Ghislaine Maxwell
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Ghislaine Noelle Marion Maxwell ( ; born 25 December 1961) is a British-French-American former
socialite A socialite is a person, typically a woman from a wealthy or aristocratic background, who is prominent in high society. A socialite generally spends a significant amount of time attending various fashionable social gatherings, instead of having ...
and convicted
sex offender A sex offender (sexual offender, sex abuser, or sexual abuser) is a person who has committed a Sex and the law, sex crime. What constitutes a sex crime differs by culture and legal jurisdiction. The majority of convicted sex offenders have convi ...
. She was found guilty of
child sex trafficking Child prostitution is prostitution involving a child, and it is a form of commercial sexual exploitation of children. The term normally refers to prostitution of a minor, or person under the legal age of consent. In most jurisdictions, child ...
and other offences in connection with the deceased
financier An investor is a person who allocates financial capital with the expectation of a future return (profit) or to gain an advantage (interest). Through this allocated capital the investor usually purchases some species of property. Types of in ...
and convicted sex offender
Jeffrey Epstein Jeffrey Edward Epstein ( , ; January 20, 1953August 10, 2019) was an American financier and child sex offender. Born and raised in New York City, Epstein began his professional career as a teacher at the Dalton School, despite lacking a col ...
in 2021. In 2022 she was sentenced in federal court in
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
to twenty years' imprisonment. Born in France and raised in
Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...
, she attended
Balliol College, Oxford Balliol College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1263 by nobleman John I de Balliol, it has a claim to be the oldest college in Oxford and the English-speaking world. With a governing body of a master and aro ...
, in the 1980s and became a prominent member of London's social scene. Maxwell worked for her father until his death in 1991; she then moved to New York City, where she continued living as a socialite and had a relationship with Epstein. Maxwell founded the non-profit
TerraMar Project The TerraMar Project was a self-described environmental nonprofit organization. It was founded in 2012 in the United States by convicted sex offender Ghislaine Maxwell. A sister organisation in the United Kingdom was incorporated in 2013. TerraMa ...
for the protection of oceans in 2012. Following sex trafficking allegations being brought by prosecutors against Epstein in July 2019, the organisation announced cessation of operations the same month. Maxwell is a
naturalised Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-national of a country acquires the nationality of that country after birth. The definition of naturalization by the International Organization for Migration of the ...
US citizen and retains both French and British citizenship. Maxwell was arrested and charged by the
federal government of the United States The Federal Government of the United States of America (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the Federation#Federal governments, national government of the United States. The U.S. federal government is composed of three distinct ...
in July 2020 with the crimes of enticement of minors and sex trafficking of underage girls, related to her association with Epstein as his recruiter. She was denied
bail Bail is a set of pre-trial restrictions that are imposed on a suspect to ensure that they will not hamper the judicial process. Court bail may be offered to secure the conditional release of a defendant with the promise to appear in court when ...
as a flight risk, with the judge expressing concerns regarding her "completely opaque" finances, her skill at living in hiding, and the fact that France does not
extradite In an extradition, one jurisdiction delivers a person accused or convicted of committing a crime in another jurisdiction, into the custody of the other's law enforcement. It is a cooperative law enforcement procedure between the two jurisdict ...
its citizens. She was convicted on five out of six counts, including one of sex trafficking of a minor, in December 2021. She faces a second criminal trial for two charges of lying under oath about Epstein's abuse of underage girls.


Early life

Ghislaine Maxwell was born in 1961, in
Maisons-Laffitte Maisons-Laffitte () is a Communes of France, commune in the Yvelines Departments of France, department in the northern ÃŽle-de-France Regions of France, region of France. It is a part of the affluent outer suburbs of northwestern Paris, from its ...
,
ÃŽle-de-France The ÃŽle-de-France (; ; ) is the most populous of the eighteen regions of France, with an official estimated population of 12,271,794 residents on 1 January 2023. Centered on the capital Paris, it is located in the north-central part of the cou ...
, France, the ninth and youngest child of Elisabeth (''née'' Meynard), a French-born scholar, and
Robert Maxwell Ian Robert Maxwell (born Ján Ludvík Hyman Binyamin Hoch; 10 June 1923 – 5 November 1991) was a Czechoslovakia, Czechoslovak-born British media proprietor, politician and fraudster. After escaping the German occupation of Czechoslovakia, ...
(), a
Czechoslovak Czechoslovak may refer to: *A demonym or adjective pertaining to Czechoslovakia (1918–93) **First Czechoslovak Republic (1918–38) **Second Czechoslovak Republic (1938–39) **Third Czechoslovak Republic (1948–60) ** Fourth Czechoslovak Repu ...
-born British media proprietor. Her father was from a
Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
family, and her mother was of
Huguenot The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...
(French
Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...
) descent. Maxwell was born two days before a car accident that left her fifteen-year-old brother Michael in a prolonged
coma A coma is a deep state of prolonged unconsciousness in which a person cannot be awakened, fails to Nociception, respond normally to Pain, painful stimuli, light, or sound, lacks a normal Circadian rhythm, sleep-wake cycle and does not initiate ...
until his death in 1967. Her mother later reflected that the accident had an effect on the entire family, and surmised that Ghislaine had shown signs of
anorexia Anorexia nervosa (AN), often referred to simply as anorexia, is an eating disorder characterized by Calorie restriction, food restriction, body image disturbance, fear of gaining weight, and an overpowering desire to be thin. Individuals wit ...
while only a toddler. Throughout childhood, Maxwell lived with her family in
Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...
at
Headington Hill Hall Headington Hill Hall stands on Headington Hill in the east of Oxford, England. It was built in 1824 for the Morrell family, who remained in residence for 114 years. It became the home to Pergamon Press and to media tycoon Robert Maxwell. It cur ...
, a 53-room mansion, where the offices of
Pergamon Press Pergamon Press was an Oxford-based publishing house, founded by Paul Rosbaud and Robert Maxwell, that published scientific and medical books and journals. Originally called Butterworth-Springer, it is now an imprint of Elsevier. History The c ...
, a publishing company run by her father, were also located. Her mother said that all her children were brought up as
Anglicans Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...
. Maxwell studied first at Oxford High School for Girls in North Oxford and then, aged nine, was enrolled at Edgarley Hall preparatory school in
Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...
, followed by
Headington School Headington School is an independent girls' school in Headington, Oxford, England, founded by a group of evangelical Christians in 1915. In 2024, it merged with Rye St Antony School to form Headington Rye Oxford. History Headington School was ...
at age thirteen. She attended
Marlborough College Marlborough College is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English private boarding school) for pupils aged 13 to 18 in Marlborough, Wiltshire, England. It was founded as Marlborough School in 1843 by the Dean of Manchester, George ...
to study for
A-Level The A-level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational ...
s, before going on to earn a degree in Modern History with Languages from
Balliol College, Oxford Balliol College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1263 by nobleman John I de Balliol, it has a claim to be the oldest college in Oxford and the English-speaking world. With a governing body of a master and aro ...
, in 1985. Maxwell had a close relationship with her father and was reportedly his favourite. According to ''
Tatler ''Tatler'' (stylised in all caps) is a British magazine published by Condé Nast Publications. It focuses on fashion and lifestyle, as well as coverage of high society and politics. It is targeted towards the British upper and upper-middle c ...
'', Maxwell recalled that her father installed computers at Headington in 1973 and her first job was training to use a
Wang 2200 The Wang 2200 was an all-in-one minicomputer released by Wang Laboratories in May 1973. Unlike some other desktop computers, such as the HP 9830, it had a cathode-ray tube (CRT) in a cabinet that also included an integrated computer-controlled c ...
and later programming code. ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...
'' reported that he did not permit Maxwell to bring her boyfriends home or to be seen with them publicly, after she started attending
Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...
.


