Tag: Ghislaine Maxwell

(NEW YORK) Ghislaine Maxwell Trial Report: A psychologist testifying at her federal sex trafficking trial has told the jury people can have “false memories” of traumatic events #AceNewsDesk report

Post author By ace101
Post date 18/12/2021

#AceNewsReport – Dec.17: In court on Thursday, Dr Loftus, a psychology professor at the University of California, Irvine, testified that her research suggests memories of traumatic events – like the ones described by Ms Maxwell’s accusers – are often reconstructed rather than simply retrieved.

#AceDailyNews Ghislaine Maxwell Trial Report: Dr Elizabeth Loftus told the court in New York that people “can be subjected to post-event suggestion”…………..Ms Maxwell, 59, has pleaded not guilty to grooming underage girls for the late paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. Her attorneys argue that her accusers have fallen prey to lapses in “memory, manipulation and money”.

Key moments so far in Ghislaine Maxwell trial

Prosecutors say the duo ran “a pyramid scheme of abuse”

“[Memory] doesn’t work like a recording device,” she said. “We are actually constructing our memories while we retrieve memories.”

She claimed that media coverage can act as “a source of post-event suggestion” and also that those who recall memories “frequently remember ourselves in a better light than perhaps is accurate”.

However, she conceded under cross-examination that, while “peripheral memories” from a traumatic event may be forgotten, the event’s “core memories” may in fact get stronger.

The defence team has said they expect to rest their case by Monday.

The British socialite is not expected to take the stand in her own defence, according to her family.

A spokesman for the Maxwells told the UK’s Mirror newspaper on Wednesday that her health had worsened and she was “too fragile” to testify.

Her family have repeatedly said she is being treated poorly in detention and held under inhumane conditions, even pleading to the United Nations and the US Attorney General for some form of intervention: Ghislaine Maxwell’s jail conditions ‘are torture’

Defence counsels allege she is being treated poorly because the government needs a scapegoat for crimes committed by Epstein, her former boyfriend and business associate.

Epstein was convicted of sex crimes in the state of Florida in 2008, but died by suicide in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges.

Earlier on Thursday, Cimberly Espinosa – who was Epstein’s executive assistant from 1996 to 2003 – testified that, having worked with Ms Maxwell practically every day, she “looked up to her very much” and never saw her engage inappropriately with underage girls.

When asked about one of the accusers underpinning the case against Ms Maxwell, Ms Espinosa confirmed she met the girl in Epstein’s office, but said she had guessed the girl was “about 18” and thought she was in “a loving relationship” with Epstein.

The accuser, identified by the pseudonym Jane, testified last week that she had given Epstein massages that turned into sexual encounters when she was 14 years old. She also accused Ms Maxwell of “instructing” her on how Epstein liked to be massaged and of sometimes taking part.

Ms Espinosa said she often booked massages for both Epstein and Ms Maxwell, but they were professional ones. She also said Jane’s mother had told her “Jane was Jeffrey’s goddaughter”.

But she admitted to prosecutors that she had never been to Epstein’s Florida mansion, where many of the alleged encounters took place.

The witness also told the court that, while she thought Epstein and Ms Maxwell were “a little flirty” like a couple, they became less close over time as Ms Maxwell dated other men.

Over two weeks of testimony that ended last Friday, prosecutors built a narrative of the duo as “partners in crime” running “a pyramid scheme of abuse”.

Epstein accuser: Ghislaine Maxwell is a ‘master manipulator’

The court returned on Thursday morning after three days off due to scheduling conflicts.

Ms Maxwell has been in a US jail since her arrest in July 2020 and is facing counts of sex trafficking and perjury.

She could serve up to 80 years in prison if convicted.

#AceNewsDesk report …………..Published: Dec.18: 2021:

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Tags Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein, New York

Ace Daily News

(NEW YORK) Ghislaine Maxwell Trial Report: A third woman who has accused her of grooming her for abuse by the late financier Jeffrey Epstein has testified, as at a 14-year-old, she gave Epstein sexual massages #AceNewsDesk report

Post author By ace101
Post date 09/12/2021

#AceNewsReport – Dec.09: The woman, identified as Carolyn, recalled how Epstein would touch her breasts and buttocks, and that the encounters would end with Epstein masturbating until he ejaculated.

#AceDailyNews says that Carolyn said Maxwell would sometimes call her to schedule appointments with Epstein, during each of which she would be paid $300 to $400, and that Ms Maxwell once touched her while she was preparing to massage Epstein according to local media …..

