Sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was found inside his cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Manhattan with marks on his neck, but it was unclear how he got them, a source confirmed to the Daily News on Wednesday.
NBC News reported late Wednesday that Epstein was found semiconscious in his cell with marks on his neck that may have been self-inflicted. It was not clear when Epstein was found. NBC cited two sources saying that Epstein may have tried to hang himself, and another source saying the injuries were not serious and questioning whether Epstein might be using it to get a transfer.
The Daily Beast reported a source saying that after being put into the general population at the Metropolitan Correctional Center, Epstein had been moved to solitary protective custody after other inmates threatened him.
The 66-year-old financier pleaded not guilty earlier this month to charges of conspiracy and sex trafficking. A federal judge denied him bail after prosecutors argued that he is a flight risk and a danger to the public. Epstein, a registered sex offender, is appealing the judge’s decision.
On July 8, in Manhattan Federal Court, Epstein was hit in a 13-page indictment with conspiracy and sex-trafficking charges that carry a maximum sentence of 45 years in prison. Between 2002 and 2005 he allegedly sexually abused dozens of minors as young as 14 years old at his Manhattan mansion and Palm Beach, Fla., estate.
In 2008, the multimillionaire pleaded guilty to soliciting a minor for prostitution and served 13 months in a Florida jail. Epstein’s plea in that case, which allowed him work release, has been the subject of intense controversy and led to the resignation of Trump administration Labor Secretary Alex Acosta, who handled the case when he was U.S. attorney for Southern Florida.
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