Jeffrey Epstein Autopsy Points Out to Homicide
A forensic pathologist hired by Jeffrey Epstein’s brother claimed on Wednesday that evidence suggested that Mr. Epstein did not die by suicide, but may have been strangled.
The authorities, including the New York City medical examiner, have concluded that the death of Mr. Epstein, the financier who was awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges, was caused by hanging in his jail cell.
But the pathologist, Dr. Michael Baden, said on the morning TV show “Fox & Friends” that Mr. Epstein, 66, experienced a number of injuries that “are extremely unusual in suicidal hangings and could occur much more commonly in homicidal strangulation.”
“I think that the evidence points to homicide rather than suicide,” Dr. Baden said, who observed the autopsy, which was conducted by city officials.
Dr. Baden, a former New York City medical examiner and a Fox News contributor, added, “I’ve not seen in 50 years where that occurred in a suicidal hanging case.”
The findings by Dr. Baden were strongly disputed by the city’s chief medical examiner, Dr. Barbara Sampson, who previously ruled Mr. Epstein’s death on Aug. 10 in the Metropolitan Correctional Center a suicide.
The death led to several investigations into how a high-profile inmate died by suicide soon after having attempted to take his own life and being placed under additional supervision.
Mr. Epstein was a wealthy financier and convicted sex offender. He used his money and connections to get a widely criticized plea deal in Florida in 2008.
Mr. Epstein was arrested in July at Teterboro Airport in New Jersey by federal officials.
A spokesman for the United States attorney’s office in Manhattan had no comment on Dr. Baden’s statements about Mr. Epstein’s death.
Azi Paybarah writes the New York Today column. He was raised in Queens, educated in Albany and lives in Manhattan. He worked at The Queens Tribune, The New York Sun, Politico New York and elsewhere before joining The Times. Email him or follow him on Twitter. @Azi
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