Just hours after high-profile financier Jeffrey Epstein was found dead in his New York jail cell on Saturday, unsubstantiated theories about his death began gaining traction online. Prison officials said he killed himself while awaiting trial on sex trafficking and conspiracy charges, to which he had pleaded not guilty.
The 66-year-old was known for his connections to powerful figures, including President Donald Trump, former President Bill Clinton, and the UK's Prince Andrew. These associations have fuelled conspiracy theories and misinformation, with many rumours centring on what politicians may have known about Epstein's alleged crimes and whether some may have wanted him dead. There is absolutely no evidence to support these claims.
The hashtag #EpsteinMurder trended worldwide on Saturday, and joke images and memes suggesting everything from a faked suicide to an orchestrated hit-job were shared thousands of times. Politicians and high-profile journalists also stoked speculation. New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said it was 'way too convenient' that Epstein could no longer incriminate others, while President Trump's personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani questioned how Epstein could have died while on suicide watch.
However, prison officials later confirmed Epstein had been taken off suicide watch prior to his death. Valid questions remain about why this decision was made and why he was not being checked every 30 minutes, but these do not require outlandish conspiracy theories.
Perhaps the most far-fetched theories were linked to the hashtags #ClintonBodyCount and #TrumpBodyCount, used by conservatives and liberals respectively to suggest involvement by the Clintons or Mr Trump. No evidence supports these claims, and the Clinton theory has been debunked by fact-checking website Snopes. 'There is no evidence whatsoever to suggest an outside person ordered Epstein's death,' wrote Dylan Matthews in Vox.
