The New York prison guards who were on duty when Jeffrey Epstein died could face criminal charges from the Justice Department after they turned down a plea deal.
People familiar with the matter told the Associated Press on Saturday that the two guards responsible for monitoring Epstein had declined the deal from federal prosecutors.
The offer of a deal was a signal from the Justice Department that it may pursue criminal charges against the guards. As part of the deal, prosecutors wanted the guards to admit they had forged records, as it was believed they were not performing the proper routine checks on Epstein.
The convicted sex offender was placed on suicide watch after he was found with bruises around his neck in his prison cell in July. Epstein then died on Aug. 10, and the New York medical examiner ruled his death as a suicide. The DOJ later admitted he had been allowed off suicide watch before he died.
The head of the Federal Bureau of Prisons is set to testify in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday. Sen. Ben Sasse, a member of the committee, sent a letter to the director this week, telling her he expects “substantial answers” on the circumstances surrounding Epstein’s death.
“To pretend like this issue, which is by far the public’s top concern with your agency, won’t be a significant focus of attention at this hearing is naïve — to the point of being laughable,” the Nebraska Republican wrote.
