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Ghislaine Maxwell Bragged About Friendships With Donald Trump And Prince Andrew, Accuser Says

This article is more than 2 years old.
Updated Apr 21, 2022, 08:13am EDT

Topline

A second woman has taken the stand to testify against Ghislaine Maxwell, claiming the British socialite bought her gifts, spoke of her famous and powerful friends and pressured her to have sexual interactions with late disgraced financer Jeffrey Epstein when she was a teenager.

Key Facts

The 44-year-old British woman, known only as “Kate” in court to protect her privacy, said she was 17 years old when she met Maxwell on a trip to Paris and continued their friendship when they both were in London, saying as a “lonely” teenager with few friends she looked up to Maxwell. 

Maxwell later introduced her to Epstein, and asked Kate to fill in for a message therapist who cancelled on Epstein — leading to a sexual encounter between Kate and Epstein, according to reporter Adam Klasfeld of Law & Crime.

Maxwell gifted Kate with a small Prada bag for her 18th birthday shortly after the incident, she testified — prosecutors say gifts were a typical part of Maxwell’s process of grooming victims for Epstein.

Kate said Maxwell asked on another occasion if she knew anyone who would perform a sex act on Epstein in Maxwell’s stead, saying he liked girls who were “cute, young, pretty — like you.”

Maxwell bragged that she was friends with “lots of famous people” like Prince Andrew and former President Donald Trump, Kate said, according to reporters in the courtroom, corroborating last week’s testimony from an alleged victim who said she encountered the two men while being trafficked by Maxwell and Epstein as a teenager.

District Judge Alison Nathan told the jury that Kate is not a victim of the crimes charged in the indictment, and should be considered only a witness because she was over the age of consent at the time in the relevant jurisdictions.

Tangent

Maxwell’s legal team tried to discredit Kate by saying her memory may be hazy because of her abuse of cocaine, alcohol and other substances, but Kate maintains the memories “of significant events of my life have never changed,” she said, according to Law and Crime. The defense also pointed out that Kate has previously spoken out against Epstein without using a pseudonym in media appearances. Kate told the court she wants to protect her identity now for her son’s sake. Kate continued to stay in contact with Epstein into her thirties, she said, even while he was incarcerated, and terminated contact after the birth of her child in her early thirties. Kate said she accepted a $3.25 million settlement from a fund to compensate victims of Epstein.

Key Background

Maxwell faces six charges and possibly decades in prison if convicted. Maxwell pleaded not guilty during a pretrial hearing earlier this month. Maxwell has remained in custody since her arrest in July 2020 in New Hampshire after being refused bail multiple times. She has been deemed a flight risk because of her wealth, international connections and her three passports. The daughter of notorious British media mogul Robert Maxwell, she socialized with high-profile and powerful people like Prince Andrew

Further Reading

Second Accuser, ‘Kate,’ Tells Jury That Ghislaine Maxwell Groomed Her for Jeffrey Epstein. Judge Instructs Jury She Isn’t Her Victim. (Law and Crime)

Ghislaine Maxwell Trial: Accuser Says She Met Trump When She Was 14, Flew On Plane With Prince Andrew (Forbes)

Epstein Housekeeper Describes What He Witnessed When Ghislaine Maxwell Moved Into Home: ‘See Nothing. Say Nothing.’ (Forbes)

Sealing Video Of Epstein’s House Gives Idea It Was A ‘Domicile Of Debauchery,’ Maxwell Lawyer Says (Forbes)

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