Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged madam, Ghislaine Maxwell, is finally set to come out of hiding and possibly talk to the FBI, according to a report Monday.
The British socialite is expected to emerge within days and defend her close friend Prince Andrew in the wake of his disastrous interview over his ties to the dead pedophile, a source close to Maxwell’s lawyers told the Sun.
“She has to defend herself. She has no option,” the source said. “Ghislaine is preparing to speak — whether by talking to the FBI or giving a statement to the media.”
Maxwell, 57, an ex-girlfriend of Epstein’s, has been accused repeatedly in court filings of having procured young girls for the convicted pedophile — and even abusing some herself.
She is reportedly at the center of ongoing investigations into Epstein’s alleged sex ring since his death in his Manhattan lockup in August, after which she soon went into hiding, closing down her foundation.
She has been said to be hiding out in Brazil, close to modeling agent Jean-Luc Brunel, who is also embroiled in the scandal.
Maxwell is now ready to speak up, in part to back up the Duke of York’s claims that he had no memory of posing for the now-infamous photograph showing him with his arm wrapped around Epstein accuser Virginia Roberts Giuffre, with Maxwell smiling behind them.
“Like Andrew, she has no memory of it,” the source said of the picture supposedly taken at Maxwell’s London home in March 2001. “Ghislaine thinks there are a lot of problems with the picture and it is very fishy. It is one of very few photos that does not bear a time and date stamp.”
Roberts’ lawyer, Josh Schiller, shot down any suggestion that the photograph was faked.
“Virginia maintains that photo of her with Prince Andrew is totally genuine. And it certainly looks genuine to me,” Schiller told the Sun.