Epstein suicide note unsealed: “NO FUN, NOT WORTH IT.” Judge releases cellmate’s discovery. A federal judge has released an Epstein suicide note that had been sealed for years. Epstein’s cellmate says he found it after Epstein tried to kill himself in July 2019. The note starts with the line “They investigated me for months and found nothing!!!” and says that the charges were made a long time ago. It also says, “It’s nice to be able to choose when to say goodbye,” and then it says, “What do you want me to do? Cry!”
Key facts about the Epstein suicide note – from the article
- Note text: “They investigated me for months — FOUND NOTHING!!!” … “It is a treat to be able to choose one’s time to say goodbye” … “Watcha want me to do — Bust out cryin!!” … “NO FUN” (underlined) … “NOT WORTH IT!!”
- Discoverer: Epstein’s cellmate, Nicholas Tartaglione (former police officer, convicted of quadruple murder).
- When found: July 2019, after Epstein was found unresponsive with a cloth around his neck. Epstein survived that incident but died weeks later at age 66.
- Released by: Judge Kenneth M. Karas of Federal District Court in White Plains, N.Y., after a petition from The New York Times.
- Authenticity: The Times has not authenticated the note. Justice Department said it had never seen it.
- How found: Tartaglione said the note was on yellow paper torn from a legal pad, hidden inside a graphic novel.
The last thing the message says is “NO FUN” (underlined) and “NOT WORTH IT!!” Judge Kenneth M. Karas of Federal District Court in White Plains, N.Y., who was in charge of the criminal case against Epstein’s cellmate, Nicholas Tartaglione, made the note public on Wednesday.
What the Epstein suicide note really says inside
Timeline of the Epstein suicide note – from discovery to release
July 2019 (early): Epstein found unresponsive with cloth around neck – survives. Tartaglione finds note in graphic novel.
July 2019 (later): Epstein first blames Tartaglione, later says “never had any issues.”
August 2019: Epstein found dead at MCC, age 66. Ruled suicide by medical examiner.
2023: Tartaglione convicted of quadruple murder, sentenced to four life terms. Note sealed in his case.
Last Thursday: The New York Times petitions court to unseal the note.
Wednesday (current): Judge Kenneth M. Karas releases the note to the public.
The note that Epstein left behind is very emotional and raw. Epstein said that investigators had found nothing against him, but the charges still went back many years. He then said that he felt in charge of his own death: “It’s a treat to be able to choose when to say goodbye.” The note also has a defiant line that says, “Watcha want me to do—Bust out cryin!!” and ends with the words “NO FUN” and “NOT WORTH IT!!” underlined.
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Tartaglione, who shared a cell with Epstein at the now-closed Metropolitan Correctional Center in Lower Manhattan, said he found the note in July 2019. Epstein was found with a strip of cloth around his neck and not responding. He made it through that, but he died weeks later at the age of 66.
The medical examiner said he killed himself, but some people think he was murdered because of security problems.
How the Epstein suicide note was found and why it stayed hidden
In phone interviews from a California prison, Tartaglione told The New York Times that he found the Epstein suicide note in a graphic novel. He said, “I opened the book to read and there it was.” The note was written on a piece of yellow paper that had been torn out of a legal pad. He gave it to his lawyers because he thought it could help him if Epstein kept saying that Tartaglione had attacked him.
Exact words from the Epstein suicide note
“They investigated me for months — FOUND NOTHING!!!”
“It is a treat to be able to choose one’s time to say goodbye”
“Watcha want me to do — Bust out cryin!!”
“NO FUN” (underlined) “NOT WORTH IT!!”
After the July incident, Epstein first said that Tartaglione attacked him, but later said that he “never had any problems” with his cellmate. Tartaglione has always said he didn’t hurt Epstein.
For years, the note was kept secret as part of a legal fight between Tartaglione’s lawyers. The note wasn’t included when the Justice Department released millions of pages of Epstein documents. A spokesperson for the Justice Department said the agency had never seen it.
The Times asked the court to open the document, and Judge Karas did so after the U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan did not object. Prosecutors said, “There seems to be a lot of public interest in the events leading up to Epstein’s death.”
The Epstein suicide note remains unauthenticated
The New York Times has not verified that Epstein wrote the note. The Justice Department says it never saw the document. Tartaglione’s lawyers authenticated it, but no explanation was given. The public can now read the words, but the mystery of authenticity continues.