Career

Maxwell was a prominent member of the
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
social scene in the 1980s. She founded a women's club named after the original
Kit-Cat Club The Kit-Cat Club (sometimes Kit Kat Club) was an early 18th-century English club in London with strong political and literary associations. Members of the club were committed Whigs (British political party), Whigs. They met at the Trumpet Tavern ...
and was a director of
Oxford United Football Club Oxford United Football Club () is a professional association football, football club based in Oxford, England. The club compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football league system, English football. Founded as Headingto ...
during her father's ownership. She also worked at '' The European'', a publication her father had established. According to
Tom Bower Thomas Michael Bower (born 28 September 1946) is a British writer and former BBC journalist and television producer. He is known for his investigative journalism and for his unauthorised biographies, often of business tycoons and newspaper pr ...
, writing for ''
The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...
'', in 1986 Robert invited her to the naming in her honour of his new yacht the ''
Lady Ghislaine ''Dancing Hare'' (formerly ''Lady Ghislaine'' and ''Lady Mona K'') is a superyacht built by Amels in 1986. Built for Emad Khashoggi, it was then purchased, also in 1986, by Robert Maxwell, who died by drowning whilst cruising on the yacht off th ...
'', at a shipyard in the Netherlands. She spent a large amount of time in the late 1980s aboard the yacht, which was equipped with a
jacuzzi Jacuzzi is an American private company that manufactures and markets hot tubs, pools, and other bath products. It is best known for the Jacuzzi hydrotherapy products. The company is headquartered in Irvine, California. It is the largest hot tu ...
,
sauna A sauna (, ) is a room or building designed as a place to experience dry or wet heat sessions or an establishment with one or more of these facilities. The steam and high heat make the bathers perspire. A thermometer in a sauna is used to meas ...
, gym and disco. ''
The Scotsman ''The Scotsman'' is a Scottish compact (newspaper), compact newspaper and daily news website headquartered in Edinburgh. First established as a radical political paper in 1817, it began daily publication in 1855 and remained a broadsheet until ...
'' said Robert had also "tailor-made a New York company for her". The company, which dealt in corporate gifts, was not profitable. ''The Sunday Times'' reported that Maxwell flew to
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
on 5November 1990 to deliver an envelope on her father's behalf that, unknown to her, was part of "a plot initiated by her father to steal $200m" from Berlitz shareholders. After Robert Maxwell purchased the New York ''Daily News'' in January 1991, he sent Ghislaine to New York City to act as his emissary. In May 1991, Maxwell and her father took the
Concorde Concorde () is a retired Anglo-French supersonic airliner jointly developed and manufactured by Sud Aviation and the British Aircraft Corporation (BAC). Studies started in 1954, and France and the United Kingdom signed a treaty establishin ...
on business to New York, from where he soon departed for
Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
and left her to represent his interests at an event honouring
Simon Wiesenthal Simon Wiesenthal (31 December 190820 September 2005) was an Austrian Holocaust survivor, Nazi hunter, and writer. He studied architecture, and was living in Lwów at the outbreak of World War II. He survived the Janowska concentration camp (la ...
. In November 1991, Robert Maxwell's body was found floating in the sea near the
Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; ) or Canaries are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, Autonomous Community of Spain. They are located in the northwest of Africa, with the closest point to the cont ...
and ''Lady Ghislaine''. Soon afterwards, Ghislaine flew to
Tenerife Tenerife ( ; ; formerly spelled ''Teneriffe'') is the largest and most populous island of the Canary Islands, an Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Spain. With a land area of and a population of 965,575 inhabitants as of A ...
, where the yacht was berthed, to attend to his business paperwork. She attended her father's funeral in
Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...
alongside Israeli intelligence figures, president
Chaim Herzog Chaim Herzog (; 17 September 1918 – 17 April 1997) was an Israeli politician, military officer, lawyer and author who served as the president of Israel between 1983 and 1993. Born in Belfast and raised primarily in Dublin, the son of Ireland' ...
, and prime minister
Yitzhak Shamir Yitzhak Shamir (, ; born Yitzhak Yezernitsky; October 22, 1915 – June 30, 2012) was an Israeli politician and the seventh prime minister of Israel, serving two terms (1983–1984, 1986–1992). Before the establishment of the State of Israel, ...
, who gave his eulogy. Although a verdict of death by accidental drowning was recorded, Maxwell has since said she believes her father was murdered, commenting in 1997: "He did not commit suicide. That was just not consistent with his character. I think he was murdered." After his death, Robert Maxwell was found to have fraudulently appropriated the pension assets of
Mirror Group Newspapers Reach plc (known as Trinity Mirror between 1999 and 2018) is a British newspaper, magazine and digital publisher. It is one of the UK's biggest newspaper groups, publishing 240 regional papers in addition to the national ''Daily Mirror'', ''Su ...
, a company that he ran and in which he held a large share of ownership, to support its share price. Pension funds in excess of £400m were said to be missing, and 32,000 people were affected. Two of Maxwell's brothers,
Ian Ian or Iain is a name of Scottish Gaelic origin, which is derived from the Hebrew given name ( Yohanan, ') and corresponds to the English name John. The spelling Ian is an Anglicization of the Scottish Gaelic forename ''Iain''. This name is a po ...
and
Kevin Kevin is the anglicized form of the Irish masculine given name (; ; ; Latinized as ). It is composed of "dear; noble"; Old Irish and ("birth"; Old Irish ). The variant ''Kevan'' is anglicised from , an Irish diminutive form.''A Dictiona ...
, who were the most involved with their father in daily business dealings, were arrested on 19 June 1992 and charged with fraud related to the Mirror Group pension scandal. The brothers were acquitted three and a half years later in January 1996. Maxwell moved to the United States in 1991, shortly after her father's death. Maxwell was provided with an annual income of £80,000 () from a trust fund established in Liechtenstein by her father. By 1992, she had moved to an apartment of an Iranian friend overlooking
Central Park Central Park is an urban park between the Upper West Side and Upper East Side neighborhoods of Manhattan in New York City, and the first landscaped park in the United States. It is the List of parks in New York City, sixth-largest park in the ...
. At the time, Maxwell worked at a real estate office on
Madison Avenue Madison Avenue is a north-south avenue in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, New York, that carries northbound one-way traffic. It runs from Madison Square (at 23rd Street) to meet the southbound Harlem River Drive at 142nd Stree ...
and was reported to be socialising with celebrities. She quickly rose to wider prominence as a New York City socialite.