A woman, identified as Carolyn, told the court Ghislaine Maxwell touched her inappropriately while she prepared to massage Jeffrey Epstein. (Reuters: Jane Rosenberg)

“Something sexual happened every single time,” Carolyn, who chose not to reveal her last name, told jurors in Manhattan Federal Court.

She said she had told Ms Maxwell she was 14 years old.

Another woman testifying against British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, Jane, also told the court she was 14 years old at the time of the abuse. (AP)

“I was fully nude and she came in and she felt my boobs and my hips and my buttocks and said that … I had a great body for Mr Epstein and his friends,” Carolyn said.

Maxwell, 59, has pleaded not guilty to eight counts of sex trafficking and other charges.

Carolyn is the third of four women identified in Ms Maxwell’s 2021 indictment as her victims.

The trial began on November 29 and is expected to continue into January.

Ms Maxwell’s lawyers have claimed the memories of the four alleged victims have been corrupted over the years, and that Ms Maxwell was being prosecuted only because Epstein was no longer alive.

The globetrotting investor killed himself in 2019, at the age of 66, in a Manhattan jail cell while awaiting sex trafficking charges.Second woman accuses Ghislaine Maxwell A woman testifying under the pseudonym Kate tells a New York court she massaged Jeffrey Epstein at Ghislaine Maxwell’s request.

Last week, jurors heard from a woman known by the pseudonym Jane, who testified that Epstein sexually abused her beginning in 1994 while she was 14 years old.

Jane said Ms Maxwell sometimes participated in their encounters, which often began as massages before escalating.

On Monday, jurors also heard from Kate, a pseudonym for a woman who said she had sexual encounters with Epstein from the age of 17.

Prosecutors referred to Kate as a “minor victim” in the indictment, however,. US District Judge Alison Nathan instructed the jury on Monday that the witness was above the age of consent at the time Epstein and Ms Maxwell ‘s actions were being recalled.

Reuters/ABC/AP

#AceNewsDesk report ………..Published: Dec.09: 2021:

Shame

Tags Court, Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein, New York

Ace Daily News

(NEW YORK) Ghislaine Maxwell Trial Report: Jeffrey Epstein received “up to three massages per day,” his former Palm Beach, Florida, housekeeper recalled of the 12 years he had worked for the financier from 1990 through 2002 #AceNewsDesk report

Post author By ace101
Post date 04/12/2021

#AceNewsReport – Dec.04: Juan Alessi took the stand at Ghislaine Maxwell’s trial Thursday to provide insight into Epstein and Maxwell’s alleged dirty secrets and to corroborate victim “Jane’s” story.

#AceDailyNews Report: Ghislaine Maxwell Trial: Housekeeper found sex toys, leather costume after Epstein’s massages: The housekeeper also testified to finding ‘pornographic tapes’ and ‘a black vinyl or leather costume’ to corroborate ‘Janes Story’ according to FOX News: By Marta Dhanis

Trial of Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein's former girlfriend, begins

The housekeeper testified that Epstein received “one [massage] in the morning, one in the afternoon and another … after the movies, at 11 o’clock at night.”

While the employee never witnessed anything that would happen inside the massage room, Alessi would be asked to clean up after Epstein’s massages. Sometimes, Alessi said, he found items on the massage table or on Epstein’s table such as a “large [sex toy].” He recalled “it looked like a huge man’s penis with two heads.” So, he proceeded to put on his gloves, run it underwater, and “put the [sex toy] in Ms. Maxwell’s closet in a basket.” Asked by prosecutors why he would put it there, Alessi replied: “That’s the place where it was kept all the time.”

The housekeeper also testified to finding “pornographic tapes” and “a black vinyl or leather costume.”

Alessi said he would also sometimes be tasked with reaching out to and picking up girls for the massages. Maxwell and Epstein would keep a phone directory next to telephones. Alessi testified he had met “Jane” at the Palm Beach house in 1994 and that she was there several times after that. She appeared to be “14, 15,” he testified.

Alessi also picked her up at her house to bring her to Epstein’s home and took her once to the airport along with the pair so they could get on Epstein’s private plane. Alessi also remembers “Jane’s” number being on the phone directory.

