Jeffrey Epstein Reportedly Placed on Suicide Watch After Being Found Injured in Jail Cell

Jeffrey Epstein appears in a photograph taken for the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services' sex offender registry March 28, 2017, and obtained by Reuters July 10, 2019. New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services/Handout via Reuters

Convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has been placed on suicide watch after he was found injured in his jail cell on July 24, according to a report.

A law enforcement source briefed on Epstein’s situation told ABC that the 66-year-old was found injured in his jail cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in the Manhattan borough of New York City.

Epstein is being held as he awaits trial for sex trafficking charges.

Epstein was found with marks on his neck indicating he'd done the damage himself, the source said.

After a medical evaluation, Epstein was placed on suicide watch.

A protest group called "Hot Mess" hold up signs of Jeffrey Epstein in front of the Federal courthouse in the Manhattan borough of New York City on July 8, 2019. Stephanie Keith/Getty Images

The Bureau of Prisons, which oversees the center, is probing what happened and officials consider it a possible suicide attempt, the source told ABC.

“Jeffrey Epstein is currently housed at MCC New York and not in a local hospital as has been reported,” the Bureau of Prisons said in a statement on July 25. “As with all inmates, for privacy and security reasons, we do not share information on an inmate’s medical status or their conditions of confinement.”

Epstein was arrested on July 6 after landing in New Jersey on a flight from Paris.

Charges unveiled two days later accused him of sex trafficking for at least three years, starting in 2002, at his mansion in New York City and his property in Palm Beach, Florida.

Prosecutors said Epstein “caused to be enticed and recruited minor girls to visit“ his properties ”to engage in sex acts with him, after which he would give the victims hundreds of dollars in cash.”

A residence of financier Jeffrey Epstein is shown in Palm Beach, Fla., on March 14, 2014. Joe Skipper/File Photo via Reuters

“Moreover, and in order to maintain and increase his supply of victims, Epstein also paid certain of his victims to recruit additional girls to be similarly abused,” authorities wrote in an indictment. “In this way, Epstein created a vast network of underage victims for him to sexually exploit in locations including New York and Palm Beach.”

Many of the girls were minors—some as young as 14—and Epstein was aware of their ages, according to authorities.

Search warrants executed on his mansion uncovered nude photographs that appeared to be of girls who were under 18, according to Geoffrey Berman, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

“The alleged behavior shocks the conscience,” Berman said, noting that the alleged crimes were committed a number of years ago but saying the victims are still affected by what happened. “We are proud to be standing up for them by unveiling this indictment,” he added.

A federal judge on July 18 ordered that Epstein be held on bail, saying he presented a danger to others and was a flight risk.

“The government has established a danger to others and the community by clear and convincing evidence,” said U.S. District Judge Richard Berman.

Berman said the “heart” of his decision was based on Epstein being a danger to the community, as well as a flight risk. He also cited the short testimony from two alleged victims at the previous hearing, who urged Berman not to release Epstein.

One of the victims, Annie Farmer, made her case in a trembling voice on July 15. Farmer said Epstein was “inappropriate” with her when she was 16 years old. She argued that Epstein posed an “extraordinary risk of flight” and that he was dangerous.

The other victim, Courtney Wild, told Berman she was sexually abused by Epstein when she was 14 years old in Palm Beach. “He’s a scary person,” Wild said, adding that he shouldn’t be allowed to walk freely on the streets.

Boxen Xiao contributed to this report.

From NTD News