Purported Jeffrey Epstein suicide note being kept hidden by court: report

Purported Jeffrey Epstein suicide note being kept hidden by court: report

Jeffrey Epstein's former cellmate claims the paedophile financier wrote a suicide note, which has been kept secret by a court, the New York Times claims.

Fellow inmate at Metropolitan Correctional Centre Nicholas Tartaglione said he found the note within the pages of a graphic novel.

The piece of yellow paper ripped from a legal pad read: "What do you want me to do, bust out crying? Time to say goodbye."

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Jeffrey Epstein died at the Manhattan Correctional Centre, a jail in downtown New York.

When Tartaglione said he found the note after Epstein had been found dead in another cell.

Weeks earlier, Epstein had denied a previous suicide attempt and told staff at the jail that marks on his neck were from Tartaglione attacking him.

Epstein was moved into another cell by himself, where he was found dead.

Tartaglione purportedly told his lawyer about the note after Epstein's death.

That lawyer then later purportedly handed it in to a federal district courthouse north of New York City.

The New York Times reports the note is in the hands of the court and has petitioned to have it released.

It was not included in the as-yet-released Epstein files and has not been mentioned in formal investigations of his death.

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Nicholas Tartaglione is serving life behind bars.

Epstein's suicide has been the subject of much conjecture and suspicion.

Tartaglione, a former police officer, is serving four life sentences after being convicted of killing four people.

He has repeatedly denied causing any harm to Epstein. 

He has been cleared of any involvement in Epstein's death.

The Metropolitan Correctional Centre was closed two years later.

Epstein had been indicted on charges of sex trafficking minors at the time of his death.

The Trump administration has come under fire after only releasing a fraction of the files connected with the Department of Justice's investigation of Epstein.

Under a law passed earlier, they are required to release every file.

Epstein's accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for sex trafficking as well as conspiring with Epstein to abuse underage girls. 

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Jeffrey Epstein is seen in this image released by the Department of Justice on December 19.

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Surveillance footage shows gunman charging through officers

Surveillance footage shows gunman charging through officers

New surveillance camera footage has been released showing the White House Correspondents' Dinner gunman charging through security.

The footage, released by the US Attorney's Office in the District of Columbia, shows Cole Allen barge through the security checkpoint at the Washington Hilton Hotel.

With most of the guests already in the ballroom, officers are midway through packing up one of the metal detectors at the time of the major breach.

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The gunman had run through the metal detector before most officers had noticed.

The video shows Allen running past a group of officers while he holds a shotgun.

It shows one police officer firing their gun three times at point-blank range as Allen runs past.

Other agents are standing behind Allen when the officer fires unsuccessfully at him, but it does not appear any of them are struck.

The footage is released as the government is facing questions as to how a Secret Service agent was injured in the shooting.

The agent was taken to hospital after being apparently struck with a bullet while wearing a bullet-proof vest.

"There is no evidence the shooting was the result of friendly fire," US Attorney Jeanine Pirro said.

"My office along with the FBI will continue this extensive investigation to bring Cole Allen to justice."

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This still shows an officer firing their gun at the suspect.

Allen's lawyers have questioned whether their client actually fired his shotgun during the security breach.

They told a Washington court that there is no visible muzzle flash coming from Allen's gun.

Prosecutors told the court they had found what appeared to be a buckshot pellet at the scene.

Such a pellet would indicate Allen did fire his shotgun.

A typical 12-gauge shotgun shell will contain about nine pellets, which resemble ball bearings.

But Allen has not been charged with shooting the officer, but still faces life behind bars on other charges.

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An officer (bottom left) fires at Allen as a Secret Service agent stands behind him.

Speaking today, President Donald Trump backed Pirro, a former Fox News host appointed to the high-profile position by him.

"They said it wasn't friendly fire, it wasn't us," Trump said.

He brushed off suggestions he start wearing a bulletproof vest.

"I don't know if I can handle being 20 pounds heavier," he said.

Other footage released this morning shows Allen walking down a hallway at the hotel and looking around the gym.

