Ghislaine Maxwell had her fourth and final request to be released on bail ahead of her trial rejected by the U.S. federal court.
Ghislaine Maxwell, the former girlfriend of disgraced financier, Jeffrey Epstein, has had her fourth and final request to be released on bail ahead of her trial rejected by the U.S. federal court.
A three-judge panel on the U.S. court for the 2nd Circuit issued the brief order on Tuesday.
The appeals court referred Maxwell’s complaints about sleep interruptions while incarcerated. She also recently appealed her third bail denial, citing unfair treatment at the Brooklyn federal jail where she was being housed. In particular, Maxwell cited a lack of sufficient access to the materials she needed to prepare for the trial.
Her lawyers have also stated that she has been treated unfairly as the prosecution was unable to bring its case against Epstein after his 2019 suicide.
Epstein, a convicted sex offender, was found dead in his Manhattan jail cell in August 2019 while awaiting trial charges that he was sex-trafficking girls as young as 14. Authorities ruled the death as suicide by hanging.
Ghislane Maxwell appeared in court for the first time in-person since her arrest last July, pleading not guilty to the sex trafficking charges recently brought against her.
Her appearance was noticeably different. Gone was her trademark pixie haircut. Instead, grey hair hung down past her shoulders while she appeared frailer overall. This is somewhat understandable, as there had been complaints of her losing weight and hair while in jail.
The only sign of her former posh life was the obedient muttering of “your honour” throughout the trial.
Maxwell is currently facing eight counts of sex trafficking, which is up from the six she was charged with upon her last arrest.
Those charges include a conspiracy to entice minors to travel to engage in illegal sex acts, enticement of a minor to travel to engage in illegal sex acts, conspiracy to transport minors with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, transportation of a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, and perjury.
With #GhislaneMaxwell – former ‘partner’ of Jeffrey #Epstein – being charged with two more charges of #humantrafficking, are you listening yet? pic.twitter.com/ZdNFpqdRiT
— A THOUSAND Pieces Film (@AuyrnNetwork) April 3, 2021
The additional two charges – as of March 29 – include sex trafficking conspiracy and sex trafficking of a minor.
The new indictment also includes more accusers, including four ‘minor’ victims up from three.
It also extends the timeframe of the alleged participation in Epstein’s abuse by seven years, bringing the total timeframe so far from 1994 to 2004.
Prosecutors have also accused Maxwell of going into hiding surrounding the allegations.
“Maxwell played a critical role in helping Epstein to identify, befriend and groom minor victims for abuse,” authorities stated. “In some cases, Maxwell participated in the abuse. She set the trap. She pretended to be a woman [the alleged victims] could trust.”
