Wealthy financier Jeffrey Epstein has been taken to hospital after he was found semi-conscious in his prison cell, US media report.<\/p>\n
The 66-year-old, who is awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges, was reportedly found sprawled on the floor with injuries to his neck on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Epstein has pleaded not guilty to sex trafficking and conspiracy charges.<\/p>\n
He is being held at New York’s Metropolitan Correctional Center after he was denied bail last week.<\/p>\n
It is unclear how Epstein suffered the injuries and investigators are working to establish what happened. A suicide attempt or an assault have not been ruled out, according to unnamed sources quoted by NBC News.<\/p>\n
He was taken to a nearby hospital in Manhattan but his condition has not been made public.<\/p>\n
According to the indictment, the financier paid girls under the age of 18 to perform sex acts at his Manhattan and Florida mansions between 2002 and 2005.<\/p>\n
Epstein, who was arrested on 6 July after landing in New Jersey on his private jet, avoided similar charges in a controversial secret plea deal in 2008, and instead pleaded guilty to a lesser charge.<\/p>\n
That plea deal has come under increasing scrutiny and, earlier this month,\u00a0US Labour Secretary Alex Acosta resigned over his role in it.<\/a><\/p>\n Prosecutors also accuse Epstein of paying large amounts of money to two potential witnesses during the forthcoming trial.<\/p>\n He has pleaded not guilty to all the charges. If convicted, he faces up to 45 years in prison.<\/p>\n He was denied bail last Thursday\u00a0<\/a>but his lawyers have appealed against the decision.<\/p>\n New York-born Epstein worked as a teacher before moving into finance.<\/p>\n Prior to the criminal cases against him, he was best known for his wealth and high-profile connections.<\/p>\n He has long been surrounded by the rich and powerful, including President Donald Trump, former President Bill Clinton and the UK’s Prince Andrew.<\/p>\n In a 2002 profile in New York Magazine,\u00a0Mr Trump referred to Epstein as a “terrific guy”<\/a>.<\/p>\n “He’s a lot of fun to be with,” he said. “It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side.”<\/p>\n However, Mr Trump has said the pair fell out “12 or 15 years ago” and reiterated on Friday that he was “not a fan of Jeffrey Epstein”.<\/p>\n Reports of Epstein’s current wealth vary, with his Virgin Islands-based firm generating no public records.<\/p>\n Source: bbc.co.uk<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Who is Jeffrey Epstein?<\/h2>\n