Pirro said the video indicated Allen was "casing the area" the day before the breach.

Allen did not seek to be released on bail while appearing in court today.

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Brothel targeted in latest attack on Melbourne hospitality venue

Brothel targeted in latest attack on Melbourne hospitality venue

A brothel in Melbourne's south has become the latest hospitality venue in the city to come under attack, with police investigating whether it is linked to dozens of firebombings or shootings in recent months.

Police were called to Gotham City on Clarke Street in South Melbourne just before 2am after it was reported shots were fired towards the establishment.

The shots were fired from a moving car, and the offenders fled the scene in it.

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The shots were fired just before 2am this morning at the brothel in South Melbourne.

It is not known how many people fired shots, or what the car looked like.

No one on the street or inside the venue was injured, with bullets hitting a parked car and a roller door.

Police remained at the scene this morning and are working to see if the shooting is linked to several attacks on hospitality venues in Melbourne recently.

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Police remained on scene this morning, and are looking to establish if the shooting is linked to dozens of attacks on Melbourne hospitality venues in recent months.

It is believed officers part of Operation Eclipse, set up to look at attacks on hospitality venues, is investigating the shooting.

It is believed the recent rise in attacks is linked to the sale of illicit alcohol.

Police have established a crime scene, and urge anyone with information or footage of the shooting to contact Crime Stoppers.

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'Send our baby back': Family of missing Sharon Granites appeal for her safe return

'Send our baby back': Family of missing Sharon Granites appeal for her safe return

The family of a missing five-year-old girl in the Northern Territory have made a heartfelt appeal to her suspected abductor for her safe return as the search to find her enters day five.

Sharon Granites has been missing since Saturday night, when she was put to bed some time before 11pm at a house in the Old Timers Camp where she and her mother had been visiting.

Warning: This story contains details and content that some readers may find distressing.

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She was last seen nearby holding hands with Jefferson Lewis at 11.30pm with police yesterday confirming they believe he led the little girl away from the camp.

Sharon's grandfather Robin told The Sydney Morning Herald the family were praying for her safe return, and appealed for Australians to keep their missing child in their hearts.

"There was nothing I could do – just cry," he said.

"She was a really nice, little, good, quiet girl."

Robin said he discovered his granddaughter was missing while watching the Anzac Day memorial nearby.

"I heard it was my granddaughter who was being snatched up and [had been] taken off by a man from prison," he said.

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Lewis had been released from jail just six days before Sharon went missing, charged for violent offences including assault and domestic violence.

Police found the items of clothing on the riverbank at the back of the Old Timers Camp where Sharon was last seen on Sunday, but have only just revealed their findings.

Northern Territory Assistant Police Commissioner Peter Malley said the shirt found by police is Lewis' "distinctive" yellow and black shirt captured on police bodycam footage when officers visited the Old Timers Camp earlier on Saturday for an unrelated mental health call out.

A doona cover was also found alongside the shirt and children's underwear.

Robin appealed through the media for Lewis to "listen" to him.

"I want you to send that baby back. She is our baby. It's our kid … she is just too small. Please, can you bring her back? We want to be back safe."

He appealed for anyone who spotted the pair to contact him or police as soon as possible.

Robin also said Sharon had trouble communicating at times.

"She didn't have really have a voice … she's just been using a hand signal," he said. 

Local MP and Northern Territory Legislative Assembly Speaker Robyn Lambley told Today this morning the whole community had been mobilised in the search.

"We have all been out there looking for her ... the whole town is all about finding her."

She said the small community of Old Timers Camp was a "notoriously hard place to live".

The widening manhunt has also reached interstate, with Western Australian police contacting Lewis' wife and children in Bolga, who police say are cooperating with authorities.

Support is available from the National Sexual Assault, Domestic and Family Violence Counselling Service at 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732)

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This AI tool is coming to a doctors' office near you. It claims it will fix the most common GP gripe

This AI tool is coming to a doctors' office near you. It claims it will fix the most common GP gripe

A new AI tool that could slash GP wait times could be coming to a doctors' office near you, but is it just a more powerful version of 'Dr Google'?

