Jeffrey Epstein’s cause of death is still not known after autopsy – as it’s claimed there’s no CCTV of jail ‘suicide’

JEFFREY Epstein’s cause of death is still shrouded in mystery despite an autopsy being performed.

The billionaire paedo, 66, was found "unresponsive" in his jail cell and died on Saturday – just days after being taken off suicide watch.

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It’s been claimed that there’s no CCTV showing Epstein’s apparent suicide in his cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Center.

An autopsy was performed on Epstein's body on Sunday, but officials need more information before they can give an official cause of death.

“The Medical Examiner’s determination is pending further information at this time,” a statement reads.

Epstein’s representatives were granted their request for a private pathologist to observe the autopsy – this is routine practice.

The Chief Medical Examiner said his office would deter to the other law agencies involved regarding investigations around the death.

The FBI is understood to be investigating the death given the nature of this case and out of an "abundance of caution".

GUARDS 'WORKING OVERTIME'

Guards on Epstein's unit were working extreme overtime shifts to make up for staff shortages the day of his apparent suicide, reports claim.

A source said the Special Housing Unit was staffed with one guard working a fifth straight day of overtime and another working mandatory overtime.

The jail staff failed to follow protocols leading up to Epstein's death, according to a report from The New York Times.

Epstein should have been checked on by guards in his cell every 30 minutes, but that didn't happen the night before his apparent suicide. reports say.

A law enforcement source also told the Times he was alone in his cell early Saturday after his cellmate was transferred.

An official said the Justice Department was told Epstein would have a cellmate and be monitored by a guard every 30 minutes.

TAKEN OFF SUICIDE WATCH

Epstein had been placed on suicide watch after he was found a little over two weeks ago with bruising on his neck.

But he was taken off the watch at the end of July and therefore wasn't on it at the time of his death, a source said.

His death came hours after a Manhattan court released a 1,200-page dossier detailing lurid abuse allegations against him.

The explosive papers also named some of the world’s elite leaders and politicians.

They were unsealed in a legal tangle between Brit socialite Ghislaine Maxwell — Epstein’s ex-lover — and Virginia Giuffre.

Ms Giuffre has alleged that she was procured by “madame” Maxwell, 57, the daughter of disgraced tycoon Robert Maxwell, as a teenage “sex slave” for Epstein.

In previous court claims, she alleged she had sex Prince Andrew when she was a teen.

Buckingham Palace has strenuously denied the allegations.

PROSECUTORS WILL CONTINUE FIGHT

The mystery surrounding how he was able to kill himself in jail comes as investigators have been digging into allegations of sexual abuse against Epstein.

His abrupt death cuts short a criminal prosecution that could have pulled back the curtain on his connections to celebrities and presidents.

But prosecutors have vowed to continue investigating.

His death came hours after a Manhattan court released a 1,200-page dossier detailing lurid abuse allegations against him.

Attorney General William Barr said he was "appalled" to learn of Epstein's death while in federal custody.

"Mr Epstein's death raises serious questions that must be answered," Barr said in a statement.

Epstein, 66, had been denied bail and faced up to 45 years behind bars on federal sex trafficking and conspiracy charges unsealed last month.

He had pleaded not guilty and was awaiting trial.

The federal investigation into the allegations remains ongoing, US Attorney Geoffrey Berman said.

He noted in a statement Saturday that the indictment against Epstein includes a conspiracy charge, suggesting others could face charges in the case.

DEATH RAISES 'SERIOUS' QUESTIONS

Epstein's death raises questions about how the Bureau of Prisons ensures the welfare of such high-profile inmates.

In October, Boston gangster James "Whitey" Bulger was killed in a federal prison in West Virginia where had just been transferred.

Nebraska Sen. Ben Sasse, a Republican member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, wrote in a letter to Barr that "heads must roll".

"Every single person in the Justice Department from your Main Justice headquarters staff all the way to the night-shift jailer knew that this man was a suicide risk, and that his dark secrets couldn't be allowed to die with him," Sasse wrote.

Epstein's removal from suicide watch would have been approved by both the warden of the jail and the facility's chief psychologist, reports claim.

On Friday, more than 2,000 pages of documents were released related to a since-settled lawsuit against Epstein's ex-girlfriend by Virginia Giuffre, one of Epstein's accusers.

The records contain graphic allegations against Epstein, as well as the transcript of a 2016 deposition of Epstein in which he repeatedly refused to answer questions to avoid incriminating himself.

Giuffre, in an interview with The New York Times, said she's grateful Epstein will never harm anyone again.

But she is angry that there would be no chance to see him answer for his conduct.

"We've worked so hard to get here, and he stole that from us, too," she told the newspaper.

Sigrid McCawley, Giuffre's attorney, said Epstein's suicide less than 24 hours after the documents were unsealed "is no coincidence."

McCawley urged authorities to continue their investigation, focusing on Epstein associates who she said "participated and facilitated Epstein's horrifying sex trafficking scheme."

Epstein's arrest drew national attention, particularly focusing on a deal that allowed Epstein to plead guilty in 2008 to soliciting a minor for prostitution in Florida and avoid more serious federal charges.

Federal prosecutors in New York reopened the probe after investigative reporting by The Miami Herald stirred outrage over that plea bargain.

His lawyers maintained that the new charges in New York were covered by the 2008 plea deal and that Epstein hadn't had any illicit contact with underage girls since serving his 13-month sentence in Florida.

Before his legal troubles, Epstein led a life of extraordinary luxury that drew powerful people into his orbit.

He socialised with princes and presidents and lived on a 100-acre private Caribbean island and one of the biggest mansions in New York.

Who is Jeffrey Epstein and what is he accused of?

Jeffrey Epstein was a US financier who was convicted of soliciting an underage girl for prostitution in 2008.

He was arrested on July 6, 2019 for sex trafficking minors in Florida and New York.

Epstein was arrested on July 6, 2019 on sex trafficking charges.

Court documents allege that at least 40 underage girls were brought to Epstein’s mansion for sexual encounters.

He was arrested at Teterboro Airport in New Jersey.

FBI agents are also said to have broken down the door to his Manhattan townhouse.

He pleaded not guilty to child sex trafficking charges in New York and faced 45 years in prison if found guilty.

On July 18, a federal judge said that the disgraced financier presented a "danger to the community" and must stay in one of New York's toughest prisons while he awaited his trial over the sex trafficking accusations.

The shamed financier was locked up amid fears he could have fled the country.

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