Justice Department to close New York City jail that housed Jeffrey Epstein

The New York City jail where accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein was held before his death is closing, the Department of Justice confirmed to CBS News on Thursday. The jail has faced scrutiny since Epstein died by suicide there in August 2019.

The DOJ is closing the jail to ensure "every facility in the federal prison system is not only safe and secure, but also provides people in custody with the resources and programs they need to make a successful return to society after they have served their time," a spokesperson for the department told CBS News in a statement.  "In an effort to address the issues at MCC NY as quickly and efficiently as possible, the Department has decided to close the MCC, at least temporarily, until those issues have been resolved," the spokesperson said. They did not identify the specific issues the department hopes to address.