Fresh questions have emerged regarding whether the death of notorious sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was indeed suicide, as a forensic pathologist reviewing his autopsy records has stated that both suicide and homicide remain plausible possibilities.

Epstein’s brother, Mark Epstein, told the media on Friday (October 2) that forensic pathologist Michael Freeman has scientifically reviewed his brother's autopsy files.

Freeman is scheduled to present his research findings at University College London on November 16, after which the study alongside the New York City Chief Medical Examiner's autopsy records will be made public.

Mark Epstein stated that Freeman's analysis reinforces his belief that a deeper investigation into his brother's death was warranted.

He noted that the conclusions drawn in the death certificate have been subjected to a detailed new review, claiming that had such an analysis been conducted earlier, the death might not have been finalized as a suicide.

Mark added that the report was not commissioned by him, and that the researchers undertook the work on their own initiative.

Freeman's review points out several unusual aspects in the investigation into Epstein's death, notably the absence of photographs of Epstein's body at the scene, and the failure to preserve or test the cloth or ligature material used.

Investigators had previously stated that a bedsheet was used to hang Epstein.

Freeman performed a biomechanical analysis of the ligature marks and reviewed photographs showing injury marks that he claims were not accounted for in the medical examiner's report.

Freeman has not yet released his definitive conclusion, stating that either suicide or homicide is true, and his upcoming presentation will weigh the evidence supporting both possibilities.

Freeman is a professor of forensic medicine and editor-in-chief of an international forensic and legal medicine journal, holding academic positions at a U.S. medical university and a medical center in the Netherlands.

He has previously consulted on audits for the Maryland Medical Examiner's Office.

Epstein died in prison in 2019 while facing federal sex trafficking charges involving minors.

The New York medical examiner's office ruled his death a suicide by hanging, though it has long been shrouded in skepticism and controversy.

Interest resurfaced recently following the implementation of a law mandating the release of Department of Justice investigative files regarding Epstein and his associates.

Additionally, a federal judge ordered the release of a potential suicide note written by Epstein less than a month before his death, which was discovered by a former cellmate inside a book.

The emergence of this new forensic analysis has once again thrust the long-standing questions surrounding Epstein's death back into the global spotlight.
Source: CBS News