Prosecution Calls Maxwell 'Sophisticated Predator' in Closing Arguments Ahead of Verdict
23:52 GMT 20.12.2021 (Updated: 11:47 GMT 10.12.2022)
© REUTERS / JANE ROSENBERG
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Former British socialite Maxwell is nearing the end of her highly publicized trial in which she is charged with six counts based on her alleged grooming of four adolescent females between the early 1990s and early 2000s. If convicted, she faces a sentence of up to 70 years in prison.
In a closing statement on Monday, US federal prosecutors told jurors that Ghislaine Maxwell was a "sophisticated predator" who victimized young girls with her "partner," the late financier-turned-pedophile Jeffrey Epstein, The New York Post reported from the courtroom.
"She was a sophisticated predator who knew exactly what she was doing," Assistant US Attorney Alison Moe is quoted as saying. "She ran the same playbook again and again and again."
For allegedly assisting Epstein in preying on female minors, the prosecutor said it was "time to hold [Maxwell] accountable."
"When you’re with someone for 11 years, you know what they like," she added, recalling how the couple dated for numerous years.
"She was a grown woman who preyed on vulnerable kids," the prosecutor continued. "She caused deep and lasting harm to young girls."
The prosecution described in great detail how Maxwell and Epstein allegedly preyed on vulnerable young girls, such as the four accusers who testified at the trial — Jane, Kate, Carolyn, and Annie Farmer — by establishing a "pyramid scheme of abuse."
Maxwell allegedly groped three of the women's breasts while they were teenagers, according to three of the victims.
According to reports from the trial, the prosecutor stated that she will provide eight reasons to prove Maxwell's guilt, including the "playbook" she used to entice underage females for Epstein's abuse.
"Maxwell was crucial to the whole scheme. Epstein could not have done this alone," Moe said. "Maxwell was the key to the whole operation."
Prosecutors also claimed that money motivated Maxwell, citing the fact that Epstein allegedly sent $30 million to his alleged madam over the years.
"You don’t give someone $30 million unless they’re giving you exactly what you want, and what Epstein wanted was to touch underage girls," the prosecutor claimed. "When Maxwell took that money, she knew what it was for, and now you do too — it was payment for committing terrible crimes with Jeffrey Epstein."
As proof of Maxwell's guilt, Moe brought out the alleged "madam's" handwritten phone directory, or "little black book," which reportedly listed the names of several of the accusers, and the prosecution pointed out that this very book is one piece of the main evidence which "proves to you that Maxwell is guilty."
The prosecutor dismissed the defense's claim that Maxwell was only an "employee" of Epstein, portraying her instead as the "lady of the house" who developed a lengthy, detailed cleaning handbook for his employees, supervising their vacations and pay.
Moreover, prior to the closing statements, earlier in the day, federal prosecutors released a batch of new evidence, including video of a 2005 raid on Jeffrey Epstein's Florida estate.
Defense Argues Maxwell Is 'Scapegoat' for Epstein Trial
In their closing statement, the lawyers for Maxwell, who will turn 60 on December 25, rejected the charges, claiming that the government is using her as a scapegoat for Epstein, who apparently committed suicide in prison a month after his arrest on sex-trafficking charges in August 2019.
"This has nothing to do with Ghislaine and everything to do with Jeffrey Epstein," attorney Laura Menninger is quoted as saying.
The lawyer stressed to the jury that her client is an "innocent woman wrongfully accused of crimes she did not commit," adding that Maxwell "is not Jeffrey Epstein."
Menninger attempted to refute the prosecution's claim that Maxwell was the "right hand" of the sex creep. She claimed the government was attempting to demonize her client by portraying her as a cross between "Cruella de Vil and 'The Devil Wears Prada.'"
The defense concluded its closing argument by telling the jury that Maxwell is only on trial because of her relationship with Epstein.
"She’s being tried here for being with Jeffrey Epstein," Menninger said. "Maybe that was the biggest mistake of her life, but that was not a crime."
In its rebuttal to the defense, Assistant District Attorney Maurene Comey of the government prosecution said that the alleged victims who testified before the court "would have told way better lies," if they were there for a quick buck and wanted to frame Maxwell.
17 December 2021, 20:36 GMT
Earlier in the trial, according to reports, Ghislaine Maxwell's defense team submitted a request asking the judge to refer to their client as "Ms. Maxwell" when instructing the jury on the legal subtleties they should be aware of before deliberation.
The presiding Judge Alison Nathan reportedly wants the trial to be concluded before Christmas Day, as she delivered a charge to the jury outlining the factors they must consider when deciding whether Maxwell is guilty or whether the prosecutors failed to meet their burden of proof.
However, after deliberating for approximately 50 minutes, the jury was unable to reach a conclusion. The jury will reassemble at 9 am on Tuesday to resume their deliberations.