Relationship with Jeffrey Epstein

Accounts differ on when Maxwell first met American financier
Jeffrey Epstein Jeffrey Edward Epstein ( , ; January 20, 1953August 10, 2019) was an American financier and child sex offender. Born and raised in New York City, Epstein began his professional career as a teacher at the Dalton School, despite lacking a col ...
. According to Epstein's former business partner, Steven Hoffenberg, Robert Maxwell introduced his daughter to Epstein in the late 1980s. ''The Times'' reported that Maxwell met Epstein in the early 1990s at a New York party following "a difficult break-up with Count Gianfranco Cicogna Mozzoni" (1962–2012) of the CIGA Hotels clan. Maxwell had a romantic relationship with Epstein for several years in the early 1990s and remained closely associated with him for more than 25 years until his death in 2019. The nature of their relationship remains unclear. In a 2009 deposition, several of Epstein's household employees testified that Epstein referred to her as his "main girlfriend" who also hired, fired, and supervised his staff, starting around 1992. She has also been referred to as the "Lady of the House" by Epstein's staff and as his "aggressive assistant". In a 2003 ''Vanity Fair'' profile on Epstein, author
Vicky Ward Victoria Penelope Jane Ward (born 3 July 1969) is a British-born American author, investigative journalist, editor-at-large, and television commentator. She was a Senior Reporter at CNN and a former magazine and newspaper editor who has featured ...
said Epstein referred to Maxwell as "my best friend". Ward also observed that Maxwell seemed "to organize much of his life". ''
Politico ''Politico'' (stylized in all caps), known originally as ''The Politico'', is an American political digital newspaper company founded by American banker and media executive Robert Allbritton in 2007. It covers politics and policy in the Unit ...
'' reported that Maxwell and Epstein had friendships with several prominent individuals in elite circles of politics, academia, business and law, including President
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
,
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
, attorney
Alan Dershowitz Alan Morton Dershowitz ( ; born September 1, 1938) is an American lawyer and law professor known for his work in U.S. constitutional law, U.S. constitutional and American criminal law, criminal law. From 1964 to 2013, he taught at Harvard Law Sc ...
, and
Prince Andrew, Duke of York Prince Andrew, Duke of York (Andrew Albert Christian Edward; born 19 February 1960) is a member of the British royal family. He is the third child and second son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and a younger bro ...
. Maxwell is known for her longstanding friendship with
Prince Andrew Prince Andrew, Duke of York (Andrew Albert Christian Edward; born 19 February 1960) is a member of the British royal family. He is the third child and second son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and a younger broth ...
, and for having escorted him to a "hookers and pimps" social function in New York. In a November 2019 interview with the BBC, Andrew said that the two had known each other since Maxwell was an undergraduate at Oxford. She introduced Epstein to Prince Andrew, and the three often socialised together. In 2000, Maxwell and Epstein attended a party thrown by Prince Andrew at the Queen's
Sandringham House Sandringham House is a country house in the parish of Sandringham, Norfolk, England. It is one of the royal residences of Charles III, whose grandfather, George VI, and great-grandfather, George V, both died there. The house stands in a est ...
estate in
Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...
, England, reportedly for Maxwell's 39th birthday. In his November 2019 interview with the BBC, Prince Andrew confirmed that Maxwell and Epstein had attended an event at his invitation, but he denied that it was anything more than a "straightforward shooting weekend". In 1995, Epstein renamed one of his companies the Ghislaine Corporation; based in Palm Beach, Florida, the company was dissolved in 1998. As a trained helicopter pilot, Maxwell also transported Epstein to his private Caribbean island. In 2008, Epstein was convicted of soliciting a minor for prostitution and served 13 months of an 18-month jail sentence. Following Epstein's release, although Maxwell continued to attend prominent social functions, she and Epstein were no longer seen together publicly. By late 2015, Maxwell had largely retreated from attending social functions.


