Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell questioned by DOJ about 'everything,' lawyer says
For a day and a half, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche questioned Maxwell about Epstein and others possibly involved in the notorious sex-trafficking operation. The interviews were held in Tallahassee, Florida, where the former British socialite is serving a 20-year prison sentence for helping Epstein sexually abuse teenage girls.
It's unclear what exactly came of the closed-door interviews, but David Markus, an attorney representing Maxwell, said his client answered all of the government's questions, including those of about 100 different people.
"She answered questions about everybody and she didn't hold anything back," he said. Markus did not name anyone who was mentioned, and he declined to say whether President Donald Trump was the focus of any of the Justice Department's questions.
Talks between the Justice Department and Maxwell came as the Trump administration faces mounting pressure to reverse its pledge not to release any more documents related to the Justice Department investigation into Epstein, a move that prompted fierce backlash from the president's most loyal followers.
On July 23, a federal judge in Florida rejected a bid from the Justice Department to unseal grand jury testimony from 2005 and 2007 tied to a federal investigation into Epstein, who hanged himself in a Manhattan jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges, an autopsy concluded.
Maxwell is seeking to overturn her conviction and has filed a petition with the Supreme Court, which the Justice Department has opposed. Her attorney said he believes Ghislaine deserves relief, but said no such offer has been made.
When asked if he would consider pardoning Maxwell, Trump told reporters 'It's something I haven't thought about."
Ghislaine Maxwell 'answered questions about everybody,' lawyer says
Markus told reporters after a second day of questioning that Ghislaine Maxwell answered questions "about 100 different people" during her meeting with the Justice Department.
"She literally answered every question," he said. "She was asked about maybe about 100 different people. She answered questions about everybody and she didn't hold anything back."
Markus did not say who was discussed at the meeting and did not provide any additional details about the talks. He added that the Justice Department's questions touched on "everything."
What has Ghislaine Maxwell said before?
Maxwell didn't testify in her criminal trial, but she was deposed in 2016 in a civil case brought by Epstein-victim Virginia Giuffre, who has since died by suicide.
In that deposition, Maxwell denied ever seeing "inappropriate underage activities" with Epstein and ever recruiting girls for sex activities with him. She refused to answer questions about what she described as possible consensual adult sex.
DOJ asked Supreme Court days ago to reject Ghislaine Maxwell's appeal
Less than two weeks before a top Justice Department official met with Ghislaine Maxwell to discuss the Epstein case, the department asked the Supreme Court to reject the sex trafficker's appeal seeking to overturn her conviction.
Maxwell in April filed a petition with the the nation's highest court. In the filing, her attorneys argued that Maxwell's conviction was invalid because an agreement federal prosecutors struck with Epstein in Florida shielded her and other associates from criminal charges.
In a filing on July 14, a Justice Department official urged the justices to reject Maxwell's appeal, saying that for 10 years she 'coordinated, facilitated, and contributed" to Epstein's abuse of young women and underage girls. The Justice Department also called Maxwell's arguments "misplaced" and "implausible."
In September, the justices are expected to consider whether to take up the appeal.
What is Trump's relationship to Maxwell?
Trump and Epstein were friends for many years, including when Maxwell was very close to Epstein.
'He's a lot of fun to be with," Trump told New York magazine of Epstein in 2002. "It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side."
Maxwell was arrested in July of 2020, while Trump was serving his first term as president. When he was asked by a reporter that month if Maxwell might turn in powerful men, potentially to cut a deal with prosecutors, he said he didn't know, but that he had warm wishes for her.
"I don't know. I haven't really been following it too much. I just wish her well, frankly," Trump said. "I've met her numerous times over the years, especially since I lived in Palm Beach."
Maxwell compiled a leather-bound book for Epstein's 50th birthday in early 2003 that included a lewd letter from Trump, according to a Wall Street Journal report. Trump denies he wrote the letter and has sued the Journal for libel.
Ghislaine Maxwell's lawyer says she has 'no reason to lie'
Markus, a Miami attorney representing Maxwell, said he hoped for 'another productive day' as he arrived July 25 at the U.S. Courthouse in Tallahassee.
'You know, Ghislaine has been treated unfairly for over five years now,' he said. 'If you looked up scapegoat in the dictionary, her face would be next to the dictionary definition of it. So we're grateful for this opportunity to finally be able to say what really happened – yesterday and today.'
Markus said he hopes Maxwell will be heard 'with an open mind, and that's what Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche has promised us. Everything she says can be corroborated and she's telling the truth. She's got no reason to lie at this point.'
Trump says he hasn't thought about pardoning Ghislaine Maxwell
President Donald Trump denied ever visiting Epstein's island and said he hasn't considered pardoning Ghislaine Maxwell, who is serving 20 years for conspiring to sexually abuse minors.
'I have nothing to do with the guy,' Trump told reporters of Epstein, who died by suicide in 2019 after being charged with sexually trafficking minors.
Lawmakers and others who followed the case have continued to push for the release of the investigative files in the case.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche met July 24 and 25 with Maxwell to ask what more she could say about the case. This led critics to question whether Trump would pardon her for cooperating.
'It's something I haven't thought about,' Trump said.
– Bart Jansen
What did Ghislaine Maxwell do, according to prosecutors?
According to prosecutors, Maxwell helped Jeffrey Epstein recruit, groom, and abuse minor girls from about 1994 to about 2004, including girls as young as 14 years old.
When was Ghislaine Maxwell arrested?
Maxwell was arrested in July of 2020, while President Donald Trump was serving his first term as president.
She was initially charged with conspiring to entice and transport minors for criminal sexual activity and actually enticing and transporting a minor for that purpose, as well as with perjury. A later, updated indictment added sex-trafficking charges.
Where is Ghislaine Maxwell serving prison sentence?
For the last three years, Maxwell has lived at FCI Tallahassee, a low-security women's prison that has faced scrutiny in recent years due to reports of dilapidated conditions and staff shortages.
The prison houses over 1,200 inmates altogether, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons. A surprise inspection in 2023 revealed "alarming" conditions, including inmates being served moldy or rotten food and living with "black substances" on walls and ceilings.
Inspectors also saw "likely evidence of rodent droppings," spotted leaks in the housing unit roofs and reported "concerning" staffing shortages.
Inmates housed inside the federal institution have access to a variety of "leisure time activities" and classes, including yoga, Pilates and a range of outdoor sports as well as arts and crafts programs, according to FCI Tallahassee's handbook.
DOJ's first meeting with Maxwell was 'very productive,' lawyer says
Markus, the Miami attorney representing Maxwell, described the first meeting between the former socialite and the Justice Department as "very productive."
Markus spoke with reporters outside the U.S. Courthouse in Tallahassee after he and Maxwell met for hours behind closed doors to field questions from Blanche about the Epstein case. He thanked Blanche for meeting with them and 'for being so professional with all of us.'
'He took a full day and asked a lot of questions, and Ms. Maxwell answered every single question,' Markus said. 'She never stopped. She never invoked her privilege. She never declined to answer. She answered all the questions truthfully, honestly and to the best of her ability.'
Prosecutors left through a back entrance without taking questions, and Maxwell was returned to FCI Tallahassee, the low-security women's prison where she has been incarcerated for the last three years.
Contributing: Josh Meyer, USA TODAY; Elena Barrera, Tallahassee Democrat; Reuters
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ghislaine Maxwell answered questions 'about everybody,' lawyer says
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