NEW YORK -- New York City's medical examiner on Friday ruled Jeffrey Epstein's death a suicide, confirming after nearly a week of speculation that the financier hanged himself in his jail cell.
Epstein, 66, was found dead in his cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York City on Aug. 10, touching off anger and disbelief over how such a high-profile prisoner, known for socializing with powerful people, including Presidents Donald Trump and Bill Clinton, could have gone unwatched.
Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Barbara Sampson said in a statement that she made the suicide determination "after careful review of all investigative information, including complete autopsy findings."
Sampson's announcement came as a Justice Department official told The Associated Press that some prison staff members believed to have relevant information aren't cooperating with investigators.
Epstein's lawyers said they were "not satisfied" with Sampson's conclusions and that they would conduct their own investigation, including seeking to obtain any video of the area around Epstein's cell from the time leading to his death.
Epstein, who was charged with sexually abusing numerous underage girls over several years, had been placed on suicide watch last month after he was found on his cell floor July 23 with bruises on his neck.
But multiple people familiar with operations at the jail say he was taken off the watch after about a week and put back in a high-security housing unit where he was less closely monitored, but still supposed to be checked on every 30 minutes.
Jail guards on duty the night of Epstein's death are suspected of falsifying log entries to show they were checking on inmates every half hour as required, according to several people familiar with the matter. Both were working overtime because of staffing shortages at the jail, the people said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they lacked authorization to publicly discuss the investigation.
Attorney General William Barr says officials have uncovered "serious irregularities" at the jail. The FBI and the Justice Department's inspector general are both investigating.
"It is indisputable that the authorities violated their own protocols," Epstein's lawyers said in a statement late Friday, calling the conditions in the unit where Epstein spent his final hours "harsh, even medieval."
After news of Epstein's death went public, U.S. Attorney Geoffrey Berman said the federal investigation into the allegations against Epstein remains steadfast.
Barr also warned that "any co-conspirators should not rest easy."
"Let me assure you that this case will continue on against anyone who was complicit," Barr said. "The victims deserve justice, and they will get it."
Meanwhile, the investigation into Epstein's death is being hampered because some people, including jail staff members who are believed to have information pertinent to the probe, aren't cooperating and have not yet been interviewed by the FBI, according to a Justice Department official.
The official said the FBI has repeatedly sought interviews with staff members but those interviews are being delayed by union representatives. The official was not authorized to discuss the investigation publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
The Associated Press often does not report details of suicide methods but has made an exception because Epstein's cause of death is pertinent to the ongoing investigations.
The Washington Post and The New York Times reported Thursday that the autopsy revealed that a bone in Epstein's neck had been broken, leading to speculation that his death was a homicide.
Sampson responded that "no single finding can be evaluated in a vacuum" and experts said the bone in question often breaks in suicidal hangings.
Autopsy reports are not public records in New York and the details of the medical examiner's finding, or what evidence she relied upon, were not immediately available.
The medical examiner's ruling came a day after two more women sued Epstein's estate, saying he sexually abused them.
The suit, filed Thursday in a federal court in New York, claims the women were working as hostesses at a popular Manhattan restaurant in 2004 when they were recruited to give Epstein massages.
One was 18 at the time. The other was 20.
The lawsuit says an unidentified female recruiter offered the hostesses hundreds of dollars to provide massages to Epstein, saying he "liked young, pretty girls to massage him," and wouldn't engage in any unwanted touching. The women say Epstein groped them anyway.
One plaintiff now lives in Japan, the other in Baltimore. They seek $100 million in damages, citing depression, anxiety, anger and flashbacks.
Information for this article was contributed by Jim Mustian of The Associated Press.
A Section on 08/17/2019