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Disgraced American billionaire and political insider Jeffrey Epstein was reported dead on Saturday morning from an apparent suicide in a New York City jail.
The New York Times reports:
Mr. Epstein hanged himself and his body was found this morning at Metropolitan Correctional Center in Manhattan at roughly 7:30.
Manhattan federal prosecutors last month charged Mr. Epstein, 66, with sex trafficking of girls as young as 14, and details of his behavior have been emerging for years.
Mr. Epstein, a financier with opulent homes, a private jet and access to elite circles, had been dogged for decades by accusations that he had paid dozens of girls for sexual acts in Florida.
According to ABC News:
WATCH: ABC News Special Report: Disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein committed suicide overnight in his Lower Manhattan jail cell where he had been held pending trial on federal sex trafficking charges, three law enforcement officials told @ABC News. https://t.co/62ck8x1HNG pic.twitter.com/Ugd5VZjHZj
— ABC News (@ABC) August 10, 2019
On Friday, as Common Dreams reported, a trove of legal documents were unsealed as part of a pending legal case against Epstein—a convicted sex offender who has also been accused of running a sophisticated sex trafficking operation of young girls that involved wealthy and powerful men.