“Jane” was one of the two females who “appeared to be underage” who showed up at the Florida residence. One day, the witness recalled, he was driving Maxwell to luxury spas in the area when she spotted a girl and asked him to stop so she could talk to the girl. In Alessi’s words, she “looked young,” “had blonde hair,” and “a long white uniform like the nurses.” He would later learn the girl’s name was Virginia Roberts. She would visit Epstein’s house frequently when both the financier and Maxwell were there.

Alessi also recalled seeing “Many, many, many females” at Epstein’s residence in Florida throughout the years he worked there. “Most appeared to be in the late 20s” and “hundreds of times” he’d see them by the pool and “80%” of the time they were topless while interacting with Epstein and Maxwell.

In his final year working for Epstein, Alessi received from Maxwell a booklet of 58 pages with work instructions.

“It was work for 10 people, not for one and half,” he said.

“I have to say it was very degrading to me.”

Later, during the examination of the witness, Assistant U.S. Attorney Maurene Comey provided him with a copy of the household manual. He read off the booklet: “Try to anticipate the needs of Mr. Epstein, Ms. Maxwell and their guests. Do not discuss personal problems with guests. Remember see nothing, hear nothing, say nothing, except to answer a question directed to you. Respect their privacy.”

Alessi also mentioned Maxwell’s Yorkshire terrier named “Max,” which “Jane” recalled in her account of the day she met Maxwell.

“She traveled with Ms. Maxwell all the time,” Alessi said.

“How do you know that?” Comey asked.

“Because I took Max. She had to have a bath before she leave, and every time it was wheels up the poor dog shacked like crazy because she didn’t like to be on the plane,” Alessi responded.

When Alessi was asked to identify the defendant, he paused. As their eyes met, Maxwell appeared to nod. He said Maxwell was Epstein’s “girlfriend” and “the lady of the house” who was there “95% of the times” when Epstein was at his Palm Beach house.

Alessi said his relationship with Epstein started off cordial but that their conversations were “less and less” frequent throughout the years he worked for him.

Maxwell would give Alessi instructions on how to do his job.

“There was a time when she said, ‘Jeffrey doesn’t like to be looked at (in) his eyes. You should never look at his eyes. Just look at another part of the room and answer to him,’” Alessi said. Marta Dhanis is a reporter and field producer based in New York who focuses on criminal justice and the courts.

#AceNewsDesk report ……….Published: Dec.04: 2021:

Tags Court, Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein, New York

Ace Daily News

(NEW YORK) Ghislaine Maxwell Trial Report: #Paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein’s long-time pilot has testified that he flew VIPs to luxury locations worldwide #AceNewsDesk report

Post author By ace101
Post date 02/12/2021

#AceNewsReport – Dec.02: Ms Maxwell denies the charges and says she is being used as a scapegoat for Epstein, who died in prison in 2019.

#AceDailyNews says BBC World News Report: Epstein pilot testifies he flew Prince Andrew together with Larry Visoski, the first witness in Ms Maxwell’s sex-trafficking trial, recalled flying Prince Andrew, Bill Clinton, Donald Trump and Kevin Spacey.

Mr Visoski flew for Epstein for over 25 years

Asked if he remembered Ms Giuffre, Mr Visoski said: Yes. A shorter woman with dirty blonde hair. She didn’t look young. I mean, whatever you decipher is the definition of young. But she was a woman in my category.”……

But prosecutors argue the pair were “partners in crime” in sex abuse.

Testimony given in court on Tuesday included harrowing details of the alleged abuse.

Ms Maxwell has been in a US jail since her arrest last year, and faces up to 80 years in prison if convicted.

Prosecutors say the British socialite, who also has US and French citizenship, recruited and groomed underage girls for her long-term companion Epstein to abuse.

Asked to describe Ms Maxwell’s standing in Epstein’s operations, Mr Visoski described her as “the number two”.

“Epstein was the big number one,” he told the New York court on Tuesday.

Mr Visoski served as Epstein’s pilot for over 25 years. During his testimony, prosecutors showed the jurors photographs of Epstein’s properties.

He testified that he had never seen any sexual activity during trips, although the cockpit door was always kept closed during flights on the plane nicknamed the “Lolita Express”.

He also recalled flying Virginia Roberts Giuffre, who says she was sexually assaulted by Prince Andrew.

The Queen’s 61-year-old second son has consistently denied the allegation.

Asked to describe Ms Maxwell’s relationship to Epstein he said it was “more personal than business”.

“I wouldn’t characterise it as romantic,” he added.

