Ghislaine Maxwell: Making of a Monster on Channel 4 tells the sickening true story of the infamous heiress, but where is she now?
It’s a disturbing insight into how the daughter of Robert Maxwell turned to depraved acts, despite being surrounded by the privilege and wealth most of us only dream of.
The crimes she committed with her boyfriend Jeffrey Epstein, and her links to Prince Andrew, saw her face a very public and damning trial. So what exactly did Ghislaine Maxwell do, and where is she now?
Here’s everything you need to know about the convicted sex offender and former socialite.
Who is Ghislaine Maxwell?
British Ghislaine is famous for being the daughter of publishing mogul Robert Maxwell, who became known as a socialite in her own right.
Born in France and raised in Oxford, she grew up with her family at Headington Hill Hall in Oxford. Her home was a 53-room mansion. She went on to attend Balliol College, Oxford, and became a familiar face in London’s social scene. Ghislaine worked for her father until his unexpected death in November 1991.
She subsequently moved to New York City, where she continued living as a socialite. She gained the most notoriety, however, for her relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.
Ghislaine had a romantic relationship with Jeffrey Epstein for several years in the early 1990s and remained closely associated with him for more than 25 years until his death in 2019.
Together, they mixed with famous people, and counted Prince Andrew as one of their friends. They also had connections to people in power such as Bill Clinton, and Donald Trump.
New York-born Jeffrey was an American financier and now known as a serial sex offender. It’s now universally accepted that Jeffrey was guilty of sex trafficking minors, and sexual abuse. Ghislaine worked as his accomplice.
Who were Ghislaine’s mum and dad?
Ghislaine Maxwell is the daughter of successful British media proprietor Robert Maxwell. Her mum was French-born researcher of the holocaust, Elisabeth Maxwell.
The Maxwells, like the Murdochs – think Succession, only real – were wealthy, privileged and influential during their peak. In 1984, Robert purchased the Mirror Group Newspapers, publishers of six newspapers, including the tabloid Daily Mirror.
However, a scandal soon revealed itself… It transpired that Robert had stolen millions from the Mirror pension fund to prop up his debt-ridden business empire. Pension funds in excess of £400m were said to be missing, and 32,000 people were affected.
Czechoslovakian-born Robert died of a heart attack combined with accidental drowning in November 1991. His body was discovered floating in the Atlantic Ocean, having apparently fallen overboard from his yacht Lady Ghislaine (named after his daughter).
Maxwell’s death triggered the collapse of his publishing empire as banks called in loans. Some reports say that paedophile Jeffrey Epstein worked for Robert Maxwell before his death, to hide him the hundreds of millions he stole.
Talking of her father’s death, Ghislaine said in 1997: “He did not commit suicide. That was just not consistent with his character. I think he was murdered.”
Meanwhile, Elisabeth died on August 07, 2013. Robert and Elisabeth had nine children together, including youngest Ghislaine. She was born two days before a tragic car accident that left her 15-year-old brother Michael in a prolonged coma. He eventually died six years later in 1967.
Her mother later reflected that the accident had an effect on the entire family. She also described how Ghislaine showed signs of anorexia while still a toddler.
What did she do?
In 2008, police arrested Jeffrey Epstein for paying an underage girl for prostitution. He spent 13 months in custody with work release. This meant that he was allowed to be outside of prison for up to 16 hours per day. After his release, he remained on the Sex Offenders’ Register until his death.
Authorities arrested him again on July 6, 2019. This time, he was accused of sex trafficking minors in the states of Florida and New York. Court documents showed that Jeffrey was attempting to bring at least 40 underaged girls to his mansion to sexually abuse them.
On August 10, 2019, Jeffrey killed died by suicide while at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York City. He was 66 years old.
Weeks later, a judge decided to end the criminal investigation of Jeffrey Epstein, because it was no longer possible to investigate his criminal activity further due to his death.
After Jeffrey’s death, the spotlight fell on Ghislaine, and her association with Jeffrey. Evidence showed that she had helped Jeffrey with his crimes.
In 2021, she was found guilty of child sex trafficking and other offences in connection with Jeffrey Epstein. In June 2022, a judge sentenced her to 20 years’ imprisonment.
Who were her victims?
One civil lawsuit bought against Ghislaine was that of Virginia Giuffre v Maxwell in 2015. Victoria accused Ghislaine Maxwell of recruiting her in 1999. At that time, Victoria was a minor. Ghislaine groomed her to provide sexual services for Epstein.
Victoria also accused Ghislaine Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein of trafficking her and other underage girls, often at sex parties hosted by the pair at homes in New York, New Mexico, Palm Beach, and the United States Virgin Islands.
Meanwhile, Sarah Ransome accused Ghislaine of hiring her to give massages to Jeffrey Epstein and later threatened to physically harm her if she did not comply with their sexual demands.
On 16 April 2019, Maria Farmer went public and filed a sworn affidavit in federal court in New York, alleging that she and her 15-year-old sister, Annie, had been sexually assaulted by Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell in separate locations in 1996.
Maria’s sister Annie Farmer sued Ghislaine Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein’s estate in Federal District Court in Manhattan in November 2019. She accused them of rape, battery and false imprisonment and seeking unspecified damages.
Ghislaine has denied all charges.
How was she caught?
The Federal Government of the US arrested Ghislaine in July 2020 after several women came forward implicating her. She was charged shortly after with the crimes of enticement of minors and sex trafficking of underage girls, related to her association with Epstein.
