Epstein ‘sex slave’, 14, met Trump at Mar-A-Lago & was in beauty pageant he sponsored, Ghislaine Maxwell trial hears
JEFFREY Epstein introduced a 14-year-old sex abuse victim to Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago resort, Ghislaine Maxwell's trial heard.
The court was also told she once participated in beauty pageant which was sponsored by the millionaire property mogul.
Maxwell's first accuser - who is appearing under the pseudonym "Jane" - took the stand again this afternoon on day three of the trial in New York.
The 59-year-old faces six charges of sexual abuse and trafficking over her alleged role in convicted sex offender Epstein's sick sexual "pyramid scheme".
Maxwell and Epstein are alleged to have lured in young girls and then abused them as they wowed their victims with their glamorous lifestyle.
Ghislaine appeared in court flanked by her sister Isabel, her brother Kevin and a small group of supporters.
And her lawyers begun the day by attempting to poke holes in the harrowing testimony given yesterday by Jane.
During cross examination, she was asked by Maxwell's lawyers if Epstein had ever introduced her to Trump.
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She agreed she had and claims she was driven to Mar-a-Lago by Epstein in a dark green car when she was 14.
And later on, she also mentioned she took part in a Trump sponsored beauty pageant.
The court heard Epstein had given her 2,000 dollars for a dress.
Asked if she had cried about only being given 2,000 dollars, Jane replied: "That's ridiculous, I wouldn't do that."
Trump has long been associated with beauty pageants, owning the MIss USA contest from 1996 to 2015.
There has been no suggestion in the trial - or anywhere else - that Mr Trump was aware of Epstein's sickening crimes.
And she was also asked if she ever remembered being on a flight with Ghislaine's pal Prince Andrew, to which she also replied yes.
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Prince Andrew denies any wrongdoing over his friendship with Epstein - including strongly denying he slept with 17-year-old sex slave Virginia Roberts.
It is the third time Trump have been mentioned in the case - and the second time for Andrew.
Both were named yesterday alongside Bill Clinton, Kevin Spacey and Chris Tucker as plane passengers by Epstein's longtime pilot Lawrence Visoski.
And on both occasions the famous names were brought up by Maxwell's team during cross-examination.
Epstein and Maxwell rubbed shoulders with the world's rich and famous - allegedly hiding in plain sight amid a web of sordid sex abuse.
Multi-millionaire Epstein would keep a "little black book" of powerful contacts as he jetted around the world allegedly with Maxwell.
Jane also told the court today that Epstein brought her to famed journalist Mike Wallace’s 80th birthday party in New York.
“I sang happy birthday,” said Jane, who would have been about 15.
Jane testified yesterday that Maxwell and Epstein would use names like Trump and Clinton to boast about their social circle.
NAME DROPPING
Trump is known to have been pals with Epstein in the 90s and early 00s - before the two had a falling out and the paedo was allegedly banned from Mar-a-Lago.
However, the two are understood to have once been friends.
The reality TV star once called him a "terrific guy" who liked "younger" women in a 2002 interview.
But since then Trump has distanced himself from Epstein, describing the financier's infamous private island as a "cesspool".
And following Epstein's arrest in 2019, he said he was "not a fan" of him.
Andrew meanwhile is understood to have been introduced to Epstein by his old friend Ghislaine - with the two striking up a friendship.
Elsewhere, defence attorneys pursued inconsistencies and apparent errors in Jane's account of the events that occurred 20 years ago when she was a teen.
She previously told how British socialite Maxwell was "in the room" when much of the abuse occurred - including when she was just 14.
Jane repeatedly said she could either not recall or claimed there were errors in the initial transcription of her comments when speaking to prosecutors in 2019.
Laura Menninger asked Jane about apparent discrepancies between her descriptions of Maxwell's role on Tuesday and earlier conversations with prosecutors before Maxwell's arrest in July 2020.
It appears a key part of Maxwell's defence lawyers strategy is attempting to suggest the victim's memories have changed over time.
They say the accusers never mentioned Maxwell's role in their abuse until after Epstein died and a compensation fund was set up for his victims, giving the women a financial incentive to cooperate with prosecutors.
Jane, now in her early 40s and an actress, said she now recalled certain events that she did not recall in the past.
And she was clear she was never asked to have sex with Epstein and Maxwell's friends.
She previously told the court she was an aspiring singer and her family had just gone through hardship after the death of her dad.
The accuser said that Epstein and Maxwell had approached her with a promise of being her benefactor - plying her with money, gifts and the promise of a better life.
However, her friendship with the couple changed as they began to abuse her, she told the courtroom.
Jane told the court about instances of Epstein pleasuring himself on her, of being touched by Maxwell, and being subjected to orgies - all while she was just a teen.
This is real. I am seeking closure. I have been running from this my entire life
Jane
And today, Jane was also grilled about a multimillion dollar payout she received from a compensation fund for Epstein's victims.
Sobbing, she said: "I wish I never received that money in the first place because of what happened."
Ghislaine's lawyers also quizzed her on her career as an actress, including asking if she even played a "prostitute" and if she can "cry on command".
She was also asked if she knows the difference between acting on television and testifying in court.
"This is real. I am seeking closure. I have been running from this my entire life. I want to help in whatever way I can. And maybe find some healing," Jane said.
And she added that she clearly recalls the first time Epstein abused her as it was the moment her "life would change forever".
Court proceedings yesterday also saw Epstein's former pilot Lawrence Visoski say that Maxwell was Epstein's "number two".
But denied he ever witnessed an sexual abuse.
Prosecutors argue Maxwell, 59, "served up" young girls to Epstein as part of a pyramid scheme of abuse as she appeared in court in New York.
However her lawyers deny all charges against her, argue she is being made a proxy for Epstein, and have painted the alleged victims as in it for the cash.
She is facing charges relating to four alleged victims, three of whom are appearing anonymously - with the one named complainant being Annie Farmer.
Maxwell's defence are expected to hinge much of their case on going after the credibility of the alleged victims.
And they will attempt to demonstrate distance between Maxwell and her former boyfriend Epstein.
Her lawyer Bobbi Sternheim claimed "ever since Eve, women have been blamed for the evil deeds of men".
She said: "Ghislaine Maxwell is not Jeffrey Epstein or any of the other men, moguls and media giants who abuse women."
The Charges
GHISLAINE Maxwell faces six charges over her alleged involvement with Jeffrey Epstein:
- Conspiracy to entice minors to travel to engage in illegal sex acts
- Enticement of a minor to travel to engage in illegal sex
- Conspiracy to transport minors with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity
- Transportation of a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity
- Sex trafficking conspiracy
- Sex trafficking of a minor
Prosecution called the Brit heiress a "dangerous predator" and said she and Epstein were “partners in crime”.
Maxwell, daughter of disgraced newspaper mogul Robert Maxwell, is alleged to have snared girls as young as 14 into a "nightmare" after promising them "the world".
She is accused of walking girls into Epstein's liar where she watched as he molested them - and sometimes even joined in.
Convicted sex offender Epstein killed himself while awaiting trial for further sex trafficking charges in August 2019.
She also faces two other charges of perjury over allegations she lied in a deposition in a separate civil suit, but these will be tried separately.
Maxwell was arrested suddenly in July 2020 - and has been held in prison ever since as she was deemed a flight risk.
