc. BS saw note on the phone that day.”
The origin of the document is unclear, but it appears to refer to a timeline of Epstein and Tartaglione’s interaction at a New York City jail, referring to each as well as Tartaglione’s lawyers by their initials.
Tartaglione told The New York Times that he discovered the note tucked into the pages of a comic book and that it said authorities had not found any evidence despite looking into Epstein for many months. The note then continued to say, “What do you want me to do, bust out crying? Time to say goodbye.”
A former Briarcliff Manor police officer who was convicted of four murders, Tartaglione also reportedly first mentioned the existence of the note publicly on a podcast last year.
An inquiry made to the court seeking confirmation on the existence of such a document was not immediately returned.
A DOJ spokesperson shared a statement that read in part, “It is difficult to comment on something neither the New York Times, nor we, have seen.” The response went on to say that the department had undergone “an exhaustive effort to collect all records” in response to the Epstein Files Transparency Act.
Following his arrest and detention on sex trafficking charges, Epstein was cellmates with Tartaglione for nearly two weeks during the summer of 2019 at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York, according to Justice Department records. The decision to pair them was because both were high-profile inmates, the warden of the jail told authorities.
On July 23, 2019, prison guards found Epstein on the floor of his cell with what they described as a homemade rope around his neck. Epstein later alleged that Tartaglione had tried to kill him, which Tartaglione denies.
After a period on suicide watch, Epstein was later placed in a cell with a different inmate, who was subsequently transferred out of MCC less than 24 hours before authorities say Epstein died by suicide. A DOJ’s inspector general report about Epstein’s death noted that he had asked at one point to be rehoused with Tartaglione before his death.
Tartaglione told The New York Times that he found Epstein’s purported suicide note written on yellow legal paper tucked into a graphic novel after the disgraced financier had been moved to a different part of the jail.
Convicted in four murders stemming from a drug disputeTartaglione is currently serving four life sentences at a federal prison in California, records show. He is pursuing an appeal and has maintained his innocence.
The legal wrangling over the existence of the 2019 note comes as the House Oversight Committee continues with its own probe into Epstein. The GOP-led committee announced earlier this week that members will question former Attorney General Pam Bondi on May 29.
Bondi had previously been scheduled to appear before the committee last month, and Rep. James Walkinshaw, D-Va., said Thursday the lawmakers were working to establish the parameters of the interview, which he described as “a little bit less formal than a deposition.”
“I want to know the discussions about which documents they chose to release and not release,” fellow Virginia Democrat Rep. Suhas Subramanyam told reporters following a separate closed-door testimony of Maxwell’s former boyfriend Ted Waitt. Both lawmakers are members of the House Oversight Committtee.
DOCUMENTED REFERENCES
Exploring Documented Records
Public interest in the Epstein case continues not only because of court proceedings and testimonies, but also due to the growing body of documented records that help researchers and readers understand the broader context. Beyond legal files and media reports, some independent projects have organized publicly available data connected to Epstein’s activities.
One example is a structured archive of documented Amazon order records, where purchases are cataloged with dates and product details. While individual items do not prove wrongdoing on their own, examining documented information alongside established facts helps paint a clearer picture of the environment and circumstances surrounding the case.
Browse the structured archive of documented order records
For readers looking to review primary-source style data rather than interpretations, exploring compiled records can provide additional context to the broader discussion.