Another woman testifying under the pseudonym “Jane” told the court that Ms Maxwell had frequently been in the room with her when she had sexual relations with Epstein while just 14 years old.

Jane told the court she had met Epstein and Ms Maxwell while attending summer camp in Michigan 1994. He was introduced to her as a wealthy donor who offered scholarships to pupils.

Epstein had promised to fund her education but instead abused her, prosecutors said. She testified that her father had died one year earlier from cancer and her family was struggling financially at the time.

In graphic detail, she described her alleged abuse and said that Ms Maxwell, who she said was present for much of it, was “very casual” about the encounters.

Jane said that Ms Maxwell would talk to her about sex, and that she soon began visiting Epstein’s home every week or two.

She said her first sexual experience came when they were having a discussion about her future.

She said that Epstein led her from his office to his pool house, then pulled down his pants and started masturbating.

“I was frozen in fear, I had never seen a penis before,” the witness said. “I was terrified and felt gross and like I felt ashamed.”

It was not long after that she had her first sexual experience with Ms Maxwell, she testified, saying it took place at Epstein’s home in Palm Beach, Florida.

Jane said that the defendant and Epstein had her follow them to his bedroom. They took their clothes off and “started sort of fondling each other and kind of casually giggling”, she said.

“I was just standing there and he asked me to take my top off and then their hands [were] everywhere and Jeffrey proceeded to masturbate and Ghislaine was rubbing him and kissing him and fondling,” she continued.

She added that she travelled with Epstein and Ms Maxwell about 10 times, mainly between his homes in New York and New Mexico while she was between the ages of 14 and 16.

Jane also described “orgies” with other participants, and described feeling pain during the alleged encounters.

Both Epstein and Ms Maxwell would brag about their connections, including the famous people that they knew, she said.

Jane is the first of four accusers expected to testify at trial.

Ms Maxwell has pleaded not guilty to eight charges of sex trafficking and other crimes.

The allegations at trial cover the period 1994 to 2004. Prosecutors allege Ms Maxwell was a “right-hand” partner for Epstein, helping to groom vulnerable teenage girls as young as 14 for abuse at his luxurious residences.

They described her as “the lady of the house” who “helped normalise abusive sexual conduct”.

#AceNewsDesk report ………….Published: Dec.02: 2021:

Tags Court, Ghislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein, New York

Ace Daily News

(NEW YORK) DAY TWO: Ghislaine Maxwell Trial Report: Criminal sex abuse trial is set to enter its second day with prosecutors expected to question a longtime pilot of deceased financier Jeffrey Epstein #AceNewsDesk report

Post author By ace101
Post date 01/12/2021

#AceNewsReport – Dec.01: Ms Maxwell is accused of recruiting and grooming underage girls to give Epstein erotic massages that a prosecutor described in her opening statement on Monday as a “ruse” for sex abuse. Ms Maxwell’s defence attorney has said that the British socialite is being scapegoated for crimes that Epstein committed.

#AceDailyNews Court Report: Ghislaine Maxwell sex abuse trial to resume with Epstein pilot’s testimony

In this courtroom sketch, Ghislaine Maxwell enters the courtroom escorted by marshalls at the start of her trial.(AP: Elizabeth Williams)

Epstein died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex-abuse charges.

Ms Maxwell, 59, has pleaded not guilty to eight counts of sex trafficking and other crimes, including two perjury charges that will be tried at a later date. She faces up to 80 years in prison if convicted on all counts.

In testimony on Monday afternoon, Lawrence Visoski, the pilot, said Ms Maxwell often contacted him to schedule flights for Epstein.

Mr Visoski described Ms Maxwell as an office assistant of Epstein’s who frequently flew on his private planes, but also said their relationship appeared to be “more personal than business.”

“We interacted quite often,” Mr Visoski said of himself and Ms Maxwell.

Prosecutors are expected to resume questioning the pilot on Tuesday, and Ms Maxwell’s defence will cross-examine him after they finish.

Mr Visoski’s testimony provides jurors with a sense of the lifestyle that Epstein and Ms Maxwell lived between 1994 and 2004, the period in which prosecutors say Ms Maxwell lured four underage girls to Epstein.

Mr Visoski said he frequently shuttled Epstein and guests between Epstein’s properties in New York, Florida, New Mexico, Paris and private islands in the Caribbean.

Ms Maxwell is charged with several offences relating to her relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.

Violating the Mann Act

Prosecutors say that between 1994 and 1997 Ms Maxwell persuaded an under-aged girl to travel from Florida to New York with the intention of having her engage in sexual activity with Epstein.

