Jeffrey Epstein may have tried to kill himself in prison more times than previously known before he was found unresponsive in his jail cell while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges in 2019.The wealthy and well-connected sex offender tried to kill himself by hanging at least two other times before a previously reported failed attempt, according to a cellmate interviewed by The New York Times for a sprawling investigation into Epstein’s final days inside New York’s Metropolitan Correctional Center.After a judge denied Epstein’s bail after roughly two weeks in custody, he reportedly asked his cellmate Nicholas Tartaglione, “How do you make a noose?”Tartaglione said he had discovered Epstein preparing for suicide two other times, including trying to tie a sheet to a grate above a cell window and discovering a noose under his mattress.Four days after he was denied bail, on July 22, 2019, Epstein wrote “J’ACCUSE” on a sheet of paper. Hours later, at 1:27 a.m., prison guards heard the sound of loud banging coming from his cell, where they discovered Epstein lying motionless on the floor with orange fabric shaped into a noose hanging loosely around his neck.He was found dead days later on August 10, leaving behind a previously reported note revealed in court documents reading “They investigated me for month[s] — FOUND NOTHING!!!” “It is a treat to be able to choose one’s time to say goodbye,” the note reads. “Watcha want me to do — Bust out cryin!!”He underlined the words “NO FUN” and added “NOT WORTH IT!!”He had also written other despairing notes inside the jail, including “ONLY PAIN TO ME & Others in the future” and wondering “Why should people I Lov suffer for my problem.”In his recollection of the July 22 incident, Tartaglione said he was sleeping with his mattress on the floor and wearing headphones when he felt a bump against his legs. Epstein, he said, was seated with his back against their bunk bed, with a noose around him. Tartaglione, a former police officer convicted of leading a murder plot, then cut him down with a razor and began chest compressions, he told The New York Times.When guards arrived moments later, Epstein was still breathing but unresponsive. He was handcuffed and placed on a stretcher, then carried to an observation cell near the jail psychologist’s office, where he remained the rest of the night. Officers fitted him with a rip-proof, anti-suicide smock.If you are based in the U.S., and you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call or text 988 or visit 988lifeline.org to access online chat from the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. This is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If you are in another country, you can go to www.befrienders.org to find a helpline near you. In the UK, people having mental health crises can contact the Samaritans at 116 123 or jo@samaritans.orgThis is a developing story