Mark Middleton, a former advisor to Bill Clinton who was key in allowing Jeffrey Epstein to visit the White House several times during Clinton's presidency, reportedly committed suicide in Arkansas on May 7. Initial reports did not list the cause of death and the U.S. media has not been curious, a trend that has been consistent since the death of deputy White House Counsel Vince Foster in 1993.
Middleton's death adds to the number of close associates of Bill and Hillary Clinton who have died unexpectedly, many in small plane crashes.
Now, Middleton's family and the local sheriff are "pulling out all the stops to keep details of his mysterious death becoming public," the Daily Mail reported on June 6.
According to last month's WorldTribune report: Middleton’s death was announced in a now-deleted Facebook post for the family’s Little Rock, Arkansas air conditioning company, Middleton Heat & Air.
The family has "petitioned a judge to prevent pictures of Mark Middleton's death scene being released under the Freedom of Information Act," the report said, adding that "the local Arkansas sheriff is interpreting that to mean he can't talk or release any details of Middleton's May 7 suicide."
According to a report by DailyMail.com, local law enforcement and the county coroner said they were not investigating the death and did not respond to it.
Related: Clinton special advisor, key Epstein connection, dies at 59, May 12, 2022
In an interview with RadarOnline – before he decided to clam up – Perry County Sheriff Scott Montgomery said Middleton was discovered hanging from a tree with a shotgun blast to his chest.
Middleton, 59, reportedly used an extension cord as a noose and created makeshift gallows underneath the tree which appeared to be there as a failsafe in case the shotgun blast didn't kill him.
Middleton, a married father-of-two who ran an air conditioning business, did not leave a note, though he told his family he was "depressed," Montgomery said.
"He died from a self-inflicted shotgun wound to the chest. He found a tree and he pulled a table over there, and he got on that table, and he took an extension cord and put it around a limb, put it around his neck and he shot himself in the chest with a shotgun," Montgomery told RadarOnline. "It was very evident that the shotgun worked because there was not a lot of blood or anything on the scene. You can tell the shotgun blast was on his chest, you can tell that because there is a hole in the chest and pellets came out the back of his back. It was definitely self-inflicted in our opinion."
In a lawsuit filed on May 23, the family admits Middleton committed suicide, and says they have "a privacy interest" in preventing any "photographs, videos, sketches (or) other illustrative content" from the death scene being released. They claim it would lead to "outlandish, hurtful, unsupported and offensive articles" being published online. They argued that keeping the footage and files sealed would halt a proliferation of "unsubstantiated conspiracy theories."
A judge is due to hear the case on June 14.
Montgomery denied DailyMail.com's FOIA request for any of his paperwork on the case, which would include the police report and written files, even though they do not contain any graphic images.
Late last year, DailyMail.com exclusively revealed Middleton was among the Clinton advisors and aides who had let Epstein into the White House during the former president's first few years in office. Epstein made at least 17 trips to the White House between 1993 and 1995, seven of which were authorized by Middleton.
Middleton was also one of the many passengers to fly on Epstein's jet, known as the "Lolita Express."
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