Did she groom girls for Epstein or is she being punished for his crimes? It’s finally time for Maxwell to tell her story
For a woman known around the world, who has been the focus of documentaries, podcasts and endless news coverage, Ghislaine Maxwell still remains an enigma.
She has said very little publicly in the two decades since sexual abuse allegations about her friend Jeffrey Epstein began to surface.
We do not know how Maxwell met the late financier and paedophile, what the true nature of their relationship was, or how she funded her extravagant lifestyle.
Today, Maxwell will go on trial in New York accused of sexual offences, including that she conspired to entice girls as young as 14 to engage in illegal sex acts with Epstein from 1994 to 1997 at his homes in New York City, Florida, and New Mexico – and at her residence in London.
She denies the charges and has pleaded not guilty, but if convicted on all counts she will likely spend the rest of her life in jail.
It is finally time for Maxwell to tell her side of the story.
The defence
Maxwell’s lawyers may argue that she too was a victim of Epstein. Others employed by the financier and convicted sex offender have used the same defence.
It is highly likely Maxwell’s lawyers will claim she is being punished for Epstein’s crimes. They may say that prosecutors failed to convict him, failed to keep him alive, and now need someone else to blame for their own shortcomings.
Maxwell’s brother Ian has voiced another likely defence argument: that the “tremendous weight of negative publicity” means he is “fearful” a fair trial is not possible.
The defence team are expected to try to undermine the credibility of the four alleged victims by claiming some are motivated by money.
Over $125m (£94m) from Epstein’s estate has been distributed to around 150 victims.
As the alleged offences were committed between 17 and 27 years ago, an expert witness on “false memories” will be called to give evidence.
Professor Elizabeth Loftus will likely argue that media coverage and contact with other victims can lead to them forming incorrect memories of abuse.
Maxwell’s lawyers will also return to arguments around consent that were a feature of pre-trial hearings.
The third alleged victim in this trial was 17 years old when prosecutors say she was abused in London. However, the age of consent in the UK is 18.
The decision over whether Maxwell takes the stand and testifies is likely to be made late on in the trial, once the prosecution has rested its case. But it has its dangers.
“A defendant testifying is always risky,” said defence attorney Dmitriy Shakhnevich.
“Because the defendant will open him or herself up to cross-examination, to examination as to prior bad acts to prior criminal conduct to prior, possibly even immoral conduct.”
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Who is Ghislaine Maxwell?
The prosecution
The testimonies of the four alleged victims will be at the heart of the prosecution case, with only one, Annie Farmer, waiving her anonymity.
Ms Farmer claims she was abused by Epstein at his New Mexico ranch in 1996.
In an interview with CBS in 2019 she said: “Maxwell was a really important part of the grooming process… They worked together as a team.”
Virginia Roberts Giuffre, the most prominent of Epstein’s accusers, is not expected to be part of the trial.
Supporting witnesses will be called. There may be significant but yet-to-be-revealed people who have agreed to co-operate with the government and provide testimony.
An expert witness on grooming, Dr Lisa Rocchio, will give evidence.
In a pre-trial hearing, she told the court that academic studies have concluded there are common strategies in grooming of children: starting with gaining access and isolating a victim, then developing trust, and later desensitising them to physical and sexual contact.
Prosecutors intend to use a “little black book” of contacts, including names and phone numbers of alleged victims, as further evidence.
It is also possible the government will present video footage from the extensive CCTV systems Epstein installed in his homes.
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‘I don’t see her administering black eye to herself’
Epstein’s web
Maxwell’s trial is keenly awaited, not just because the alleged victims have been waiting decades for justice, but because of the web of high society contacts she and Epstein boasted in the worlds of fashion, politics, business and royalty.
The pair were close to Prince Andrew and Donald Trump. In a 2003 magazine profile, Mr Trump infamously said of Epstein: “He likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side.”
Epstein had links to Bill Clinton, Bill Gates and Lex Wexner, the owner of fashion chain Victoria’s Secret.
