New Reports Say Federal Charges Coming Soon For Epstein’s Prison Guards After Plea Deal Rejected

Here are more details on the new story, from CNN:

At least one federal prison worker on duty the night before Jeffrey Epstein was found deadin his prison cell was offered a plea deal in connection with the multimillionaire's death, two sources familiar with the case said. 

Plea deal negotiations between prosecutors and attorneys indicate forthcoming charges by the Department of Justice relating to Epstein's death.

Epstein, 66, was in a lone cell in the special housing unit of the federal Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York when he was found dead in August. 

At the time, The New York Times reported that the two prison staff members who'd been guarding the unit where Epstein died by apparent suicide failed to check on him that night for about three hours. 

Guards are supposed to check on detainees in the special housingunit every 30 minutes, a source with knowledge of Epstein's time at the prison previously told CNN.

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Epstein was awaiting trial on federal charges accusing him of operating a sex trafficking ring from 2002 to 2005 at his Manhattan mansion and his Palm Beach estate. As part of the ring, he allegedly paid girls as young as 14 for sex. He'd pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Of the two officers who had the responsibility to monitor Epstein, one was not a detention guard but was temporarily reassigned to that post, according to a person briefed on the matter. The guard, a man not identified by officials, had previously been trained as a corrections officer but had moved to another position.

Rules at the Federal Bureau of Prisons allow people who work in other prison jobs, such as teachers and cooks, to be trained to fill in for posts usually manned by regular guards.

And from CBS:

Federal prosecutors in New York are considering bringing criminal charges against two correctional officers responsible for guarding Jeffrey Epstein on the night of his death, a source familiar with the investigation told CBS News. Epstein, who was 66 at the time of his death, was found unresponsive in his cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York City on August 10.

Prosecutors offered the officers the opportunity to plead guilty to the charges, but the officers declined the offer, the source added. The source said it was not a plea deal.  

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The medical examiner's office ruled Epstein's death a suicide by hanging on August 16. But that didn't stop conspiracy theories about his death, or questions about how such a high-profile prisoner could have died on the correctional center's watch. 

Epstein, who had been charged with sexually abusing a number of underage girls, had been placed on suicide watch the month before his death after he was found on his cell floor with bruising on his neck. But multiple sources said that Epstein had been taken off suicide watch after about a week, and placed into a high-security housing unit where he was supposed to be checked on every 30 minutes.