Featured Image Credit: Alamy
Topics: US News, Ghislaine Maxwell, Crime, Jeffrey Epstein
Claire Reid
A former federal prosecutor has said he believes Ghislaine Maxwell will never reveal the information she knows about Jeffrey Epstein’s sex trafficking scheme.
Maxwell was sentenced to 20 years in prison yesterday after being found guilty on charges of sex trafficking minors, conspiracy to entice a minor to travel to engage in illegal sex acts, conspiracy to transport a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of minors and transporting a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity.
Following her sentencing, Neama Rahmani, a former federal prosecutor who now works as a litigator, says that Maxwell’s actions up to now show she’s unlikely to cooperate against any other potential co-conspirators involved in the scheme.
Advert
He told the Daily Mail: “She's dug in her heels - she pushed this case to trial, she made all these women testify, and revictimized them by making them repeat their stories in court.
“If you wanted the full benefit of cooperation, you wouldn't do any of this.
“I haven't seen anything that leads me to believe that anyone else is going to be prosecuted in this case.”
The law expert, who wasn’t involved with the Maxwell or Epstein cases, explained that if Maxwell did cooperate with law enforcement it would make it impossible for her to appeal.
He said: “The problem with cooperation is you're essentially waiving your right to appeal.
“You have to admit to participating in the trafficking and abuse of these young girls for the cooperation to mean anything.
“She's much more likely to take her chances on appeal.”
Throughout her trial, Maxwell refused to accept guilt or apologise; instead she blamed the whole thing on Epstein, who died in 2019, and told the court that meeting him was the ‘greatest regret’ of her life.
Rahmani pointed to this ‘non-apology’ as a further sign she’s unlikely to cooperate or to help the government bring others to justice.
“Anything is possible, but Maxwell seems like a total narcissist,” he added. “She really does believe she's a victim, and she's suffered this grave injustice.”
If you have been affected by any of the issues in this article and wish to speak to someone in confidence, contact The Survivor’s Trust for free on 08088 010 818, or through their website thesurvivorstrust.org