The attorneys of Ghislaine Maxwell, the former accomplice of disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, alleged that their client’s cellmate was offered money to kill her, according to a Wednesday briefing.
Her lawyers have requested for Judge Alison J. Nathan to sentence Maxwell below the 20-year recommendation by the Federal District Court’s probation department, the New York Times (NYT) reported. Their client was found guilty on 5 of 6 counts against her in December related to sex trafficking minors.
The briefing alleged she was the “target of a credible death threat from a fellow inmate,” the NYT reported. A fellow prisoner in Maxwell’s housing unit allegedly told three other inmates that she had been offered money to strangle the convicted sex trafficking felon in her sleep. The inmate was then moved to a different unit.
“One of the female inmates in Ms. Maxwell’s housing unit told at least three other inmates that she had been offered money to murder Ms. Maxwell and she planned to strangle her in her sleep,” the briefing read, according to Fox News. “This incident reflects the brutal reality that there are numerous prison inmates who would not hesitate to kill Ms. Maxwell — whether for money, fame, or simple ‘street cred.’” (RELATED: Witness In Maxwell Trial Alleges Epstein Had Secret Relationship With Model Reportedly Involved With Trump)
“Epstein was the mastermind, Epstein was the principal abuser and Epstein orchestrated the crimes for his personal gratification.” Lawyers for Ghislaine Maxwell, seeking leniency when she’s sentenced, pin blame on Jeffrey Epstein in court filing. https://t.co/hkO4nq4zv5
— Benjamin Weiser (@BenWeiserNYT) June 16, 2022
The incident was not independently confirmed by the U.S. Attorney’s office, the NYT reported.
Judge Nathan is expected to sentence Maxwell on June 28, according to Fox News.
She had been charged for allegedly grooming four underage girls during the 1990’s and early 2000’s. She was found guilty on several counts of conspiring to entice minors to travel across state lines to engage in sexual activity and conspiring with sex traffickers. She was acquitted on the second count, which charged her with enticing “Jane” to travel with the intent of engaging in sexual activity.
The sixth count, trafficking then-minor “Carolyn,” carries a maximum 40-year sentence, the count of sending “Jane” to engage in illegal sexual acts carried 10 years, and the other three counts carry 5-year maximum sentences.
Maxwell allegedly watched as Epstein reportedly engaged in sexual acts with 14-year-old “Jane.”
The briefing alleged that prosecutors only turned their attention to Maxwell after Epstein’s death in his jail cell, where he allegedly killed himself in 2019, the Times reported. They called Epstein the “mastermind” and “principal abuser” behind the allegations against him and Maxwell.