Who is Ghislaine Maxwell?

British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell has been found guilty of luring teenage girls to be sexually abused by American millionaire Jeffrey Epstein, who was her former boyfriend and a convicted pedophile. 

The 60-year-old was convicted Wednesday of conspiracy to entice a minor to travel to engage in illegal sex acts, conspiracy to transport a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, transporting a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of minors and sex trafficking of minors, the last of which carries a statutory maximum of 40 years in prison. She was acquitted of enticing a minor to travel to engage in illegal sex acts. The socialite could potentially spend the rest of her life behind bars.

Also Read: Sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s Manhattan mansion sold for $51 million

Who is Ghislaine Maxwell?

Born in 1961, Ghislaine Maxwell is the daughter of former British lawmaker Robert Maxwell, who died after falling off his luxury yacht near the Canary Islands in 1991. After Robert’s death, it was discovered that he had committed massive pension fraud against his employees. 

Following her father’s death, Ghislaine moved to the United States where she socialised in exclusive circles that included political leaders. She was reportedly invited to former first daughter Chelsea Clinton’s wedding and was also photographed with Donald Trump and Melania Trump.

Ghislaine dated Jeffrey Epstein for a while before they split in the 1990s. The two, however, remained close even after that. 

US federal indictment said she “had a personal and professional relationship with Jeffrey Epstein and was among his closest associates.”

Between 1994 and 1997, Epstein paid her to manage his various properties. During the same time, Ghislaine “assisted, facilitated, and contributed to Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse of minor girls 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,” the indictment says.

Epstein was arrested in July 2019 on charges of sex trafficking and conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking. He killed himself while awaiting trial in 2019. Ghislaine was taken into custody in July 2020. 

With inputs from the Associated Press