WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK — A federal judge in White Plains, New York, unsealed an alleged suicide note written by Jeffrey Epstein on Wednesday, making it public for the first time. The note was released after The New York Times published a story detailing its existence and petitioned the court in White Plains to release it.

The unsigned note reads, "They investigated me for months — FOUND NOTHING!!! It is a treat to be able to choose one's time to say goodbye. Watcha want me to do — Bust out cryin!! NO FUN – NOT WORTH IT!!"

Nicholas Tartaglione, Epstein's cellmate at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York City, said he found the note after Epstein unsuccessfully attempted suicide in his cell in July 2019. Tartaglione is a former police officer serving a life sentence for a quadruple murder conviction, which he is appealing.

According to federal records, Epstein told prison officials that Tartaglione had attacked him. Tartaglione passed the note to his legal team as a possible defense against future assault allegations from Epstein. His lawyers enlisted handwriting experts to authenticate the note's author, and the note was later verified as having been written by Epstein within a year, according to the New York Times.

The note had been sealed as part of Tartaglione's appeal case under attorney-client privilege. It remained under seal by a federal judge as part of his ongoing efforts to clear his name on his murder convictions. Epstein was found dead in his cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Center on August 10, 2019, and the New York City medical examiner ruled his death a suicide.