NEW YORK—Ghislaine Maxwell, who was once an international, jet-setting socialite, was sentenced to 20 years in prison on June 28 for trafficking young women to be used for the sexual exploits of her employer and one-time romantic partner, Jeffrey Epstein.
The 60-year-old was convicted on Dec. 29 in federal court on five of six counts of sex trafficking, including one count of trafficking a minor.
During the trial, an expert witness testified about the “grooming” techniques Maxwell and Epstein used to lure their victims.
One such victim known to the court as “Kate,” referenced those techniques in a written statement submitted to the court prior to the sentencing hearing, saying in part, “It was the very skilled grooming perpetrated on me intentionally and consistently, that instilled in me the belief that I could not say no to Ghislaine Maxwell or Epstein.
“I witnessed on many occasions, over many years, Ghislaine Maxwell trying to recruit other girls making consistent and insistent demands on me and others to do the same.
“I witnessed her relentless and insatiable drive to meet the sexual needs of Epstein, at any cost to the vulnerable girls and women upon whom she preyed and fed to Epstein and other powerful men to whom she wished to ingratiate herself.”
She ended with, “In becoming a mother I have learned that forgiveness is important, but so are consequences.”
Victim Virginia Giuffre, a prominent Maxwell victim, said in her written victim statement, “Ghislaine, 22 years ago, in the summer of 2000, you spotted me at the Mar-a-Lago Hotel in Florida and you made a choice. You chose to follow me and procure me for Jeffrey Epstein.
“Just hours later, you and he abused me together for the first time. Together, you damaged me physically, mentally, sexually, and emotionally. Together you did unthinkable things that still have a corrosive impact on me to this day.
By Dave Paone
