WASHINGTON - The 2019 suicide of disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein in a New York jail cell  generated conspiracy theories, fueled by U.S. President Donald Trump's conservative MAGA movement, that he was killed by one of his famous connections.

Here are some facts about Epstein and the current controversy:

WHO IS JEFFREY EPSTEIN?

The Brooklyn-born Epstein, a former high school math teacher who later founded consulting and financial management firms, cultivated the rich and famous.

He was known for socializing with politicians and royalty, including Trump, Democratic President Bill Clinton, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and Britain's Prince Andrew. Some friends and clients flew on his private plane and visited his Caribbean islands.

Trump knew Epstein socially in the 1990s and early 2000s. During the 2021 trial of Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell, the financier's longtime pilot, Lawrence Visoski, testified that Trump flew on Epstein's private plane multiple times. Trump has denied being on the plane.  

WHAT WAS EPSTEIN CHARGED WITH?

In 2008, Epstein pleaded guilty to a Florida state felony prostitution charge, after federal prosecutors agreed not to charge him with sex trafficking of minors. He served 13 months in jail and was required to register as a sex offender. That punishment is now widely regarded as too lenient.

In July 2019, the Justice Department charged Epstein with sex trafficking minors, including sexually exploiting and abusing dozens of girls, in New York and Florida between 2002 and 2005. He pleaded not guilty.

Epstein died on August 10, 2019, at age 66 by hanging himself in a Manhattan jail cell, an autopsy concluded. He was never tried on the 2019 charges.

WHAT IS THE CURRENT CONTROVERSY OVER EPSTEIN?

Though the New York City chief medical examiner determined that Epstein's death was a suicide by hanging, Epstein's ti...