The chief executive of Barclays, Jes Staley, resigned from the company earlier this month over his contacts with the financier.
Some argue the fact the defendant is female is also significant.
“Given where we are in this moment in time with the #MeToo movement, this is the first time you’ve got a woman so publicly on trial for these kind of crimes,” said Vicky Ward, the investigative journalist who first met Maxwell in the 1990s.
Whatever the verdict in this trial, it may not be the last to involve Epstein’s associates. Many civil cases are also under way between various parties linked to the saga.
Ghislaine Maxwell’s trial will certainly provide answers, but it is unlikely to solve all the mysteries surrounding the case. The Epstein/Maxwell jigsaw puzzle is far from complete.
Donald Trump has filed a lawsuit against Rupert Murdoch, two Wall Street Journal reporters and the publication’s owner, News Corp.
The US president has accused the named individuals of defamation, claiming they acted with malicious intent and caused him overwhelming financial and reputational harm.
The lawsuit, which was filed in Miami, seeks at least $10bn (£7.5bn) in damages.
In a post on Truth Social, Mr Trump called the lawsuit “historic legal action” which was filed on behalf of himself and all Americans who he said will “no longer tolerate the abusive wrongdoings of the Fake News Media”.
“I hope Rupert and his ‘friends’ are looking forward to the many hours of depositions and testimonies they will have to provide in this case,” he wrote.
It comes after Mr Trump claimed that a letter he allegedly wrote to paedophile Jeffrey Epstein was “fake” and said he would sue the “ass off” Rupert Murdoch, who owns the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), which first published the story.
The publication had said Mr Trump wrote the letter as part of a collection Epstein’s former girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell, planned to give him as a 50th birthday present in 2003.
It claimed the message, allegedly from Mr Trump, featured several lines of typewritten text, concluding with: “May every day be another wonderful secret.”
The text was framed by what appeared to be a hand-drawn outline of a naked woman, the WSJ claimed. The letter is also said to have featured the signature “Donald”.
Mr Trump immediately denied writing the letter when the WSJ report was published on Thursday night.
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Memes of Epstein undermine victims, says lawyer
“The Wall Street Journal printed a FAKE letter, supposedly to Epstein,” he wrote on Truth Social.
“These are not my words, not the way I talk. Also, I don’t draw pictures. I told Rupert Murdoch it was a Scam, that he shouldn’t print this Fake Story. But he did, and now I’m going to sue his ass off, and that of his third rate newspaper.”
Mr Trump ignored questions about Epstein as he signed a cryptocurrency bill at the White House earlier on Friday.
The president’s lawsuit comes as the US government filed a motion to unseal grand jury transcripts related to Epstein, who took his own life while awaiting trial in 2019.
In a Manhattan federal court filing, the Department of Justice said the criminal cases against Epstein and Maxwell are a matter of public interest, justifying the release of associated grand jury transcripts.
Earlier on Friday, Mr Trump said attorney general Pam Bondi had been asked to release the transcripts because of “the ridiculous amount of publicity given to Jeffrey Epstein”.
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The justice department previously said it had around 200 documents relating to Epstein and that the FBI had thousands more.
It is unknown how much of this is grand jury testimony, which is typically kept secret under US law.
Read more:
All we know about the ‘friendship’
Trump denies writing birthday letter to Epstein
The president has faced increased scrutiny over his alleged friendship with Epstein since his administration’s U-turn on the so-called ‘Epstein files’.
Mr Trump pledged to release files on Epstein during his presidential campaign, as his MAGA movement accused the Biden administration of suppressing the extent of Epstein’s paedophilia, predatory behaviour and his so-called “client list” – thought to contain names of the rich and famous who conspired with him in his child sex trafficking operation.
But after a review of the evidence the US government has, the Justice Department recently determined that no “further disclosure would be appropriate or warranted”.
Venezuela releases jailed Americans in prisoner swap
The Trump administration said on Friday that it had negotiated an exchange with Venezuela, resulting in the release of 10 jailed Americans.
