Over two years after finding Jeffery Epstein dead in his jail cell due to an apparent suicide, his mistress and lifelong companion Ghislaine Maxwell’s federal trial began on Nov. 29.
On July 2, 2020 Ghislaine Maxwell, 59, was arrested at her home in Bradford, N.H. on federal sex trafficking charges. According to the New York Times, when the FBI arrived to arrest Maxwell, she attempted to run. She was initially charged with “transporting a minor for the purposes of criminal sexual activity” and “conspiring to entice minors to travel to engage in illegal sex acts”.
Prosecutors say Maxwell helped recruit and groom young teenage girls between the years of 1994 and 2004. Maxwell and Epstein allegedly would persuade young girls into coming over to their mansion and engage in sexual acts with Epstein.
The indictment for the trial reads: “From at least in or about 1994, up to and including at least in or about 1997, Maxwell assisted, facilitated, and contributed to Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse of minor girls by, among other things, helping Epstein to recruit, groom, and ultimately abuse victims known to Maxwell and Epstein to be under the age of 18. The victims were as young as 14 years old when they were groomed and abused by Maxwell and Epstein, both of whom knew that certain victims were in fact under the age of 18.”
Maxwell also encouraged the girls they brought around to bring their friends and other girls to their different properties to perform sexual favors for Epstein in exchange for large amounts of cash and gifts. Assistant U.S Attorney Lara Pomerantz said the abuse occurred at Epstein’s homes, including his estate in Palm Beach, Fla.; his posh Manhattan townhouse; a Santa Fe, N.M. ranch; a Paris apartment; and a luxury estate in the Virgin Islands.
Maxwell pleaded guilty to all six counts against her at the time she was charged and was also denied bail.
During the trial, Pomerantz said Maxwell “helped normalize abusive sexual conduct” by making the teenagers feel safe and by taking them on shopping trips and asking them about their lives, their schools and their families.
On the other hand, Maxwell’s attorney Bobbi Sternheim said her client was a “scapegoat for a man who behaved badly.”
You can read daily updates of the trial at the New York Times website. Due to it being a federal case, cameras are prohibited in the courtroom.
Marquie Peyton
Intern