Not quite, according to Dr Michael Wright, President of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP).

Australian GPs have been relying on search engines to stay across the latest medical information for years and clinical AI platforms are just the latest tools in their arsenal.

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People sit in doctor's waiting room. One woman looks a medical brochure and a man uses his smart phone to make a call.

"GPs, like everyone else, are really having a close look at AI and trying to work out where it can help us be more efficient, get better information and provide better care," he told nine.com.au.

"But it's certainly not something that anyone should feel like is being forced upon them."

Have you got a story? Contact reporter Maddison Leach at mleach@nine.com.au

About 40 per cent of Aussie GPs are already using AI scribe tools to streamline consultations and thousands will soon have access to new AI platform MedLuma.

GP Dr Stephen Barnett, Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Wollongong, co-founded the AI tool he says will help GPs access the latest medical information quickly and easily.

It pulls from Australian clinical guidelines, peer-reviewed evidence, RACGP-approved content and relevant international literature to respond to GP queries.

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"Some of my doctors in my practice, they've got nine or 10 tabs open trying to search across a whole bunch of different sites, medical guidelines and articles," Barnett told nine.com.au.

"But if you can synthesize those quickly, that helps."

And with a million new articles published in the medical literature every year, it's become impossible for GPs to stay up to date on their own.

MedLuma is set to be rolled out to about 40,000 GP desktops in August, with a broader rollout to follow.

Barnett hopes it will help overworked GPs by speeding up searches and streamlining patient consults.

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The new clinical AI platform is set to roll out across about 40,000 GP desktops later this year.

Some patients are already using general AI tools like ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini to answer medical queries (with varying success).

But not all Aussies are on board with bringing AI into their medical appointments.

Some are vehemently anti-AI, citing data privacy and environmental concerns.

They have reason to be cautious, especially given how often AI tools hallucinate and confidently spit out false information.

MedLuma says it has human clinical validators to check its information and built-in programs to protect patients' data privacy, but not all AI tools are suitable for clinical use.

Wright said patients can speak to their GP or practice manager if they have any concerns about AI use in their appointments.

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But he also said clinical AI tools like MedLuma will only become more common.

The RACGP, Australian Digital Health Agency and medical insurers are all in the process of developing guidelines to govern how GPs use these AI tools.

"What we really want to make sure is that we use these tools, but we do so safely and with patient care at the centre of it," Wright said.

How the general public will respond to an uptick in AI use at their local medical practice is still to be seen.

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Ex-FBI chief indicted over seashell photo that officials say threatened Trump

Ex-FBI chief indicted over seashell photo that officials say threatened Trump

Former FBI director James Comey has been charged by a federal grand jury after being accused of posting a photo of seashells on social media that made threats to harm US President Donald Trump.

Comey, who served as FBI chief from 2013 to 2017, when he was fired during President Trump's first term, is accused of intentionally posting a photo on Instagram of seashells depicting the numbers "86 47".

The now-deleted post from May last year, which was captioned "cool shell formation on my beach walk", is alleged to be a threat against the life of President Trump.

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At issue is an Instagram post from Thursday in which Comey wrote "cool shell formation on my beach walk" under a picture of seashells that appeared to form the shapes for "86 47."

Merriam-Webster, the dictionary used by The Associated Press, says 86 is slang meaning "to throw out," "to get rid of" or "to refuse service to."

It notes: "Among the most recent senses adopted is a logical extension of the previous ones, with the meaning of 'to kill.' We do not enter this sense, due to its relative recency and sparseness of use."

Comey insisted he meant no harm towards Trump, but the indictment against him alleges otherwise.

"A reasonable recipient who is familiar with the circumstances would interpret [the post] as a serious expression of an intent to do harm to the President of the United States," a Department of Justice statement said.

Comey has been charged with threatening the president, and transmitting a threat in interstate commerce.

If found guilty, he could face up to 10 years' imprisonment.

