One of Jeffrey Epstein’s victims, whose testimony was instrumental in convicting heiress Ghislaine Maxwell of sex trafficking, died earlier this year — and her family is now questioning the circumstances surrounding her fatal overdose.
Carolyn Andriano, 36, was found dead in a Palm Beach, Florida hotel room in late May, but her family said they still have questions about the medical examiner’s conclusion that she died of an “accidental overdose.”
“No one gave me any answers, and you know what? I’m done,” his mother, Dorothy Groener, told the Daily Beast.
“Because this is my daughter and she deserves justice,” Groener — who is currently embroiled in a legal battle with her son-in-law over Andriano’s will — said, noting: “He got to the point where he turned his whole life around.”
Police records obtained by the Daily Beast show police were called to the DoubleTree by Hilton in West Palm Beach about a woman who was not “awake” and “was sick” around 7:45 a.m. on May 23.
Her husband, John Pitts, also said she was “vomiting” before she lost consciousness and he started CPR.
She told police at the scene that she, Andriano and their children had gone to sleep the night before at the DoubleTree, where they apparently stayed after selling their house.
Carolyn Andriano, whose testimony played a key role in convicting Ghislaine Maxwell, was found dead in a hotel room in late May.REUTERS
When they woke up, Andriano was naked and unresponsive in his bed, Pitts said, according to the Daily Beast.
Police later found a small crack pipe, a small bag with white residue and a needle in her purse.
Subsequent toxicology reports also found she had methadone, fentanyl and alprazolam in her system — and Pitts told them Carolyn had been using drugs.
It was independently reviewed by Lewis Nelson, chairman of the Department of Emergency Medicine at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School and director of the Division of Medical Toxicology.
He said fentanyl and alprazolam are a deadly combination – because they both suppress breathing.
“His fentanyl use was very recent,” Nelson told the Daily Beast of the toxicology report. “My population is that he was on methadone, took a high dose, he took fentanyl and he died quickly.”
Andriano, 36, revealed on the stand that he took drugs and drank alcohol to “block” what Epstein did to him.REUTERS
Low levels of fentanyl metabolites also indicate he died before his body had a chance to metabolize the drug, Nelson added.
But Andriano’s brother, Joey, said he has questions about what he noticed at the DoubleTree before his death.
She said she called her sister that morning, but Pitts told her she wasn’t feeling well.
Carolyn also briefly answered the phone and told him the same thing, the Daily Beast reported.
“I said, ‘If she’s so sick, why don’t you call an ambulance bro? Do something. You’ve got to get her to the hospital,'” Joey said.
“He said, ‘Oh no, he’s fine.’
Jeffrey Epstein was arrested in 2019 on charges of sex trafficking. ZUMA24.com
In another call, he said Carolyn’s voice was barely audible.
“The few times I talked to him on the phone, he just sounded real, like groggy, and he did most of the talking for him,” Joey said. “He was never like that.”
Groener also claimed that police found a bottle of vodka in the hotel room, but that her daughter did not have any alcohol in her system.
She said her daughter was “excited” about creating a new drug-free life in the days before her death.
Carolyn and Pitts recently purchased a property in North Carolina, and plan to move there and raise their children there.
They sold their Florida home, and have been living in the hotel since May 18.
Maxwell was convicted in 2021 of multiple charges, including sex trafficking, conspiracy and transportation of minors for illegal sexual activity. VIA REUTERS
“She’s ready for a new lifestyle,” Groener said, revealing a text message she received from her daughter about being free from drugs and alcohol.
“It shouldn’t have been closed,” the grieving mother said of her daughter’s case.
“I appealed to them, I sent them many messages. I have asked them to set up a meeting, contact me and to no avail.”
But documents from the Palm Beach County Medical Examiner’s Office say the couple moved back to Palm Beach County from North Carolina “because their methadone clinic was not providing the amount of methadone they requested. [for].”
Maxwell is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for the sex-trafficking scandal. VIA REUTERS
Carolyn also testified at Ghislaine Maxwell’s trial that she became addicted to drugs while visiting Jeffrey Epstein’s Virgin Islands compound as a teenager, saying she took “marijuana, cocaine, alcohol, anything that would keep me from going on a date.”
She also said she takes methadone, antidepressants, Xanax and medication for schizophrenia because “I’m afraid my children will be kidnapped.”
Pitts’ sister now says Groener’s claim that Carolyn’s death was “suspicious” is “absurd.”
“Right now our family is grieving the loss of Carolun and prioritizing the care of her children,” Serena Pitts told the Daily Beast.
“Right now, we value space and privacy.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
