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New Delhi: A note seemingly a suicide letter written by Jeffrey Epstein, which had remained sealed in a criminal court file for years, has now been made public. The note gives the first direct glimpse into the financier’s frame of mind before his death at a New York federal jail in August 2019.

On Wednesday, the note was released by Judge Kenneth M. Karas of the Federal District Court in White Plains, New York. It was written on a piece of yellow legal pad paper and recovered by Epstein’s then-cellmate, Nicholas Tartaglione.

The note highlights the federal probe against him. It reads: “They investigated me for month, FOUND NOTHING!!!” The note then referred to allegations and charges that dated back several years.

After this, the note takes a philosophical turn. “It is a treat to be able to choose one’s time to say goodbye.” It concludes with two underlined phrases: “NO FUN. NOT WORTH IT!!”

The blunt and colloquial tone of the note matches Epstein’s known written communication style. The New York Times, which asked the court to unseal the document, reported that the note repeats phrases, including “bust out cryin” and “No fun,” that Epstein had used in emails and in another note discovered in his jail cell at the time of his death. But, the NYT has not independently authenticated the note.

Nicholas Tartaglione, a former police officer from Briarcliff Manor, was sharing a jail cell with Epstein while awaiting trial on quadruple murder charges when Epstein was found unconscious in July 2019 with a strip of cloth wrapped around his neck. Epstein survived the incident.

Tartaglione told the Times in phone interviews from a California jail that he discovered the note tucked inside a graphic novel after Epstein was removed from their cell. “I opened the book to read and there it was,” he said.

He handed over the note to his lawyers, thinking that it could be useful if Epstein continued to allege that Tartaglione had attacked him. Initially, Epstein had said that Tartaglione had attacked him following the July incident, a claim Tartaglione denied. Later, Epstein told jail officials he “never had any issues” with his cellmate.

In May 2021, the original copy of the note was given to the court, almost two years after Epstein’s death, as per a letter unsealed alongside the note on Wednesday. It had continued to be sealed as part of a legal dispute among Tartaglione’s lawyers, protected under attorney-client privilege.

Epstein was found dead on August 10, 2019, at the Metropolitan Correctional Center, which has since been shut down. He was 66 at the time of his death.