She was denied bail as a flight risk. In December 2021, she was convicted on five out of six counts, including one of sex trafficking of a minor. She also faced a second criminal trial for two charges of lying under oath about Epstein’s abuse of underage girls.
What was Ghislaine Maxwell convicted of?
On 29 December 2021, a jury found Ghislaine Maxwell guilty of five sex trafficking-related counts- one of sex trafficking of a minor, one of transporting a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, and three of conspiracy to commit choate felonies.
On 28 June 2022, a judge sentenced Ghislaine to 20 years in prison. She appealed the conviction. Last week, the US government urged the appeals court to uphold Ghislaine Maxwell’s conviction.
Ghislaine currently faces a second criminal trial for perjury on two charges that she lied under oath during a civil suit in 2015 about Epstein’s abuse of underage girls.
Each count carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.
What was her connection to Prince Andrew?
Ghislaine Maxwell is known for her longstanding friendship with Prince Andrew. In a November 2019 interview with the BBC, Andrew said that the two had known each other since Ghislaine was an undergraduate at Oxford.
Ghislaine introduced Jeffrey Epstein to Prince Andrew, and the three often socialised together. She famously escorted Andrew to a “hookers and pimps” social function in New York.
In 2000, Ghislaine Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein attended a party thrown by Prince Andrew at the Queen’s Sandringham House estate in Norfolk, England.
Victoria Giuffre sued the duke for allegedly sexually assaulting her when she was 17, after she was trafficked by convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
A photo used as evidence seemed to show Prince Andrew with his arm around Virginia, with Ghislaine smiling in the background. Ghislaine and Andrew have both stated the photo is a fake.
Prince Andrew denies all claims and says he has never met Ms Giuffre. Ms Giuffre told BBC Panorama the photo was “authentic” and said she gave the original to the FBI in 2011. The case was settled in Giuffre’s favour for an undisclosed sum in 2017.
Victoria Giuffre subsequently sued the Prince in civil court in New York. The suit was settled in February 2022 with Prince Andrew paying an undisclosed amount to Giuffre and making a substantial donation to her charity.
Where is Ghislaine Maxwell now?
On 25 July 2022, Ghislaine Maxwell was transferred from Metropolitan Detention Center, Brooklyn to a minimum-security federal prison for female inmates at FCI Tallahassee.
The prison, on the outskirts of the Florida state capital, is home to just over 800 inmates. The complex is surrounded by razor wires and cameras. The prison offers pilates, movies and art classes to its inmates.
She has previously been on suicide watch, and has been described as “frail”. Ghislaine will be 75 years old by the time she is eligible for release in mid-2037.
How old is Ghislaine Maxwell now?
Ghislaine Noelle Marion Maxwell was born on Christmas Day in 1961 in Maisons-Laffitte, Île-de-France, France.
She is currently 61 years old.
How much is she worth?
According to recent documents filed with the Court, the net worth of Ghislaine Maxwell is estimated to be $69 million dollars. That’s around £54 million.
Jeffrey paid Ghislaine over $10 million dollars annually for her services.
CA Knowledge claims that Ghislaine Maxwell owns over 11 real estate properties spread across the world. She is said to own 14 cars, 7 yachts, and 2 private jets. She also owns an investment portfolio of 12 stocks that are valued at $40 million.
Does Ghislaine Maxwell have kids?
Ghislaine has no children of her own. However, she was formerly stepmother to her ex-husband’s two kids.
She reportedly married tech millionaire Scott Borgerson in 2016.
Does she have siblings?
Robert Maxwell and his wife Elisabeth had nine children altogether. They were, in order of age, Michael, Philip, Ann, Christine, Isabel, Karine, Ian, Kevin and Ghislaine.
Tragically, two of the children died in childhood: daughter Karine died in 1957, at age three, from leukemia. Son Michael was left comatised following a car crash in 1961 and died six years later without regaining consciousness.
Ian Maxwell has faced his own share of public scandals. He was embroiled in his father’s fraud scandal, but was eventually cleared of fraud in a high profile case alongside his brother, Kevin Maxwell and others in 1996.
Ghislaine Maxwell: The Making of a Monster
Three-part series Ghislaine Maxwell: The Making of a Monster charts the rise and fall of the world’s most shocking female sex trafficker.
The series begins by delving into her privileged childhood in the shadow of her tyrannical father, publisher Robert Maxwell. Documentary filmmakers examine if her upbringing played any part in the woman she was to become.
Her father’s death left the family penniless and ostracised, but Ghislaine’s move to New York in the early 1990s, and association with a mysterious money manager, enabled her to make a new start. But at what price?
The documentary focuses on the shocking contrast between the incredible wealth and power wielded by Ghislaine and her partner Jeffrey Epstein in American high society. It also looks at the disgusting crimes they were committing behind closed doors.
They entertained presidents and princes in fabulous properties and on a private island. But there are those who claim Maxwell enticed them into that world only to feed Epstein’s sexual aberrations. But why did she do it? It’s unclear if we’ll ever really know.
The third and final instalment charts the steady demise of Ghislaine. The socialite narrowly escaped an initial police investigation into the sexual abuse of dozens of underage girls in Epstein’s Florida mansion.
However, her subsequent rehabilitation as an environmentalist was scuppered when she went on the offensive against an accuser. Lawyers of survivors explain their innovative strategy that forced Ghislaine into a corner, and her subsequent criminal trial that found her guilty in December 2021.
Read more: Lawyers call for Prince Andrew to be ‘investigated by the FBI’ after Ghislaine Maxwell is jailed
Ghislaine Maxwell: The Making of a Monster is available to watch on demand service Channel4.com.
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