Civil cases and accusations


Civil suits


''Virginia Giuffre v Maxwell'' (2015)

Details of a civil lawsuit, made public in January 2015, contained a deposition from "Jane Doe3" that accused Maxwell of recruiting her in 1999, when she was a minor, and grooming her to provide sexual services for Epstein: A 2018 exposé by
Julie K. Brown Julie K. Brown (born 1961) is an American investigative journalist with the ''Miami Herald'' best known for pursuing the sex trafficking story surrounding Jeffrey Epstein, who in 2008 was allowed to plead guilty to two state-level prostitution of ...
in the ''
Miami Herald The ''Miami Herald'' is an American daily newspaper owned by McClatchy, The McClatchy Company and headquartered in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Founded in 1903, it is the fifth-largest newspaper in Florida, serving Miami-Dade, Broward County, Fl ...
'' revealed Jane Doe3 to be
Virginia Giuffre Virginia Louise Giuffre (''née'' Roberts; August 9, 1983 – April 25, 2025) was an American Australians, American-Australian accuser of child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, and a campaigner who offered support to survivors of sex trafficking. ...
, who was previously known as Virginia Roberts. Giuffre met Maxwell at Donald Trump's
Mar-a-Lago Mar-a-Lago ( , ) is a resort and National Historic Landmark on a barrier island in Palm Beach, Florida, United States. It spans 126 rooms and built on of land. Since 1985, it has been owned by Donald Trump, the 45th and 47th president of t ...
Club in Palm Beach, Florida, when Giuffre was a 16-year-old spa attendant. She asserted that Maxwell had introduced her to Epstein, after which she was " groomed by the two
f them F, or f, is the sixth letter of the Latin alphabet and many modern alphabets influenced by it, including the modern English alphabet and the alphabets of all other modern western European languages. Its name in English is ''ef'' (pronounce ...
for his pleasure, including lessons in Epstein's preferences during oral sex". Maxwell repeatedly denied any involvement in Epstein's crimes. In a 2015 statement, Maxwell rejected allegations that she has acted as a procurer for Epstein and denied that she had "facilitated Prince Andrew's llegedacts of sexual abuse". Her spokesperson said "the allegations made against Ghislaine Maxwell are untrue" and she "strongly denies allegations of an unsavoury nature, which have appeared in the British press and elsewhere, and reserves her right to seek redress at the repetition of such old defamatory claims". Giuffre asserted that Maxwell and Epstein had trafficked her and other underage girls, often at sex parties hosted by Epstein at his homes in New York,
New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...
, Palm Beach, and the
United States Virgin Islands The United States Virgin Islands, officially the Virgin Islands of the United States, are a group of Caribbean islands and a territory of the United States. The islands are geographically part of the Virgin Islands archipelago and are located ...
. Maxwell called her a liar. Giuffre sued Maxwell for
defamation Defamation is a communication that injures a third party's reputation and causes a legally redressable injury. The precise legal definition of defamation varies from country to country. It is not necessarily restricted to making assertions ...
in federal court in the
Southern District of New York The Southern District of New York is a federal judicial district that encompasses the counties of New York (Manhattan), Bronx, Westchester, Rockland, Putnam, Orange, Dutchess, and Sullivan. Federal offices or agencies operating in the distri ...
in 2015. While details of the settlement have not been made public, in May 2017 the case was settled in Giuffre's favour, with Maxwell paying Giuffre "millions". Giuffre's family reported that she committed suicide on 25 April 2025, at her farm in Australia. She was 41, and had three children.


''Sarah Ransome v Epstein and Maxwell'' (2017)

In 2017, Sarah Ransome filed a suit, in the
United States District Court for the Southern District of New York The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (in case citations, S.D.N.Y.) is a federal trial court whose geographic jurisdiction encompasses eight counties of the State of New York. Two of these are in New York Ci ...
, against Epstein and Maxwell, alleging that Maxwell hired her to give massages to Epstein and later threatened to physically harm her or destroy her career prospects if she did not comply with their sexual demands at his mansion in New York and on his private
Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...
island of Little Saint James, in the
United States Virgin Islands The United States Virgin Islands, officially the Virgin Islands of the United States, are a group of Caribbean islands and a territory of the United States. The islands are geographically part of the Virgin Islands archipelago and are located ...
. The suit was settled in 2018 under undisclosed terms.


Affidavit filed by Maria Farmer (2019)

On 16 April 2019,
Maria Farmer Maria K. Farmer (born 1969 or 1970) is an American visual artist known for providing the first criminal complaint to law enforcement, to the New York City Police Department and to the FBI, in 1996 about the conduct of financier and convicted sex ...
went public and filed a sworn affidavit in federal court in New York, alleging that she and her 15-year-old sister, Annie, had been sexually assaulted by Epstein and Maxwell in separate locations in 1996. Farmer's affidavit was filed in support of a defamation suit by Virginia Giuffre against Alan Dershowitz. According to the affidavit, Farmer had met Maxwell and Epstein at a New York art gallery reception in 1995. The affidavit says that in the summer of the following year, they hired her to work on an art project in billionaire businessman
Leslie Wexner Leslie may refer to: * Leslie (name), a name and list of people with the given name or surname, including fictional characters Families * Clan Leslie, a Scottish clan with the motto "grip fast" * Leslie (Russian nobility), a Russian noble famil ...
's Ohio mansion, where she was then sexually assaulted by both Maxwell and Epstein. Farmer reported the incident to the New York Police Department and the FBI. Her affidavit also stated that during the same summer, Epstein flew Annie to his New Mexico property where he and Maxwell molested her on a massage table. Farmer was interviewed for ''
CBS This Morning ''CBS This Morning'' (''CTM'') is an American morning television program that aired on CBS from November 30, 1987 to October 29, 1999, and again from January 9, 2012 to September 6, 2021. On November 1, 1999, the original incarnation was repla ...
'' in November 2019 where she detailed the 1996 assault and alleged that Maxwell had threatened both her career and her life after the assault.


''Jennifer Araoz v Epstein's estate, Maxwell, and Jane Does 1–3'' (2019)

On 14 August 2019, Jennifer Araoz filed a lawsuit in New York County Supreme Court against Epstein's estate, Maxwell, and three unnamed members of his staff; the lawsuit was made possible under New York state's new Child Victims Act, which took effect on the same date. Araoz later amended her complaint on 8 October 2019 with the names of the previously unidentified women enablers to include Lesley Groff, Cimberly Espinosa, and the late Rosalyn Fontanilla.


''Priscilla Doe v Epstein's estate'' (2019)

Ghislaine Maxwell was named in one of three lawsuits filed in New York on 20 August 2019 against the estate of Jeffrey Epstein. The woman filing the suit, identified as "Priscilla Doe", claimed that she was recruited in 2006 and trained by Maxwell with step-by-step instructions on how to provide sexual services for Epstein.


''Annie Farmer v Maxwell and Epstein's Estate'' (2019)

Annie Farmer, represented by
David Boies David Boies ( ; born March 11, 1941) is an American lawyer and chairman of the law firm Boies, Schiller & Flexner, Boies Schiller Flexner LLP. Boies rose to national prominence for three major cases: leading the U.S. federal government's succes ...
, sued Maxwell and Epstein's estate in Federal District Court in Manhattan in November 2019, accusing them of rape, battery and false imprisonment and seeking unspecified damages.


