Multimillionaire financier Jeffrey Epstein has been found dead in New York, as confirmed in an official statement by the US government and various news outlets. 

The statement from the U.S. Department of Justice reads: “Saturday, August 10, 2019, at approximately 6.30am, inmate Jeffrey Edward Epstein was found unresponsive in his cell … subsequently pronounced dead by hospital staff.” It also states that he died by “apparant suicide”.

His body was found while awaiting trial on charges that he sex trafficked underage girls. Epstein had pleaded not guilty to sex trafficking and conspiracy charges and was being held after he was denied bail.

Photos published by the New York Post also show a man fitting Epstein’s description being wheeled into an ambulance at the Manhattan Correctional Center. 

His death comes a day after hundreds of pages of court documents were released, revealing fresh allegations against him and some of his associates.

To recap the case: Epstein was accused of paying girls under the age of 18 to perform sex acts at his Manhattan and Florida mansions between 2002 and 2005. 

His friends included President Donald Trump, Prince Andrew and former President Bill Clinton. 

“I’ve known Jeff for fifteen years. Terrific guy,” Trump told New York magazine in 2002. “He’s a lot of fun to be with. It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side. No doubt about it – Jeffrey enjoys his social life.”

You can read Stylist’s full report on the case here. 

Image: Getty