- Ghislaine Maxwell was arrested by the FBI in New Hampshire on federal charges related to the
sexual abuse of young girls. - Maxwell, Epstein's longtime girlfriend and confidante, is accused of grooming the minors who would then be sexually abused by the disgraced financier
Jeffrey Epstein . - A federal indictment out of the Southern District of New York brings six charges against the heiress.
- According to the indictment, Maxwell's role in the
abuse was to befriend the young girls, then normalize sexual abuse by talking about sex, undressing in front of them, and being in the room while they were engaging in sexual acts with Epstein. - Prosecutors say that Maxwell would entice the girls to give Epstein sexual massages, and participated in at least one "group massage" with a victim.
- The indictment is based on the allegations of three victims who were abused in the mid-1990s, but Epstein had previously been accused of abusing dozens of young girls. He died by suicide in a New York jail last August while facing charges related to sex trafficking.
- Maxwell is also charged with perjury. Prosecutors say Maxwell lied under oath during a 2016 civil suit related to the Epstein abuse when she testified that she was never in the presence of sex toys in the Palm Beach house, never gave a massage, and wasn't aware of Epstein having sex with anyone in the 1990s and 2000s other than herself and two others they had a consensual three-way with.
- When asked if Jeffrey Epstein schemed to recruit young girls for sexual massages, Maxwell said: "I don't know what you're talking about," according to the indictment. Prosecutors say that's also a lie.
- Read the full indictment below.
U S v Ghislaine Maxwell Indictment (Text)
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