''Jane Doe v Maxwell and Epstein's Estate'' (2020)

In January 2020, a lawsuit was filed against Maxwell and Epstein alleging that they recruited a 13-year-old music student at the
Interlochen Center for the Arts Interlochen Center for the Arts ( '; also known as I.C.A. or Inty) is a Nonprofit organization, non-profit corporation which operates Visual arts education, arts education institutions and Music venue, performance venues. Established in 1928 b ...
in the summer of 1994 and subjected her to sexual abuse. The suit states that Jane Doe was repeatedly sexually assaulted by Epstein over a four-year period and that Maxwell played a key role both in her recruitment and by participating in the assaults. According to the lawsuit, Jane Doe was targeted by Epstein and Maxwell for being fatherless and from a struggling family, in much the same manner as many of the other alleged victims.


''Maxwell v Epstein's Estate, Darren K. Indyke, Richard D. Kahn, and NES LLC'' (2020)

On 12 March 2020, Maxwell filed a lawsuit in Superior Court in the US Virgin Islands seeking compensation from Epstein's estate for her legal costs. Maxwell claimed she had been a longtime employee of Epstein (from 1998 to 2006) who had served to manage his property holdings in the US Virgin Islands, New York, New Mexico, Florida and Paris while continuing to deny any knowledge or involvement in his criminal activities. According to the lawsuit, Maxwell was seeking damages for the legal fees associated with defending herself against her accusers, expenses that she claims Epstein had promised to cover for her.


''Jane Doe v Epstein's estate'' (2021)

Maxwell was named in a civil suit filed against Epstein's estate in March 2021 by a
Broward County Broward County ( ) is a County (United States), county in Florida, United States, located in the Miami metropolitan area. It is Florida's second-most populous county after Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County and the List of the most ...
woman who accused Epstein and Maxwell of trafficking her after repeatedly raping her in Florida in 2008.


Dispute over release of court documents

On 2 July 2019, the
US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (in case citations, 2d Cir.) is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. Its territory covers the states of Connecticut, New York, and Vermont, and it has appellate jurisdict ...
ordered the unsealing of documents from the earlier civil suit against Maxwell by Virginia Giuffre. Jeffrey Epstein was arrested on 6 July 2019 at
Teterboro Airport Teterboro Airport is a general aviation relief airport situated in the boroughs of Teterboro, Moonachie, and Hasbrouck Heights in Bergen County, New Jersey.sex trafficking Sex trafficking is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation. Perpetrators of the crime are called sex traffickers or pimps—people who manipulate victims to engage in various forms of commercial sex with paying customers. Se ...
and sex trafficking conspiracy. Maxwell requested a rehearing in a federal appeals court on 17 July 2019, in an effort to keep documents sealed that were part of a suit by Giuffre. On 9 August 2019, the first batch of documents was unsealed and released from the earlier defamation suit by Giuffre against Maxwell. Epstein was found dead on 10 August 2019, after reportedly hanging himself in his Manhattan prison cell. Maxwell and her lawyers continued to argue against the further release of court documents in December 2019. Reuters confirmed on 27 December 2019 that Maxwell was under investigation by the FBI for facilitating Epstein's criminal activities. Additional documents from the ''Giuffre v Maxwell'' defamation suit were released on 30 July 2020. The documents included a deposition given by Giuffre and more recent email exchanges between Maxwell and Epstein, with some of the correspondence from 2015. On 3 January 2024, over 900 pages of previously sealed documents relating to Giuffre's civil case against Maxwell were made public following litigation by the ''
Miami Herald The ''Miami Herald'' is an American daily newspaper owned by McClatchy, The McClatchy Company and headquartered in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Founded in 1903, it is the fifth-largest newspaper in Florida, serving Miami-Dade, Broward County, Fl ...
''; further documents were released on 4 January.


Attempts to locate Maxwell to serve court documents

On 27 December 2019,
Reuters Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide writing in 16 languages. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world. The agency ...
reported that Maxwell was among those under
FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
investigation for facilitating Epstein. After his arrest, Maxwell was in hiding, communicating with the courts only through her lawyers who, as of 30 January 2020, had refused to accept on her behalf service of three lawsuits against her. ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' reported that by 2016, Maxwell was no longer being photographed at events. By 2017, her lawyers claimed before a judge that they did not know her address; they further stated that she was in London but they did not believe she had a permanent residence. Maxwell has a history of being unreachable during legal proceedings. During the lawsuit filed in 2017 from Ransome against Maxwell, District Judge
John G. Koeltl John George Koeltl (; born October 25, 1945) is a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York in Manhattan. Early life and education Koeltl was born in New York City. He graduated from ...
granted a motion for "alternative service" on the grounds that the plaintiff's efforts to reach Maxwell were persistently thwarted; these included hiring a private investigation firm that attempted service at three physical addresses, sending information to several email addresses, and reaching out to the lawyers actively representing Maxwell in another lawsuit who refused to become a "general agent of process" to relay the information to her. According to court documents from a lawsuit filed by Epstein against Bradley Edwards (a representative for several of his accusers), in 2010 Maxwell had agreed to provide a deposition in the case but reportedly left the country one day before Edwards was scheduled to fly to New York to take her deposition, "claiming she needed to return to the United Kingdom to be with her deathly ill mother" with no intention of returning to the United States. However, Maxwell returned within a month to attend
Chelsea Clinton Chelsea Victoria Clinton (born February 27, 1980) is an American writer. She is the only child of former U.S. President Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton, a former U.S. Secretary of State and U.S. Senator. Clinton was born in Little Rock, Ar ...
's wedding. In January 2020, it was reported that Maxwell had refused to allow her lawyers to be served with several lawsuits in which she has been directly named in 2019 and 2020, including one by Farmer and from Araoz. While Maxwell's lawyers continued to argue on her behalf against the release of additional court documents from the ''Giuffre v Maxwell'' lawsuit, they claimed to not know where she was or to have permission to accept the lawsuits filed against her. Authorities in the
United States Virgin Islands The United States Virgin Islands, officially the Virgin Islands of the United States, are a group of Caribbean islands and a territory of the United States. The islands are geographically part of the Virgin Islands archipelago and are located ...
(USVI) were unsuccessful in locating Maxwell during the three and a half months they were seeking to serve her with a subpoena. USVI prosecutors consider Maxwell to be a "critical fact witness" in their lawsuit against Epstein's estate. A court filing from the USVI Department of Justice, released on 10 July 2020, stated that Maxwell was also under investigation for her alleged participation in Epstein's sex trafficking operation in the US Virgin Islands.


