Ghislaine Maxwell, a close associate of the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, was found guilty Wednesday by a federal jury of helping Epstein sexually abuse several teenage girls.
Driving the news: The jury deliberated for six days, following a three-week trial in Manhattan.
The big picture: Maxwell was indicted in July 2020 on six federal counts related to sex trafficking and conspiring with Epstein. She was convicted on five counts, including sex trafficking of minors.
- The other convictions include: 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, transporting a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of minors.
- The once-girlfriend and longtime friend and associate to Epstein was found guilty of recruiting and grooming teenagers — now women in their 30s and 40s — for the multimillionaire financier between 1994 and 2004.
- Prosecutors in the Maxwell trial said Epstein gave Maxwell about $30 million between 1999 and 2007, citing financial records submitted as evidence. They argued the payments compensated Maxwell for her willingness to commit crimes.
- Maxwell's attorneys claimed she had been wrongfully accused after Epstein was found dead in jail in what the medical examiner ruled a suicide. He had been awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.
- Maxwell "appeared to show little reaction behind a black mask," as the verdict was read, the AP noted.
Flashback: In 2008, Epstein pleaded guilty to prostitution charges in Florida state court in a controversial deal that...