Watch the conspiracy theorists go completely nuts with this one. An alleged suicide note was “found” by Jeffrey Epstein’s cellmate — yes, the ex-cop whom Epstein blamed for the red marks on his neck — and it may soon be unsealed.
In a Thursday report, The New York Times revealed that it had petitioned a judge to make the note public after it was sealed as part of a case against Nicholas Tartaglione, a cellmate who found the document around the time of Epstein’s 2019 death.
Months before his death, Epstein had blamed Tartaglione, a former police officer, for red marks found on his neck. However, Epstein told prison officials that he had “never had any issues” with his cellmate just a week after the incident.
Following the alleged assault, Epstein was moved from Tartaglione’s cell and placed on suicide watch for a brief time. Around that time, the former police officer said he found the note in a graphic novel.
“I opened the book to read, and there it was,” Tartaglione told the Times in a recent interview from a California federal prison. He recalled Epstein’s alleged writing: “What do you want me to do, bust out crying? Time to say goodbye.”
The note is not contained in files released by the Justice Department earlier this year, but a two-page chronology explains what happened to it. Because Epstein had accused Tartaglione of assault, he passed the note along to his attorneys in case more allegations arose. According to the chronology, the document was not authenticated until late 2019 or early 2020.
“My lawyers at the time wanted to make sure, you know, I didn’t write it,” Tartaglione explained to podcaster Jessica Reed Kraus in 2025.
Judge Kenneth M. Karas later ordered that the note be turned over to the court. A dispute between Tartaglione’s attorneys prompted the judge to seal the note.
Clearly the note is an object of dispute. What is still undisputed is the testimony of Epstein’s victims. The contents of the note aren’t going to change their case one way or the other.