Criminal charges


Arrest and indictment

Maxwell faced persistent allegations of procuring and sexually trafficking underage girls for Epstein and others, charges she denied. Maxwell was arrested in
Bradford, New Hampshire Bradford is a town in Merrimack County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 1,662 at the 2020 census. The main village of the town, where 372 people resided at the 2020 census, is defined as the Bradford census-designated place (CDP ...
by the
FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
on 2 July 2020, through the use of an IMSI-catcher ("stingray") mobile phone tracking device on a phone used by her to call one of her lawyers, her husband Scott Borgerson, and her sister Isabel. Prosecutors, led by United States District Attorney Audrey Strauss, charged Maxwell with six federal crimes, including enticement of minors,
sex trafficking Sex trafficking is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation. Perpetrators of the crime are called sex traffickers or pimps—people who manipulate victims to engage in various forms of commercial sex with paying customers. Se ...
of children, and
perjury Perjury (also known as forswearing) is the intentional act of swearing a false oath or falsifying an affirmation to tell the truth, whether spoken or in writing, concerning matters material to an official proceeding."Perjury The act or an insta ...
. The indictment charged that between 1994 and 1997, she "assisted, facilitated, and contributed" to the abuse of minor girls despite knowing that one of three unnamed victims was 14 years old. , Maxwell was held at the
Metropolitan Detention Center, Brooklyn The Metropolitan Detention Center, Brooklyn (MDC Brooklyn) is a List of United States federal prisons#Administrative facilities, United States federal administrative detention facility in the Sunset Park, Brooklyn, Sunset Park neighborhood of ...
, New York. ''(search Ghislaine Maxwell's BOP Register Number: 02879-509)'' Lawyers requested that Judge Nathan release her on $5 million bond with monitored home confinement while awaiting trial. Maxwell appeared by video link before a court in Manhattan on 14 July 2020 and pleaded not guilty to the charges. A naturalised US citizen since 2002 who also holds passports from France and the United Kingdom, Maxwell was denied bail as a flight risk amid concerns regarding her "completely opaque" finances, her skill at living in hiding, and the fact that France does not
extradite In an extradition, one jurisdiction delivers a person accused or convicted of committing a crime in another jurisdiction, into the custody of the other's law enforcement. It is a cooperative law enforcement procedure between the two jurisdict ...
its citizens. The judge set a trial date of 12 July 2021. Maxwell's attorney reiterated her request for bail on 18 December 2020, and proposed that Maxwell reside with a friend in New York City while under 24-hour surveillance as she awaited trial. Her husband, Scott Borgerson, made a secured offer of US$22 million to guarantee her presence at future appearances. On 28 December 2020, a further request for bail was again rejected by the judge. Maxwell's bail request was opposed by alleged victim Annie Farmer. On 19 January 2021, a court hearing was disrupted by believers in
QAnon QAnon ( ) is a far-right conspiracy theories in United States politics, American political conspiracy theory and political movement that originated in 2017. QAnon centers on fabricated claims made by an anonymous individual or individuals kno ...
– who believe Maxwell to be working in cohort with a
cabal A cabal is a group of people who are united in some close design, usually to promote their private views or interests in an ideology, a state (polity), state, or another community, often by Wiktionary:intrigue, intrigue and usually without the kn ...
of child-sacrificing
Satanist Satanism refers to a group of religious, ideological, or philosophical beliefs based on Satan—particularly his worship or veneration. Because of the ties to the historical Abrahamic religious figure, Satanism—as well as other religious ...
liberal elites who traffic children for sex – as the proceedings were illegally
livestreamed Livestreaming, live-streaming, or live streaming is the streaming of video or audio in real time or near real time. While often referred to simply as ''streaming'', the real-time nature of livestreaming differentiates it from other non- live ...
to
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
. On 26 January 2021, a motion by Maxwell's attorneys challenged her grand jury indictment, claiming that it did not reflect the ethnic diversity of the jurisdiction in which the violations of the law were alleged to have occurred. On 29 March 2021, US prosecutors added new charges of sex trafficking a minor and sex trafficking conspiracy, alleging that Maxwell was involved in grooming a fourth girl, aged 14, to engage in sexual acts with Epstein between 2001 and 2004 at his residence in Palm Beach. Maxwell pleaded not guilty to the additional charges; she faced six counts that included sex trafficking of a minor and sex trafficking conspiracy, in addition to two counts of perjury. Maxwell's attorneys regularly protested about the conditions of her confinement, which included being kept awake by a light shone in her eyes every fifteen minutes to deter the chances of her committing suicide, and being denied a sleep mask. One, David Markus, protested, "There's no evidence she's suicidal. They're doing it because Jeffrey Epstein died on their watch", and "She's not Jeffrey Epstein, this isn't right".


Sex-trafficking trial

In April 2021, US District Judge Alison Nathan ruled that Maxwell would face two separate trials, one for the sex trafficking charges and another for perjury. Nathan delayed the first trial to 29 November 2021 after Maxwell's defence lawyers successfully argued that the new charges added in March 2021 did not give them enough time to prepare for trial. Maxwell appeared in court on 15 November 2021. The trial commenced on 29 November with opening statements. Twelve jurors had been picked, plus six alternates, from a pool of forty to sixty people. Psychology professor
Elizabeth Loftus Elizabeth F. Loftus (born 1944) is an American psychologist who is best known in relation to the misinformation effect, false memory and criticism of recovered memory therapies. Loftus's research includes the effects of phrasing on the percep ...
was called as an
expert witness An expert witness, particularly in common law countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, and the United States, is a person whose opinion by virtue of education, training, certification, skills or experience, is accepted by the judge as ...
for the defence and provided testimony on
false memory syndrome In psychology, false memory syndrome (FMS) was a proposed "pattern of beliefs and behaviors" in which a person's identity and relationships are affected by false memories of psychological trauma, recollections which are strongly believed by the i ...
. Maxwell chose not to testify, telling the judge "Your honour, the government has not proved its case beyond a reasonable doubt. So there is no need for me to testify." A spokesperson for Maxwell's family had previously said she was "too fragile" to testify. In early December 2021, Twitter suspended the account "@TrackerTrial", an account monitoring Maxwell's trial. The account was two weeks old and had 525,000 followers before its
suspension Suspension or suspended may refer to: Science and engineering * Car suspension * Cell suspension or suspension culture, in biology * Guarded suspension, a software design pattern in concurrent programming suspending a method call and the calling ...
. On 28 December, as infections from COVID-19 rose in the city, judge Nathan extended the jury's sitting times, as she was concerned that juror infections would raise the possibility of a
mistrial In law, a trial is a coming together of parties to a dispute, to present information (in the form of evidence) in a tribunal, a formal setting with the authority to adjudicate claims or disputes. One form of tribunal is a court. The tribunal, ...
.


