Justice Dept. says Epstein stored sperm, location unknown

Newly released Justice Department documents reveal that Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted sex offender who died in 2019, arranged for the long-term storage of his sperm years before his death, with its current location now unknown. The records show Epstein deposited samples with California Cryobank sometime before October 2012 and renewed a storage contract in May 2016.

The contract stipulated that if Epstein died, control of the stored genetic material would pass to his estate or another authorized legal representative. It remains unclear whether these instructions were followed. CooperCompanies, which has owned California Cryobank since 2021, stated it does not currently store any samples associated with Epstein but did not disclose whether the specimens were destroyed or transferred elsewhere.

Epstein pleaded guilty in 2008 to soliciting prostitution from a minor and was awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges when he died in a New York City jail. The timing of his sperm banking, which occurred during this period of legal scrutiny, has raised ethical questions within the fertility industry. Legal and bioethics experts note there is debate over whether sperm banks...