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FILE - Former FBI director James Comey gestures while speaking at Harvard University's Institute of Politics' JFK Jr. Forum in Cambridge, Mass., Feb. 24, 2020. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)

"Threatening the life of the President of the United States is a grave violation of our nation's laws," Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said. 

"The grand jury returned an indictment alleging James Comey did just that, at a time when this country has witnessed violent incitement followed by deadly actions against President Trump and other elected officials," he added, referencing the shooting at a White House ball allegedly targeting President Trump last weekend.

Kash Patel, current FBI director and a Trump ally, insisted Comey's post was "disgraceful".

"As the former Director of the FBI, he knew full well the attention and consequences of making such a post," Patel claimed.

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Comey denied the claims when deleting the post last year, writing, "I didn't realise some folks associate those numbers with violence" and "I oppose violence of any kind so I took the post down."

The criminal case is the second in a matter of months against Comey and is part of the Trump administration Justice Department's relentless effort to prosecute political opponents of the Republican president.

The fact that the Justice Department pursued a new case against the ex-FBI director months after a separate and unrelated indictment was dismissed could expose the government to claims of a vindictive prosecution and to arguments that it is going out of its way to target the former FBI director.

Comey had overseen the early months of an investigation into whether Trump's 2016 campaign had coordinated with Russia to sway the outcome of that year's election.

Reported with Associated Press.

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Cafe makes appeal after CCTV shows woman smashing plate in waitress' face

Cafe makes appeal after CCTV shows woman smashing plate in waitress' face

A Melbourne cafe has released distressing CCTV footage showing a woman knocking a plate into the face of a waitress, in an apparent deliberate act.

La Vallee in Essendon yesterday posted the video online as it sought to identify the woman over what is claims was "abhorrent behaviour".

The waitress, standing outside the cafe on Keilor Road, was left with a chipped tooth during the incident last Friday, about 1pm.

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The footage shows the woman, who wore sunglasses, narrowly avoiding the waitress, before suddenly knocking the plates from her hands.

Described on the cafe's social media posts, as a "grown woman", she then calmly continued walking down the street.

The business is now appealing for public help to identify her.

"We are beyond shocked at this abhorrent behaviour of this grown woman. If you know her please send us a private message."

"This incident led to one of our beautiful staff members CHIPPING THEIR TOOTH from the plate she pushed into her face.

"We love being part of the community in Essendon, and we hope our followers can share, tag and suggest this to local friends so we can get some justice AND hold this person accountable."

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Several people commented on the video shared by the business, including Australia billionaire Adrian Portelli.

"This behaviour needs to be stamped out. It doesn't belong here," he said.

A local Brazilian Jui-Jitsu gym, gforcebjj, offered assistance to the waitress.

"This may not be much, but we would like to offer your injured staff member a 12-month self-defence membership free of charge," they posted.

"This was very disturbing."

A nearby business, Beauty on Rose, said it would check all of its cameras and visit the restaurant with what it has found.

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'Nobody's voted for a cashless society': Thousands to withdraw cash in protest

'Nobody's voted for a cashless society': Thousands to withdraw cash in protest

Aussies around the country will today withdraw cash as part of protest "Cash Out Day", designed to highlight the importance of cash to the lives of millions in Australia.

While cash use has declined in recent years, data released this month by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) showed the number of cash payments had risen to 15 per cent, and that half of all Aussies use cash at least once a week.

The RBA highlighted that older Australians and those in regional areas were more likely to be reliant on cash, and Aussies are being urged to show they still value cash in hand by withdrawing some cash today.

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Jasdon Bryce insisted cash was hugely important to Australia's economy.

Jason Bryce, a financial journalist and supporter of Cash Out Day, claimed it was important for Aussies to show cash is still king.

"Aussies have become increasingly concerned that banks are trying to herd us towards a cashless society," he said.

"Yes we like tag and go, yes we like to use our phone and our cards, but nobody's voted for a cashless society, no one's voted for the government or banks to take our cash away."

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GEN23, Generic, cash payments, shopping, cost of living, wages, withdrawal, atm, armaguard, groceries, in Sydney on April 1, 2024.