Conviction

On 29 December 2021, Maxwell was convicted by a jury in US federal court on five
sex trafficking Sex trafficking is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation. Perpetrators of the crime are called sex traffickers or pimps—people who manipulate victims to engage in various forms of commercial sex with paying customers. Se ...
-related counts carrying a potential
custodial sentence A custodial sentence is a judicial sentence, imposing a punishment consisting of mandatory custody of the convict, either in prison or in some other closed therapeutic or educational institution, such as a reformatory, (maximum security) psychi ...
of up to 65 years' imprisonment: one of sex trafficking of a minor (maximum: 40 years), one of transporting a
minor Minor may refer to: Common meanings * Minor (law), a person not under the age of certain legal activities. * Academic minor, a secondary field of study in undergraduate education Mathematics * Minor (graph theory), a relation of one graph to an ...
with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity (10 years) and three of
conspiracy A conspiracy, also known as a plot, ploy, or scheme, is a secret plan or agreement between people (called conspirers or conspirators) for an unlawful or harmful purpose, such as murder, treason, or corruption, especially with a political motivat ...
to commit
choate Choate may refer to: Places Canada * Choate, British Columbia, a locality in the Fraser Canyon of British Columbia, Canada United States * Choate Mental Health and Development Center, a psychiatric hospital in Anna, Illinois * Choate Rosemary Hal ...
felonies (15 years total). Maxwell was acquitted on the charge of enticing a minor to travel to engage in illegal sex acts. Maxwell's family said the appeal process had begun. The only witness to use her real name during her testimony, Annie Farmer, spoke out after the trial saying, "I hope that this verdict brings solace to all who need it... Even those with great power and privilege will be held accountable when they sexually abuse and exploit the young." A retrial was sought on the grounds that a juror did not disclose during jury selection that he had been sexually abused as a child. He had shared a narrative of that abuse with other jurors during the proceedings. On 1 April 2022, the judge found that the juror's failure to disclose his abuse as a child did not warrant a new trial and dismissed Maxwell's request to set aside the verdict. On 28 June 2022, Maxwell was sentenced to 20 years in prison; prosecutors were seeking a sentence of at least 30 years. She complained of threats coming from jail staff in the days prior to sentencing, but gave no details about the nature of the threats. Although she had been placed on suicide watch on 24 June, she told the psychiatric team that she was not suicidal. A related request by her lawyers for a sentencing delay was denied. She appealed the conviction on 7 July. On 25 July 2022, Maxwell was transferred from
Metropolitan Detention Center, Brooklyn The Metropolitan Detention Center, Brooklyn (MDC Brooklyn) is a List of United States federal prisons#Administrative facilities, United States federal administrative detention facility in the Sunset Park, Brooklyn, Sunset Park neighborhood of ...
to a low security federal prison for female inmates at FCI Tallahassee. She is scheduled to be released on 17 July 2037. In August 2022, her former lawyers sued Maxwell, alleging that she failed to pay $878,000 in legal fees. On 17 September 2024, three judges at Manhattan's Second US Circuit Court of Appeals upheld Maxwell's five convictions and sentence. In response, her lawyer said she would appeal to the
US Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all Federal tribunals in the United States, U.S. federal court cases, and over Stat ...
.


Perjury trial

Maxwell faces a second criminal trial for
perjury Perjury (also known as forswearing) is the intentional act of swearing a false oath or falsifying an affirmation to tell the truth, whether spoken or in writing, concerning matters material to an official proceeding."Perjury The act or an insta ...
on two charges that she lied under oath during a civil suit in 2015 about Epstein's abuse of underage girls. Each count carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. Prosecutors have said that perjury charges will be dropped if she is sentenced on schedule. Following a petition for a new trial, submitted under seal, prosecutors told the judge on 4 February 2022 that Maxwell's arguments for a retrial must be "publicly docketed"; the judge said that the reasons for making the submission under seal must be made public.


TerraMar Project

In 2012, Maxwell founded
the TerraMar Project The TerraMar Project was a self-described environmental nonprofit organization. It was founded in 2012 in the United States by convicted sex offender Ghislaine Maxwell. A sister organisation in the United Kingdom was incorporated in 2013. TerraMa ...
, a nonprofit organisation that advocated the protection of oceans. She gave a lecture for TerraMar at the
University of Texas at Dallas The University of Texas at Dallas (UTD or UT Dallas) is a public research university in Richardson, Texas, United States. It is the northernmost institution of the University of Texas System. It was initially founded in 1961 as a private res ...
and a
TED talk TED Conferences, LLC (Technology, Entertainment, Design) is an American-Canadian non-profit media organization that posts international talks online for free distribution under the slogan "Ideas Change Everything" (previously "Ideas Worth Sprea ...
, at TEDx Charlottesville in 2014. Maxwell accompanied Stuart Beck, a 2013 TerraMar board member, to two United Nations meetings to discuss the project. The TerraMar Project announced its closure on 12 July 2019, less than a week after the charges of sex trafficking brought by New York federal prosecutors against Epstein became public. An associated, UK-based company, Terramar (UK), listed Maxwell as a director. An application for the United Kingdom organisation to be closed was made on 4 September 2019, with the first notice in ''
The London Gazette ''The London Gazette'', known generally as ''The Gazette'', is one of the official journals of record or government gazettes of the Government of the United Kingdom, and the most important among such official journals in the United Kingdom, i ...
'' made on 17 September 2019. The company Terramar (UK) was listed as officially dissolved on 3 December 2019.


