Ghislaine Maxwell will she deliver all the secrets she knows to American justice? What was the true nature of his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein? This particular connection has always been surrounded by mystery and if they were only for a time officially in a relationship, the two ex-companions never actually really let go. The American justice suspects them to have maintained sulfurous bonds, and it is what was worth to the daughter of the magnate Robert Maxwell to be arrested Thursday July 2 in New Hampshire and indicted, in particular, for traffic of minors.
Facts that she would have committed for the benefit of the American financier. The latter, accused of sex trafficking in dozens of minors, committed suicide in his cell in New York in August 2019. Today alone, Ghislaine Maxwell will face the accusations of several alleged victims who claim that she was not only responsible for playing matchmakers, but attended, or even participated in, these abuses. She denies any involvement.
A heiress with a British accent
Ghislaine Maxwell, now 58, has always loved pomp. Born in France, in Maisons-Laffitte in the Yvelines, she is the daughter of the British press magnate Robert Maxwell and Elisabeth Meynard, a French historian known for her work on the Holocaust. She grew up in England, very close to her father, who built his empire by buying, among other things, the British newspaper The Daily Mirror and by investing in the American chain MTV. Did this fused relationship influence the relationships and admiration she had for Jeffrey Epstein? Robert Maxwell drowned when he died off the Canary Islands in 1991 while enjoying a vacation on his yacht, christened the "Lady Ghislaine" in honor of his daughter. During this same period, Ghislaine Maxwell, a graduate of Oxford, landed in New York and frequented Jeffrey Epstein.
On the death of Robert Maxwell, we discover that he is in reality ruined and guilty of having siphoned pension funds. Devastated by her disappearance, her daughter also finds herself penniless. Jeffrey Epstein offers him a return to his luxurious lifestyle. She makes him enjoy his social ease and his friends in high places. Together, they try to satisfy their desire for power and expand their address books with personalities such as ex-President Bill Clinton, Prince Andrew, youngest son of Queen Elizabeth II, or the current head of the White House, Donald Trump.
Ghislaine Maxwell manages Epstein's relationships, as well as her portfolio and her residences. She is appreciated for her glamorous look and charming British accent. An employee of the house in Palm Beach, Florida even calls her "the lady of the house", the mistress of the house or the lady of the house, in a New York Times article published in 2019. It is precisely in this Florida villa that many young girls come to massage the American financier. Jeffrey Epstein is accused of having sexually abused them. Some were minor at the time of the events.
A central role according to several victims
Ghislaine Maxwell would have played a central role. Several witnesses affirm that she was in charge of "recruiting, maintaining, harboring and organizing the trafficking of young girls for Epstein". Some alleged victims even claim that she gave them advice to sexually satisfy the billionaire, others claim that she witnessed and participated in rapes.
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Virginia Giuffre, one of the main accusers, returns at length, in a Netflix documentary, to what the couple would have subjected her from 2000 to 2002. She says that it was Ghislaine Maxwell who recruited her at 16 years old. that she worked as an assistant at the Donald Trump spa in Mar-a-Lago, Palm Beach, Florida. During a trip to London in March 2001, she was allegedly "trafficked" for the benefit of Prince Andrew, a long-time friend of Ghislaine Maxwell. In 2002, Epstein offered the young woman masseuse training at a Thai school. This is where Virginia Giuffre finds the courage to flee this toxic grip. Shortly before leaving, the couple allegedly asked her to get pregnant for them. Jeffrey Epstein, however, never made Ghislaine Maxwell his wife.
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The latter appears less with the billionaire in 2008, when he was first charged in Florida for sex crimes. He pleads guilty in order to obtain an adapted prison sentence. His ex-girlfriend continues to maintain his image of ultra-mundane by participating in charity parties and galas with his usual British chic. She who has no experience in environmental activism and who is known for her passion for large yachts, is dedicated to promoting her ocean protection NGO, the Terra Mar Project.
Hidden on a New Hampshire property
It was not until 2015, with Virginia Giuffre's first complaints against her, that Ghislaine Maxwell sold her Manhattan home and disappeared completely from radar. Even his lawyers say they don't know his address. The media speculates, regularly echoing rumors that have seen it around the world, and even, recently, in France.
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It was finally in the small town of Bradford in the United States that she was arrested on Thursday: "She had sneaked into a magnificent property in New Hampshire, leading a privileged life, while her victims suffered from the trauma that was inflicted on them years earlier, "said an FBI official. Ghislaine Maxwell now faces life in prison.
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