The mysterious death of an aide to President Bill Clinton with ties to Jeffrey Epstein has been officially ruled a suicide — despite there being no sign of a weapon near the body.
Mark Middleton, 59, who served in the Clinton White House in the 1990s, was found dead on Heifer Ranch in Perryville, Arkansas, on May 2, 2022, the Daily Mail reported.
Almost one year after Middleton’s death, a police report obtained by the outlet this week revealed that the Little Rock businessman was discovered with a gunshot wound to the chest and an extension cord tying his neck to a tree.
“I could see the male was obviously deceased,” Deputy Jeremy Lawson of the Perry County Sheriff’s Department wrote of his arrival at the grisly scene.
Notably, Lawson’s account includes that while officers located a gun case and three boxes of buckshot in Middleton’s BMW SUV, there was no weapon in sight.
Though the father of two worked for his family’s HVAC business in the years before his death, he previously enjoyed a high-flying lifestyle as special adviser to Clinton and assistant to chief of staff Thomas F. “Mack” McLarty.
Middleton notably signed late pedophile Epstein into the White House seven of the 17 times he visited the residence, the Daily Mail said. He was also reported to have flown on Epstein’s infamous “Lolita Express” jet.
Middleton left the White House in 1995. The following year, the Los Angeles Times reported, his executive access was curtailed after an investigation determined he abused his connections in an effort to become “an international dealmaker.”
The release of the official report comes after Middleton’s family — which includes his wife and two young adult daughters — petitioned a judge over concerns about the gory photos and videos of the scene being made public.
In June 2022, the Arkansas Times reported, Circuit Judge Alice Gray determined that while the visual content was to remain sealed, the report would be available under the Freedom of Information Act.
In the months since his death, internet conspiracy theorists had tried to tie Middleton to the “Clinton Body Count,” or the right-wing theory that Bill and Hillary Clinton have passels of their political opponents killed.
The bizarre hypothesis first gained traction in part following the unexpected suicide of deputy White House counsel Vince Foster in 1993.
Body-count truthers were also inflamed when Epstein hanged himself in his cell in August 2019. Then-President Donald Trump famously retweeted a message accusing the Clintons of orchestrating Epstein’s death to mask their own alleged dealings with the sex fiend.
If you are struggling with suicidal thoughts or are experiencing a mental health crisis and live in New York City, you can call 1-888-NYC-WELL for free and confidential crisis counseling. If you live outside the five boroughs, you can dial the 24/7 National Suicide Prevention hotline at 988 or go to SuicidePreventionLifeline.org.