In 1996, prosecutors say Ms Maxwell gave an unsolicited massage to another minor girl who flew to Epstein’s New Mexico ranch from out-of-state while the girl was topless.

Ms Maxwell is charged with two counts of violating the Mann Act, which bars transporting individuals across state lines for illegal sexual activity.

Ms Maxwell also faces two charges of conspiring to violate those two sections of the Mann Act.

Sex trafficking charges

Prosecutors also say that Ms Maxwell, beginning in 2001, recruited one of the four alleged victims to engage in sex acts with Epstein and provided her with hundreds of dollars in cash after massaging Epstein, knowing she was a minor.

Ms Maxwell sent gifts including lingerie from a New York address to the girl’s home in Florida, according to a 2021 indictment.

Those allegations form the basis of charges of one charge of sex trafficking of a minor and one charge of sex trafficking conspiracy. Key moments from Maxwell’s trialGhislaine Maxwell, Jeffrey Epstein’s ex-girlfriend, is on trial on sex abuse charges.

Ghislaine Maxwell’s defence

Ms Maxwell, 59, has pleaded not guilty to all of the charges. Her lawyers have argued that prosecutors are treating her as a scapegoat for Epstein, who died by suicide in 2019 in a Manhattan jail while awaiting trial on sex abuse charges.

Her attorneys say that the alleged sex trafficking victim did not mention Ms Maxwell while cooperating with a 2007 investigation by Florida federal prosecutors into Epstein.

They have argued that all four women named in the indictment have financial incentives to lie or exaggerate about Ms Maxwell’s involvement in the alleged abuse.

Perjury charges

Ms Maxwell faces two charges of perjury that will be tried at a later date.

Prosecutors have accused Ms Maxwell of lying under oath in 2016 during a deposition for a civil lawsuit brought against her by Virginia Giuffre, who says she was abused by Epstein while a minor.

Ms Giuffre alleged Ms Maxwell had defamed her by saying Ms Giuffre lied about the abuse.

In the 2016 deposition, Ms Maxwell said she did not recall the presence of sex toys in Epstein’s Palm Beach house and replied “I don’t know what you’re talking about” when asked if Epstein had a scheme to recruit underage girls for sexual massages.

Prosecutors characterised these statements as “false material declarations” in violation of a federal statute making it a crime to lie under oath.

Her lawyers said in a February 2021 court filing that the questions posed were ambiguous and that Ms Maxwell gave truthful responses.

Reuters

#AceNewsDesk report ……………Published: Dec.01: 2021:

Tags Court, Ghislaine Maxwell, Headlines, Jeffrey Epstein, New York

Ace Daily News

(NEW YORK) DAY ONE: Ghislaine Maxwell Trial Report: Her lawyer has told a jury that the sex abuse charges against the British socialite were for things that deceased financier Jeffrey Epstein had done and that the memories of the accusers had been “manipulated” #AceNewsDesk report

Post author By ace101
Post date 01/12/2021

#AceDailyNews Court Report: Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell’s trial begins with opening statements

Ghislaine Maxwell “served [vulnerable young girls] up to be sexually abused”, a New York prosecutor has alleged.(Supplied)

Earlier, 12 jurors and six alternates were sworn in to hear the case, which is expected to last six weeks. The billionaire, the socialite and the ‘little black book’Sixteen months after FBI agents swooped in on her remote hideaway to arrest Ghislaine Maxwell on sex abuse charges, the trial of the British socialite is beginning in New York.

Ghislaine Maxwell wore a mask in court and was seen taking notes during the opening statements. (AP: Elizabeth Williams)

The charges against Ghislaine Maxwell are for things that Jeffrey Epstein did, but she is not Jeffrey Epstein,” defence attorney Bobbi Sternheim said in her opening statement on Monday afternoon local time.

Ms Maxwell is on trial in Manhattan federal court for recruiting and grooming four young girls for Epstein to abuse between 1994 and 2004.

Epstein died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking and sex abuse charges.

Prosecutors say that Ms Maxwell — a former employee and romantic partner of Epstein’s — sent gifts such as lingerie and discussed sexual topics with the girls to win their trust before encouraging them to give Epstein erotic massages, according to the 2021 indictment against her.

“She preyed on vulnerable young girls, manipulated them, and served them up to be sexually abused,” assistant district attorney Lara Pomerantz said in the prosecution’s opening statement.

