Autopsy Finds Broken Bones in Epstein's Neck 'Most Common in Victims of Homicide by Strangulation'

An autopsy found that financier Jeffrey Epstein sustained multiple breaks in his neck bones, according to two people familiar with the findings, deepening the mystery about the circumstances around his death.

Among the bones broken in Epstein's neck was the hyoid bone, which in men is near the Adam's apple. Such breaks can occur in those who hang themselves, particularly if they are older, according to forensics experts and studies on the subject. But they are more common in victims of homicide by strangulation, the experts said.

[...] Jonathan Arden, president of the National Association of Medical Examiners, said a hyoid can be broken in many circumstances, but is more commonly associated with homicidal strangulation than suicidal hanging.

[...] A handful of studies conducted over the past decade have produced conflicting results about the likelihood of a hyoid break in a suicide. In a study of 20 suicidal hangings in Thailand, published in 2010, one-fourth of the men who hanged themselves had broken hyoids. In a larger study of suicidal hangings of young-adults and middle-aged people in India, conducted from 2010 to 2013, hyoid damage was found in just 16 of 264 cases, or six percent. The study addressed the discrepancies in academic reviews, saying wide variations in findings of hyoid breaks are "possibly due to factors like age of the victim, weight of the victim, type of suspension and height of suspension."

Jeffrey Epstein's blood vessels in his eyes popped when his air supply was cut off by the bed sheet that was wrapped around his neck ... this according to law enforcement sources briefed on the case. We're told he suffered petechial hemorrhaging, caused when someone hangs himself or is strangled or smothered, but authorities are confident this was a hanging.

We're told the bed sheets were tied to the top of a bunk bed and Epstein either hurled himself off the top bunk or had his feet to the ground and leaned forward to cut off his air supply. Authorities believe the former is true, because throwing himself off the top bunk and falling violently to the ground could explain why his hyoid bone was fractured.