US secretary of state Marco Rubio said the prisoners, who had been held in the South American country, were “on their way to freedom”.
Men in the CECOT jail in EL Salvador. Pic: Reuters
In return, 252 Venezuelan migrants being held in El Salvador have been freed, the Venezuelan government said.
They had been held in the notorious maximum security CECOT prison after being deported by the US.
US
Trump denies claim he wrote birthday letter to Jeffrey Epstein – and says he has ordered release of more case files
Donald Trump has called an alleged letter he wrote to paedophile Jeffrey Epstein “fake” and said he will sue the “ass off” Rupert Murdoch, who owns the paper that first published the claim.
In multiple posts on Truth Social, the US president accused The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) of fabricating the letter that it claimed was written by Mr Trump as part of a collection of letters addressed to Epstein that his former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell planned to give him as a birthday present in 2003.
According to documents seen by the WSJ, Mr Trump’s letter featured several lines of typewritten text framed by what appeared to be a hand-drawn outline of a naked woman.
The paper said the letter concludes “Happy Birthday – and may every day be another wonderful secret”, and featured the signature “Donald”, allegedly drawn across the woman’s waist, meant to mimic the appearance of pubic hair.
Epstein took his own life in prison in 2019. Pic: AP
Responding to the WSJ’s claims, Mr Trump wrote: “The Wall Street Journal printed a FAKE letter, supposedly to Epstein. These are not my words, not the way I talk. Also, I don’t draw pictures.
“I told Rupert Murdoch it was a Scam, that he shouldn’t print this Fake Story. But he did, and now I’m going to sue his ass off, and that of his third rate newspaper. Thank you for your attention to this matter! DJT.”
He said earlier he would also sue the WSJ and News Corp, which Mr Murdoch owns. The WSJ is published by News Corp subsidiary company, Dow Jones & Co.
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From 16 July: Trump: Epstein case is ‘a boring story’
The Justice Department has not responded to the WSJ and the FBI declined to comment.
In a separate post, Mr Trump said he has asked the attorney general, Pam Bondi, to release “any and all pertinent grand jury testimony” in the case of the paedophile financier who was found dead in his Manhattan cell in August 2019, shortly after he was arrested on sex trafficking charges.
The release of any documents, Mr Trump said, would be subject to approval by a court.
The justice department has previously said it had around 200 documents relating to Epstein and that the FBI had thousands more. It is unknown how much of this is grand jury testimony – which is typically kept secret under US law.
Ms Bondi responded to the president on X, writing: “President Trump-we are ready to move the court tomorrow to unseal the grand jury transcripts.”
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Elon Musk, who claimed last month that Mr Trump appears in the Epstein files, was surprisingly among the first to come to the president’s defence over the WSJ claims.
“It really doesn’t sound like something Trump would say tbh,” the tech billionaire wrote on X, before going on to ask where the evidence against Epstein allegedly held by the FBI had gone.
The Trump administration has come under criticism after the president appeared to U-turn on his own promise to release more information about the Epstein case publicly.
In the run-up to the US election last year, Mr Trump drew on rumours and conspiracy theories that appeared to accuse the Biden administration of suppressing the extent of Epstein’s paedophilia, predatory behaviour and his so-called “client list” – thought to contain names of the rich and famous who conspired with him in a child sex trafficking operation.
Ms Bondi fuelled these rumours in February by telling Fox News that the alleged Epstein client list was “sitting on my desk right now to review”.
Read more:
Ghislaine Maxwell could challenge imprisonment
Why is Trump fighting with MAGA over Epstein?
The huge impact of Musk’s row with Trump
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In the same month, the justice department released some government documents regarding the case, but there were no new revelations.
After a months-long review of additional evidence, the department earlier this month released a video meant to prove that Epstein killed himself, but said no other files related to the case would be made public.
The decision was criticised by many in Mr Trump’s Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement, who Mr Trump later called “weaklings”.
Sky News has contacted the White House for further comment.
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