Ghislaine Maxwell, the jet-setting party girl accused of recruiting young girls for Wall Street financier Jeffrey Epstein to sexually abuse, was arrested in New Hampshire today.
Federal authorities also unsealed a federal grand jury’s six-count, 18-page indictment against Maxwell, the daughter of deceased British publishing tycoon and Israeli spy Robert Maxwell.
Maxwell, the indictment alleges, not only recruited and groomed young girls for Epstein — indicted a year ago on similar charges and found dead in his jail cell a month later — but also participated in the abuse.
The Indictment
The indictment alleges that Maxwell “assisted, facilitated, and contributed to Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse of minor girls” from 1994 to 1997 “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.”
Some victims were as young as 14, the indictment alleges. Maxwell and Epstein “enticed and caused” the victims to travel to Epstein’s multiple residences, where he and Maxwell abused them.
“Moreover, in an effort to conceal her crimes, Maxwell repeatedly lied when questioned about her conduct, including in relation to some of the minor victims described herein, when providing testimony under oath in 2016.”
Those lies in a civil lawsuit led to two counts of perjury.
The indictment alleges that Maxwell, Epstein’s lover, “enticed and groomed multiple minor girls … through a variety of means and methods,” including befriending the victims and taking them shopping or to the movies.
Maxwell and Epstein accompanied the victims on the outings separately and together, the indictment alleges. Epstein also paid major expenses for the victims to make them think they were indebted to the megawealthy sex fiend.
Maxwell acclimated the victims to the abuse slowly:
Having developed a rapport with a victim, Maxwell would try to normalize sexual abuse for a minor victim by, among other things, discussing sexual topics, undressing in front of the victim, being present when a minor victim was undressed, and/or being present for sex acts involving the minor victim and Epstein.
Maxwell’s presence during minor victims’ interactions with Epstein, including interactions where the minor victim was undressed or that involved sex acts with Epstein, helped put the victims at ease because an adult woman was present.
For example, in some instances, Maxwell would massage Epstein in front of a minor victim. In other instances, Maxwell encouraged minor victims to provide massages to Epstein, including sexualized massages during which a minor victim would be fully or partially nude. Many of those massages resulted in Epstein sexually abusing the minor victims.
The indictment provides graphic detail about the abuse that occurred at Epstein’s homes in New York City and London; his estate in Palm Beach, Florida; and his ranch in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
The indictment alleges that Maxwell recruited and helped Epstein abuse three victims, the first just 14 years old. Maxwell and Epstein abused that girl from 1994 through 1997 in New York and Florida.
Maxwell “interacted with Minor Victim-2 on at least one occasion in or about 1996 at Epstein’s residence in New Mexico…. Minor Victim-2 had flown into New Mexico from out of state at Epstein’s invitation for the purpose of being groomed for and/or subjected to acts of sexual abuse.”
Maxwell “groomed and befriended” the third minor victim in London between 1994 and 1995.
Maxwell faces four counts directly related to the sex abuse itself:
• conspiracy to entice minors to travel to engage in illegal sex acts;
• enticement of a minor to travel to engage in illegal sex acts;
• conspiracy to transport minors with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity;
• transportation of a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity.
The Perjury
The perjury charges are connected to her testimony in civil litigation four years ago, during which she “repeatedly provided false and perjurious statements, under oath.”
The indictment alleges that Maxwell lied in answering these questions in April 2016:
Q: Did Jeffrey Epstein have a scheme to recruit underage girls for sexual massages? If you know.
A: I don’t know what you’re talking about.
Q: List all the people under the age of 18 that you interacted with at any of Jeffrey’s properties?
A: I’m not aware of anybody that I interacted with, other than obviously [the plaintiff] who was 17 at this point.
In July, the indictment alleges, Maxwell lied in this exchange:
Q: Were you aware of the presence of sex toys or devices used in sexual activities in Mr. Epstein’s Palm Beach house?
A: No, not that I recall.
Q. Do you know whether Mr. Epstein possessed sex toys or devices used in sexual activities?
A. No.
Q: Other than yourself and the blond and brunette that you have identified as having been involved in three-way sexual activities, with whom did Mr. Epstein have sexual activities?
A: I wasn’t aware that he was having sexual activities with anyone when I was with him other than myself.
Q: I want to be sure that I’m clear. Is it your testimony that in the 1990s and 2000s, you were not aware that Mr. Epstein was having sexual activities with anyone other than yourself and the blond and brunette on those few occasions when they were involved with you?
A: That is my testimony, that is correct.
Q: Is it your testimony that you’ve never given anybody a massage?
A: I have not given anyone a massage.
Q: You never gave Mr. Epstein a massage, is that your testimony?
A: That is my testimony.
Q: You never gave [Minor Victim-2] a massage is your testimony?
A: I never gave [Minor Victim-2] a massage.
Image: screenshot from YouTube video
R. Cort Kirkwood is a long-time contributor to The New American and a former newspaper editor.