Ms Maxwell, 59, has pleaded not guilty to eight charges of sex trafficking and other crimes, including two counts of perjury that will be tried at a later date.

In court, Ms Maxwell appeared wearing a white face mask amid the COVID-19 pandemic. She faces up to 80 years in prison if convicted on all counts.

The prosecutor spoke from an enclosed plastic see-through box that allowed her to take off her mask.

Four accusers are expected to testify as government witnesses in the trial.

Prosecutors said other witnesses would include family members of the accusers, pilots who flew Epstein and his alleged victims in private planes and former employees at Epstein’s Palm Beach residence.

Ms Maxwell frequently wrote during the morning proceedings, sometimes handing notes to her lawyers.

Prosecutors have said Ms Maxwell encouraged the girls to massage Epstein while they were fully or partially nude.

In some cases, Epstein or Ms Maxwell would pay them cash or offer to pay for their travel or education, and Epstein sometimes masturbated or touched the girls’ genitals during the massages, prosecutors said.

Maxwell was ‘in on it from the start’, says prosecution

Ms Pomerantz described Ms Maxwell as “essential” to Epstein’s abuse of the girls.

“Sometimes, she was even in the room for the massages herself and, sometimes, she touched the girls’ bodies,” Ms Pomerantz said.

“And, even when she was not in the room, make no mistake: She knew exactly what Epstein was going to do with those children when she sent them to him inside the massage rooms.”

Sarah Ransome, an alleged victim of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, attended the court.(AP: John Minchillo)

“She was in on it from the start. The defendant and Epstein lured their victims with a promise of a bright future, only to sexually exploit them,” she said.

Maxwell “was involved in every detail of Epstein’s life,” the prosecutor said. “The defendant was the lady of the house.”

Even after Ms Maxwell and Epstein stopped being romantically involved, the pair “remained the best of friends”, Ms Pomerantz said.

She said Ms Maxwell “helped normalise abusive sexual conduct” by making the teenagers feel safe and by taking them on shopping trips and asking them about their lives, their schools and their families.

The prosecution allege Ghislaine Maxwell was “essential” to Epstein’s abuse of “vulnerable young girls”.(AP: United Nations/Rick Bajornas)

The abuse occurred at Epstein’s homes, including his estate in Palm Beach, Florida; his posh Manhattan townhouse; a Santa Fe, New Mexico, ranch; a Paris apartment; and a luxury estate in the Virgin Islands, the court was told.

Maxwell a ‘scapegoat’ for Epstein, says defence

Ms Sternheim, the defence lawyer, said her client was a “scapegoat for a man who behaved badly”.

She said Ms Maxwell was being blamed for a man’s bad behaviour, just as so many women have before, all the way back to Adam and Eve.

Ms Sternheim said Ms Maxwell was “not Jeffrey Epstein — she’s not like Jeffrey Epstein” nor like any of the powerful men, moguls and media giants who abused women.

“He’s the proverbial elephant in the room. He is not visible, but he is consuming this entire courtroom and overflow courtrooms where other members of the public are viewing,” she said.

Ghislaine Maxwell’s trial is being held at New York’s Manhattan Federal Court. (AP: John Minchillo)

Ms Sternheim told jurors that the memories of Maxwell’s accusers had been “manipulated” by lawyers who encouraged them to sue Ms Maxwell and Epstein for damages.

A compensation fund set up after Epstein’s death has been paying claims of accusers from the financier’s estate. Ms Sternheim said Ms Maxwell’s accusers received payouts.

The lawyer said “accusers have shaken the money tree, and millions of dollars have fallen their way”.

“Memories fade over time and this case you will learn that not only have memories faded, but they have [also] been contaminated by outside information, constant media reports and other influences,” Ms Sternheim said.

The prosecution’s first witness was Lawrence Paul Visoski Jr, who worked for Epstein, starting in the 1990s, as a pilot on the private jets that shuttled Epstein, Ms Maxwell and others between his various homes.

Mr Visoski started by describing the layout of the New York residence that he regularly visited to pick up luggage and do other chores. He is due to return to the stand on Tuesday.

Ms Maxwell’s lawyers previously said prosecutors, unable to convict Epstein, were using the daughter of late British media magnate Robert Maxwell as a scapegoat.

“Left with no fish to attempt to fry, the government belatedly turned to Ms Maxwell,” her lawyers wrote in a February 4 filing.

Reuters/AP