Personal life

Since at least 1997, Maxwell has maintained a residence in
Belgravia Belgravia () is a district in Central London, covering parts of the areas of the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Belgravia was known as the 'Five Fields' during the Tudor Period, and became a dangerous pla ...
, London. In 2000, Maxwell moved into a townhouse on East 65th Street, New York City, fewer than 10 blocks from Epstein's mansion. Maxwell's townhouse was purchased for US$4.95 million by an anonymous
limited liability company A limited liability company (LLC) is the United States-specific form of a private limited company. It is a business structure that can combine the pass-through taxation of a partnership or sole proprietorship with the limited liability of ...
, with an address that matches the office of J. Epstein & Co. Representing the buyer was Darren Indyke, Epstein's longtime lawyer. In April 2016, the property was sold for US$15 million. Following her personal and professional involvement with Epstein, Maxwell was romantically linked for several years to
Ted Waitt Theodore William "Ted" Waitt (born January 18, 1963) is an American billionaire businessman and philanthropist. Waitt is a co-founder of Gateway, Inc.
, founder of
Gateway Computers Gateway, Inc., previously Gateway 2000, Inc., was an American computer company originally based in Iowa and South Dakota. Founded by Ted Waitt and Mike Hammond in 1985, the company developed, manufactured, supported, and marketed a wide range of ...
. She attended the wedding of
Chelsea Clinton Chelsea Victoria Clinton (born February 27, 1980) is an American writer. She is the only child of former U.S. President Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton, a former U.S. Secretary of State and U.S. Senator. Clinton was born in Little Rock, Ar ...
in 2010 as Waitt's guest. Maxwell helped Waitt obtain and renovate a luxury yacht, the ''Plan B'', and used it for travel to France and
Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...
before their relationship ended, in late 2010 or early 2011. On 15 August 2019, reports surfaced that Maxwell had been living in
Manchester-by-the-Sea, Massachusetts Manchester-by-the-Sea (also known simply as Manchester, its name prior to 1990) is a coastal town on Cape Ann, in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The town is known for scenic beaches and vista points. According to the 2020 populati ...
, in the home of Scott G. Borgerson, a
Council on Foreign Relations The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) is an American think tank focused on Foreign policy of the United States, U.S. foreign policy and international relations. Founded in 1921, it is an independent and nonpartisan 501(c)(3) nonprofit organi ...
fellow in residence, since 2007, who, in October 2020, due to the publicity surrounding Maxwell, stepped down as CEO of CargoMetrics, a
hedge fund A hedge fund is a Pooling (resource management), pooled investment fund that holds Market liquidity, liquid assets and that makes use of complex trader (finance), trading and risk management techniques to aim to improve investment performance and ...
he had founded. Maxwell and Borgerson were described as having been in a romantic relationship for several years. Locals in the town of Manchester-by-the-Sea said Maxwell had kept a low profile, went by "G" instead of her full first name, and had been seen on several occasions walking a
Vizsla The Vizsla (), also known as Hungarian Vizsla, Magyar Vizsla or Hungarian Pointer, is a dog breed from Hungary and belongs to the Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI) group 7 ( Pointing Dogs), the Canadian Kennel Club (CKC) group 1 ( ...
dog along the beach. Borgerson and Maxwell filed documents in Massachusetts Land Court about Borgerson's residence, known as Phippin House, during a civil dispute with neighbours regarding rescinded access rights to the larger Sharksmouth Estate in 2019. A neighbouring property manager attested that Maxwell and Borgerson were living together at the property in question. Others have said they had been seen repeatedly running together in the mornings. Borgerson stated in August 2019 that Maxwell was not currently living at the home and that he did not know where she was. On 15 August 2019, the ''
New York Post The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is an American Conservatism in the United States, conservative daily Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates three online sites: NYPost. ...
'' published photographs of Maxwell dining at a fast-food restaurant in Los Angeles, claiming that "''The Post'' found the socialite hiding in plain sight in the least likely place imaginable — a fast-food joint in Los Angeles". The photos were later proven to have been taken at a meeting with Maxwell's friend and attorney Leah Saffian, who also gave other pictures to the ''
Daily Mail The ''Daily Mail'' is a British daily Middle-market newspaper, middle-market Tabloid journalism, tabloid conservative newspaper founded in 1896 and published in London. , it has the List of newspapers in the United Kingdom by circulation, h ...
''. Maxwell moved to a remote property in Bradford, New Hampshire, in late 2019, where she used former British military personnel as personal security until her arrest in July 2020. At the time of her
arraignment Arraignment is a formal reading of a criminal charging document in the presence of the defendant, to inform them of the criminal charges against them. In response to arraignment, in some jurisdictions, the accused is expected to enter a plea; i ...
, federal prosecutors stated that Maxwell was married; she did not disclose the identity of her spouse, or their respective finances. In December 2020, it emerged that she had married Borgerson in 2016.


References


External links


Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator — GHISLAINE NOELLE MAXWELL Register Number: 02879-509

Right Hand Woman
27:21 video, ''60 Minutes,'' Australia, 2020
Exposing Jeffrey Epstein's international sex trafficking ring
45:16 video, ''60 Minutes'', Australia, 2019
Unsealed Court Documents from Giuffre vs. Maxwell
released 2019 (74 pages)
United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit from Brown v. Maxwell; Dershowitz v. Giuffre
released 2019 {{DEFAULTSORT:Maxwell, Ghislaine 1961 births 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century English businesspeople 21st-century American criminals 21st-century English criminals 21st-century French criminals Alumni of Balliol College, Oxford American female criminals American women founders American people convicted of child sexual abuse American people of French descent American people of Slovak-Jewish descent American prisoners and detainees American socialites Articles containing video clips British people convicted of child sexual abuse British people of Slovak-Jewish descent English expatriates in the United States English female criminals English founders English people of French descent English people of Jewish descent English prisoners and detainees English socialites French expatriates in the United States French people convicted of child sexual abuse French people of Jewish descent French people of Slovak descent French prisoners and detainees French female criminals French socialites Women helicopter pilots Jeffrey Epstein Living people Maxwell family Naturalized citizens of the United States Oxford United F.C. non-playing staff People charged with perjury People convicted of sex trafficking People educated at Headington School People educated at Marlborough College People educated at Millfield Preparatory School People educated at Oxford High School, England People from Maisons-Laffitte Prisoners and detainees of the United States federal government Female sex offenders Child sexual abuse in the United States Child sexual abuse cover-ups Female perpetrators of sex trafficking