Topline

Justice Department prosecutors interviewed Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell on Thursday, after officials said they would ask her about Epstein’s other associates—but critics have raised concerns about whether her testimony can be trusted, pointing to Maxwell’s ongoing prison sentence and history of allegedly lying under oath.

It still remains to be seen what Maxwell has told prosecutors during her interview, and if her testimony will be made public or lead to any reprieve in her prison sentence. Blanche denied comment when he arrived at the courthouse Thursday morning, ABC News reports, while Maxwell’s attorney David O. Markus only said, “We're looking forward to a productive day.” DOJ officials are expected to meet with Maxwell all day Thursday, and the interview could stretch into a second day, according to sources cited by the Tallahassee Democrat.

Maxwell was charged with perjury based on answers she gave in a 2016 deposition regarding Epstein’s alleged abuse and her own complicity. The indictment against her cited multiple comments she made denying any knowledge of Epstein’s alleged abuse: When asked if Epstein had a “scheme to recruit underage girls for sexual massages,” she responded, “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” for instance, and she said she “was not aware of anybody that I interacted with” at Epstein’s properties being underage, other than a plaintiff involved in the civil lawsuit. Maxwell also testified under oath she was not aware of any “sex toys or devices” being used at Epstein’s properties, and that she had never personally given Epstein or any of his victims a massage. She also claimed she was unaware of Epstein engaging in “sexual activities” with anyone besides herself and two women she and Epstein had “three-way sexual activities with,” saying in her deposition, “I wasn't aware that he was having sexual activities with anyone when I was with him other than myself.” When asked again by attorneys to confirm that her testimony was that she was “not aware” of Epstein having any other sexual partners, Maxwell doubled down, saying, “That is my testimony, that is correct.” Her statements conflict with charges in the indictment that Maxwell was later convicted on, which alleged Maxwell conducted massages and was “present for and participated in the abuse of minor victims,” among other allegations.

Maxwell’s perjury charges weren’t dealt with at her trial in 2021 alongside her sex trafficking charges, as she successfully requested to have those charges separated before her trial. Maxwell argued, and the court agreed, that the charges should be tried separately because they would have involved evidence that could have prejudiced the jury on the other charges, and it may have disqualified one of her attorneys from the trial because they participated in the earlier case. The perjury counts were still slated to proceed to trial after Maxwell was convicted in 2021, but prosecutors then offered to have the charges dropped in exchange for letting the conviction stand, rather than going through the whole process of having the sex trafficking charges tried again. The government suggested it was willing to drop the lesser perjury charges for the benefit of Epstein’s victims, given that Maxwell had already been convicted, citing “the victims’ significant interests in bringing closure to this matter and avoiding the trauma of testifying again.”

Multiple legal experts and critics have raised concerns about Maxwell’s testimony, given her history of alleged perjury and the fact she could benefit from giving the Trump administration favorable testimony, such as exonerating Trump from Epstein’s crimes or suggesting that individuals who are opposed to Trump were involved. “Any ‘new’ testimony [Maxwell] offers is inherently unreliable unless backed by evidence,” former federal prosecutor Joyce Vance said on X on Thursday. Bradley Edwards, an attorney representing Epstein victims who was involved in the case where Maxwell was deposed, told MSNBC on Wednesday that victims are “alarmed” by the DOJ speaking with Maxwell and that she is being “somehow given some credibility and a platform on this particular topic.” “We’re going to go and ask somebody to tell the truth who was indicted on perjury charges related to this particular topic,” Edwards said. “Now, does she have information that could potentially help? Yes. Will she be truthful about it? Who knows.” Edwards called for anyone interviewing Maxwell to be well-versed in the Epstein case and what Maxwell has testified previously, arguing, “Sending somebody there who knows nothing, she’s going to say whatever she wants to say.”

The Trump administration could grant Maxwell some leniency in exchange for her testimony through a “Rule 35 motion,” which allows prosecutors to request the court reduce a defendant’s sentence because of actions they took post-sentencing. That could include providing “substantial assistance” to the government in a different prosecution, such as if Maxwell were to provide information about other Epstein associates who are implicated in his alleged crimes. Trump could also theoretically pardon Maxwell or commute her sentence, though the optics of doing so would likely cause considerable public backlash. The Supreme Court is still deliberating on whether to grant Maxwell’s request for justices to reconsider her conviction, as Maxwell argues a non-prosecution agreement Epstein made in 2008, which allowed him to plead guilty to some charges in order to avoid a life sentence in prison, also shielded her from liability. (Epstein was later indicted in 2019 after more information about his alleged abuse became public, and died in prison before his trial.) The Trump administration has so far opposed Maxwell’s request at the Supreme Court, filing a brief on July 14 that argues the court should not take up the case and should let her conviction stand.

In addition to the DOJ, the House Oversight Committee is planning to interview Maxwell, voting Wednesday in favor of issuing a subpoena for her testimony. Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., suggested lawmakers could also tie Maxwell’s testimony and its truthfulness to her sentence, giving her incentive to be helpful. “The one thing we’ve got holding over her head is that if we find out she lies, she goes back to her original sentence,” Burchett said. “If she’s looking at maybe parlaying this into reducing her sentence, then we could have some leverage there.”

Epstein has been accused of assaulting more than 100 women prior to his 2019 arrest, many of whom were underage, and Maxwell has been identified as his primary co-conspirator in helping him to allegedly coerce and assault his victims. The DOJ’s interest in speaking with her comes as interest over the Epstein files has reached a fever pitch in recent weeks, following the agency’s memo that announced it would not release any further files and debunked various conspiracies linked to Epstein, such as the existence of a “client list.” The memo has sparked widespread backlash against the DOJ, as officials like Attorney General Pam Bondi had long promised the files would be released, with even Trump’s supporters criticizing the administration and calling on Bondi to resign. While the DOJ has remained steadfast on not releasing the files in response to the public outcry, its decision to speak with Maxwell is one of several more minor steps the administration has taken in regards to the Epstein case. Prosecutors have also asked courts in cases against Epstein and Maxwell to unseal grand jury documents that reflect the decisions to bring indictments against the two defendants. Those filings are expected to be much more limited than the full tranche of documents the government has in its possession, however, and it’s unclear when or if they could be publicly released, with one court already rejecting the government’s request for materials to be unsealed.