In 2006, Ms Ransome said she decided to go to New York at the age of 22 after she became involved with a violent boyfriend and dropped out from the University of Edinburgh. In NYC, she got acquainted with a beautiful young woman, Natalya, who asked her for a phone number after learning that Sarah was dreaming of studying fashion.
"I was young and naive. I knew no one. I had no idea of the viper's nest I was walking into. 'I told her everything; how I was all alone, my dreams of studying fashion. She asked for my number and I gave it to her. It seemed the most natural thing in the world", Ms Ransome told the Mail on Sunday.
"Looking back I realise I was targeted for my vulnerability. I was alone in the big city. I'd already admitted I was a lost soul. Jeffrey was charismatic, charming. He seemed genuinely interested in me. He homed in on my background, just like Natalya had – why did I want to study fashion, where in the UK was I from, did I have siblings? He was old but I didn't think of him as a dirty old man. I felt safe because there were so many girls my age with him. They were well-groomed, they seemed happy", Ms Ransome said.
Recalling the moment, Ms Ransome said the invitation felt like she “hit the jackpot”. “What 22-year-old would have said no?” Ms Ransome said.
First Warning Bell
"Epstein was having full-on sex with one of the girls. They made no attempt to hide", she said. "I was horrified, I'd never seen anything like that before. But no one said anything. The other girls kept their eyes closed. When it was over, Jeffrey and the girl got dressed as if nothing had happened", Ransome explained.
Epstein again asked her for a foot message after arriving to the island. The financier got angry and yelled because she didn’t do it properly, Sarah says.
"He said, 'Tonight I am going to teach you how to be a woman'. I sobbed and screamed for him to stop", she said.
Dying From Shark Bites Was a Welcomed Alternative
"At that point the sharks were a welcome alternative to the hell I'd been through. In that moment death felt preferable to one more rape", Ms Ransome told the Mail on Sunday, adding that Epstein reportedly raped her every day, often two or three times.
"There were pictures everywhere of him with Presidents, the Pope, world leaders, royalty. I was scared that if I ever spoke out he would have me killed like he'd threatened", she said.
"I once lit a cigarette and Jeffrey, who hated smoking, came out of nowhere. When I tried to escape I purposely chose a remote spot yet Ghislaine and security guards were there instantly", Ms Ransome said.
Ghislaine Was Jekyll and Hyde
Ransome claimed Maxwell “bullied” her about her weight, telling Sarah, who weighed 10 stones and 5 pounds being 5 feet 9 inches, to go on a diet that included only cucumbers and tomatoes.
“I was starving every day. Ghislaine told me I was fat. She was a Jekyll and Hyde character. She could be kind, smiling, charming, what I called 'Gracious Ghislaine'. That was the side of her the celebrities saw. But then she could be angry, cruel", Ms Ransome told the Mail on Sunday.
"Ghislaine enabled Jeffrey to do what he did. believe she is evil. She's a narcissist who thinks she has done nothing wrong. To her, we were nothing. I hope justice is done", she said.
The prosecution rested its case this week after 10 days of hearings, with Maxwell’s legal team presenting its arguments next week. Initially, the trial, which began on 29 November, was to last six weeks with a brief pause over Christmas, but now reports say that the verdict may be announced already this month.
"This is not and never will be a sex-trafficking case. It is the story of a brief, consensual relationship between two adults", read the court filings pertaining to that lawsuit as per the Mail on Sunday.
Ms Ransome says that although she and other young women didn’t get to see Epstein in court, his death in custody made her feel safe. "I could stop looking over my shoulder", she said.
Commenting on Maxwell’s trial, she said although she is not directly involved in the trial, she felt as though she had to travel to the United States to "look Ghislaine in the eyes" if she is convicted.
"It's a matter of principle. I lived in fear of her and Jeffrey for so many years. If I have to rent a tent and sleep on the court steps before the verdict is delivered then that's what I will do. I want her to know I'm there when her sentence is read. I want justice to finally be done", she told the Mail on Sunday.