Jeffrey Epstein’s sealed suicide note revealed for the first time

A handwritten note allegedly penned by disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein has been made public for the first time, years after it was quietly sealed away in court files, offering a chilling glimpse into his state of mind before his death.

The note, revealed after a successful petition by The New York Times, was written following a failed suicide attempt in July 2019, just weeks before Jeffrey died inside a New York jail.

According to the publication, the message is stark, erratic and at times defiant.

“They investigated me for months — FOUND NOTHING!!!” Jeffrey wrote.

In another line, he added: “It is a treat to be able to choose one’s time to say goodbye. Watcha want me to do — Bust out cryin!!”

The note ends abruptly, with the words “NO FUN” underlined, followed by “NOT WORTH IT!!”

© Patrick McMullan

It was discovered after Jeffrey was found in his cell with a strip of cloth around his neck in what was described at the time as an apparent suicide attempt. He survived that incident, but just weeks later, in August 2019, he died by suicide at the Metropolitan Correctional Center. He was 66 and the existence of the note had not been publicly disclosed until now.

Its path into the court system is as complex as the case itself. Jeffrey’s then-cellmate, Nicholas Tartaglione, reportedly found the note tucked inside a graphic novel after Epstein had been moved to a different part of the facility.

© Corbis via Getty Images

Nicholas later handed the document to his legal team after Jeffrey accused him of causing his injuries during the earlier incident, rather than harming himself.

In an interview with The New York Times, Nicholas said the note became part of his own criminal case, passing through multiple legal hands over the years. A chronology of documents within the broader Epstein files confirms its existence and movement, noting that Nicholas’s lawyers authenticated the note, although the exact method used has not been disclosed.

Despite its significance, the note was never referenced in the official investigation into Jeffrey’s death. The decision to make it public followed a request by the newspaper, with U.S. District Judge Kenneth Karas asking all parties involved whether they objected to its release.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Manhattan, which prosecuted Nicholas acknowledged the broader implications, stating there appeared to be “a strong public interest in the circumstances surrounding Epstein’s death.”