A forensic pathologist has claimed that Jeffrey Epstein was likely murdered and did not hang himself because he had burst capillaries in his eyes which is consistent with manual strangulation and not hanging, DailyMail.com can reveal.
In an exclusive clip from a Dr. Oz special set to air on Thursday, pathologist Dr. Michael Baden examines photographs of Epstein’s eyes and other parts of his lifeless body taken during his autopsy.
Dr. Baden was among physicians in the room when Epstein’s autopsy took place.
He says it is highly unusual that the cause of his death went from being undetermined – when it was first ruled – to suicide by hanging five days later.
He said he believes there are many ‘red flags’ which suggest he was murdered and did not kill himself.
Chief among them are the burst capillaries and the fact that the colour in his lower legs was pale and not purple or blueish which, he says, would have likely been the case had he hung himself from his bunk bed as officials say he did.
‘In a hanging, the arteries and the blood vessels, the veins are both clogged off and the person is pale. The face is pale,’ Dr Baden said.
‘It suffocates you, no blood goes up there,’ Dr Oz continued.
Dr. Michael Baden went on: ‘That’s right. No blood coming in or out…. with a manual strangulation, there’s a backup of a pressure and the little capillaries can rupture and they’re best seen in the eye.’
Dr. Baden also revealed why the pale colour of Epstein’s legs raises another question for him.
‘The blood settles after we die. The so-called lividity, if you’re hanging, the lividity is on the lower part on the legs.
‘These would be like maroon/purple, front and back and they aren’t.’
His interpretation of the autopsy backs up claims from Epstein’s estate and conspiracy theorists that he was murdered in August in his cell in the Metropolitan Correctional Center and did not hang himself.
At the time, Epstein was awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. Dozens of women have accused him of trafficking them when they were underage girls and pimping them out to his wealthy and well-known friends.
When he was arrested, questions immediately were raised over who – if anyone – among his network of high profile acquaintances would also be charged.
The FBI continues to investigate case and there have been demands from some of Epstein’s victims for people including Prince Andrew to face questioning over the late pedophile’s decades-long reign of abuse in high society.
Some of the victims say they too think Epstein was murdered or given the opportunity to kill himself by powerful associates who were frightened he would turn on them to try to lower his own prison term.
Dr. Baden says it is ‘very unusual’ how Epstein’s death was ruled.
‘The initial death certificate was issued at the time of the autopsy, it’s pending further study, getting more information.
‘Five days later it was changed to hanging suicide and one of the things the family wishes to know, the estate wishes to know is, what was that additional information that caused them to change it when five months later and the family still doesn’t know what happened to in the first encounter and what happened to him when he was found dead.
‘Is that unusual, that you have a five month gap?’ Dr. Oz asked him.
He replied: ‘It’s very unusual, especially in a prison situation.’
Dr. Baden also examined the ‘noose’ Epstein apparently used to kill himself and said it was inconsistent with his injuries.
‘Doesn’t follow the furrow, number one. Number two, there’s no evidence that there’s any blood or tissue on any of the part of the loop. Most of all, this little area shows a pattern that wouldn’t be made by this smooth surface of the sheet that was torn to make the noose.
‘The problem I think why we’re here today, five months later, is that there’s been a total lack of transparency in what happened to Epstein,’ he said.
On the night he died, Epstein had already once tried to kill himself before and had been moved into suicide watch in the prison.
He was inexplicably removed from suicide watch and put in a cell without a cellmate.
The night he died, prison guards Tova Noel and Michael Thomas failed to complete multiple mandatory checks on him.
They have been charged with falsifying documents for lying about performing the checks.
Prosecutors say they were in fact surfing the internet and napping at their desks.
Dr. Baden’s interview with Dr. Oz will air on Thursday January 16 at 1pm EST across Fox networks.
Story cited here.
