NEW YORK (AP) — Financier Jeffrey Epstein is set to return to court to face sex trafficking charges just days after he was found injured in his cell.
U.S. District Judge Richard Berman had scheduled the pretrial hearing for Wednesday before Epstein was found on the floor of his cell last week with neck bruises. It wasn’t immediately clear how the injury occurred.
The bruises weren’t so serious that he was unable to remain at the Metropolitan Correction Center, which is adjacent to the downtown Manhattan courthouse.
Epstein, accused of having sex with girls as young as age 14, has pleaded not guilty. His lawyers say an agreement reached with federal prosecutors a dozen years ago disallows the charges.
Berman has asked lawyers to discuss a schedule Wednesday for the case to proceed.
