Previously unseen photographs showing Jeffrey Epstein’s body on a stretcher and being attended to by medics shortly after his death have been released by the US government.
The images are part of a declassified FBI report into Epstein’s death in custody, alongside a post-mortem report and internal prison documents. Twenty images were published, many of them graphic in nature, as part of a wider release of millions of documents by the US Department of Justice.
Epstein was found dead in his cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York on 10 August 2019, where he was being held on sex trafficking and conspiracy charges while awaiting trial.
The newly released FBI report, titled Jeffrey Epstein Death Investigation, appears to detail an inquiry conducted by the agency’s New York field office. The 23-page document is marked “unclassified” on each page.
The unredacted files include close-up images of Epstein’s neck showing visible injuries, details from his post-mortem examination, and a psychological assessment of his mental health in the days leading up to his death.
Several of the photographs show Epstein lying on a stretcher while medics attempt to resuscitate him. They are timestamped 06:49 local time on 10 August 2019, approximately 16 minutes after he was found unresponsive in his cell. Although the precise location is unclear, Epstein was transported to a nearby hospital at 06:39 and pronounced dead there, suggesting the images were taken at the hospital.
Three additional photographs appear to have been taken in a hospital setting and show close-up views of his head and a visible injury to his neck. Epstein’s name appears on each image, though some spell his first name incorrectly as “Jeffery”.
Reverse image searches did not identify any earlier online publication of the photographs prior to 30 January. Other materials released in the files include an 89-page post-mortem report prepared by the Department of Justice and New York’s Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, as well as emails from the FBI’s New York field office containing the same images in redacted form.
The post-mortem report documents fractures to Epstein’s thyroid cartilage in his neck.
The FBI report also includes a six-page timeline detailing Epstein’s detention from his arrest on federal sex trafficking charges on 6 July 2019 until his death. It states that Epstein was placed on suicide watch after an incident on 23 July, when he attempted to harm himself. At the time, Epstein accused his cellmate, Nicholas Tartaglione, a former police officer facing murder charges, of attempting to kill him.
According to the psychological report, Epstein told a psychologist the following day that he had “no interest in killing myself” and said it “would be crazy” to take his own life. On 25 July, he reportedly said he was “too vested in my case to fight it” and that he wanted to return to living his life.
Additional documents show that the prison warden had advised that Epstein should not be housed alone and stressed the need for 30-minute checks on his cell, as well as unannounced rounds.
Epstein’s cellmate was released the day before his death. On the night of 9 August, prison guards failed to carry out scheduled checks at 03:00 and 05:00, and the camera system in the unit was not functioning, according to prison records. His body was discovered during a routine morning check.
A second version of the FBI report, reduced to 17 pages and heavily redacted, was also included in the document release. This version excludes the psychological report, the detention timeline, and the images. It is unclear why both versions were published.
The Department of Justice has been contacted for comment. The FBI declined to comment.