Regional communities have been hit by several banks closing branches, further hampering people's access to cash.

And while the federal government introduced a cash mandate this year, requiring businesses to accept cash as payment for essential goods, they have also moved to remove surcharges for card payments.

Bryce claimed the mandate was "way too weak" and said the removal of surcharges will help move people away from cash.

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He said all Aussies should be worried by this news.

"The banks continue to close ATMs and continue to close bank branches, and that's got to stop," he said.

"All of these are bad for the future of cash in our economy. Cash is so important for so many people."

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Rebel Wilson to testify in film fight with co-star

Rebel Wilson to testify in film fight with co-star

Aussie A-lister Rebel Wilson is set to star in a real-life courtroom drama when she testifies in her high-profile defamation battle against the star of her directorial debut.

The Pitch Perfect star is being sued by Charlotte MacInnes, the Australian lead actor of the musical comedy The Deb.

MacInnes claims Wilson defamed her in four social media posts which claimed she made a sexual harassment complaint and then retracted it to further her career.

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The dispute was sparked when the young actor assisted The Deb's co-producer Amanda Ghost after she suffered a medical episode at Bondi Beach in September 2023.

She helped the producer back to an apartment they were sharing with others and ended up innocently sharing a bath in their swimwear in a bid to warm up, MacInnes says.

Wilson is set to go into the Federal Court witness box today after flying from the United States with her wife, who will also give evidence this week.

Hints about what she might say can be found in sworn statements by MacInnes that have been tendered to the court and contain parts of the older actor's own affidavit.

Wilson is expected to testify about her claim that MacInnes confided in her that Ghost had asked her to have a bath and a shower together, and it made her feel uncomfortable.

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SMH first use. Charlotte MacInnes arrives at Federal Court on Wednesday. She is suing Rebel Wilson for defamation. Wednesday 22nd April 2026. Photo: Sitthixay Ditthavong

MacInnes denies making the complaint, maintaining she later clarified to Wilson the situation had been weird but she was not uncomfortable around Ghost.

In her statement, Wilson says she overheard the producer and young star saying intimate things - often of a sexual nature - to each other, which MacInnes has denounced as untrue.

She also rejected Wilson's account of seeing Ghost push her to go out for a drink together until the young actor relented.

The Bridesmaids star falsely portrayed herself as a whistleblower who spoke up to protect MacInnes when she was actually using the alleged complaint as leverage in a dispute with her co-producers, MacInnes' barrister Sue Chrysanthou SC said.

"I was angry that Rebel claims to be someone who stands up for women … but then was so maliciously and unfairly persisting with a narrative that painted me as a liar, prostitute, sell out, and whore," MacInnes wrote in her affidavit.

Amanda Ghost arriving at the Law Courts complex in, Greens Square, Sydney, NSW, Friday, 24 April 2026. Ms Ghost is appearing to give evidence today in the Rebel Wilson court case. Photo: Sam Mooy / The Sydney Morning Herald

Instead of checking on the alleged victim of inappropriate behaviour, Chrysanthou said Wilson instead shared posts "slagging off" her client.

"This is how this bully, apparently this saviour of women, the protector of the harassed, responds," she previously told the court.

But Wilson had raised her concerns with others even though she had doubts about the veracity of the alleged complaint, her lawyer Dauid Sibtain SC said in his opening address.

The central issue is not whether MacInnes was a victim but instead whether she complained to Wilson and then changed her story, he contended.

"Our case is that ... she changed her story," Sibtain said.

"She did so to ensure her career as an actress and musician progressed by appeasing Ms Ghost."

Sibtain argued MacInnes hasn't suffered any harm to her reputation at all as a result of the social media posts, contrary to her allegations.

It is likely Wilson will face questioning about MacInnes' claim she played a role in a hack on her social media account that led to a nude photo being leaked.

The Hollywood star is also expected to be grilled on whether she was involved in creating malicious websites attacking Ghost that referenced the alleged complaint.

Wilson has been accused of directing a crisis PR team to create the websites, but denies any involvement.

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