Page Nav

HIDE

Pages

Classic Header

{fbt_classic_header}

Breaking News:

latest

Ghislaine Maxwell was under Jeffrey Epstein's control and believed he would marry her, says confidante Laura Goldman as she claims billionaire paedophile's 'madam' would NEVER sell out Prince Andrew

Ghislaine Maxwell was under Jeffrey Epstein's control and believed he would marry her, one of her closest confidantes has revealed.  ...

Ghislaine Maxwell was under Jeffrey Epstein's control and believed he would marry her, one of her closest confidantes has revealed. 
Laura Goldman, a New York stockbroker who has known Maxwell for several years, also said she would 'never' offer information about alleged links between Prince Andrew and the billionaire paedophile, as pressure mounts on the royal to speak to the FBI.
The socialite could face up to 35 years in prison for six charges of grooming and trafficking after officers swooped on her New Hampshire bolthole on Thursday.
However, Ms Goldman, who became close to Maxwell after meeting her at parties in the 1990s, told BBC Radio Four's Today programme her friend was 'also a victim of Jeffrey Epstein'.
She said: 'I never saw him berate her but she always a little afraid of him, she'd say 'I have to go, he's going to yell at me'.
'I do [think she was totally under his control]. It doesn't mean what she did was okay. 
'Almost every woman you meet in jail is there because of a man. Some women are much more susceptible because of society's pressures to do things to please a man.
'I think she thought if she found him one more girl, he would marry her. Is that okay? No. 
'She honestly thought at the end of the day she was going to be Mrs Jeffrey Epstein and that was a prize she wanted.'
Laura Goldman, who has been friends with Ghislaine Maxwell for several years said she would 'never sell out' Prince Andrew following her arrest on child sex charges
Laura Goldman, who has been friends with Ghislaine Maxwell for several years said she would 'never sell out' Prince Andrew following her arrest on child sex charges
'She is so appreciative that when she first came to New York, the Duke helped to launch her into high society. She always talks about what a true friend he is. She doesn’t see any reason to speak about him to the authorities,' said Ms Goldman
'She is so appreciative that when she first came to New York, the Duke helped to launch her into high society. She always talks about what a true friend he is. She doesn't see any reason to speak about him to the authorities,' said Ms Goldman
Ms Goldman said she last spoke to Maxwell 'a couple of weeks ago', adding that the British socialite 'knew she was coming to the end of the road'.
Ms Goldman said: 'Initially she felt she was going to be fine because of the immunity provision, but I think in recent months she saw the fuhrer had died.
'When Jeffrey initially died, she was relieved, she thought it was over.'
Last night, it emerged that Maxwell was once photographed sitting in the Throne Room at Buckingham Palace alongside actor Kevin Spacey in 2002, years before police began investigating Epstein's links to sex trafficking and abuse. 
The developments have brought renewed pressure on the Duke of York to speak to investigators about his relationship with the disgraced paedophile billionaire, following back-and-forth claims that both parties were being uncooperative. 
But Ms Goldman suggested Maxwell would be more likely to discuss Epstein's dealings with former US President Bill Clinton and his successor Donald Trump instead of Andrew. No allegations have been made about either man. 
'The only way she can walk is if she gives someone up, but that definitely won't be Andrew,' Ms Goldman told The Telegraph, which published the picture of Ghislaine in Buckingham Palace with Spacey.
'She is so appreciative that when she first came to New York, the Duke helped to launch her into high society. She always talks about what a true friend he is. She doesn't see any reason to speak about him to the authorities.'
There is concern among royal circles over what implications Ms Maxwell's arrest in New Hampshire on Thursday could have for the Duke, 60, who was reportedly introduced to the billionaire paedophile by her in 1999. 
Tonight's bombshell revelation comes as the Mail can reveal:
  • Maxwell started legal moves to purchase her secluded New Hampshire bolthole the very day after Andrew's car crash TV interview;
  • Victims urged the duke to speak to the FBI, saying 'more excuses, more delays' were 'torture' for them;
  • The duke's immediate fate rests with Home Office officials who must judge if the US can quiz him in a court;
  • Andrew's accuser Virginia Roberts branded Maxwell 'an evil monster' and said she cried tears of joy at her arrest;
  • Ghislaine Maxwell's confidante Laura Goldman suggested the socialite would more likely discuss former US President Bill Clinton and Donald Trump's relationships with Epstein over the Duke of York.

Maxwell was this week discovered living quietly in Bradford, a small town in New Hampshire, by FBI and NYPD officers after evading them for a year. 
The socialite was awake and sitting in the living room wearing jogging bottoms and a t-shirt when the FBI swooped on her $1million hideaway. 
A source told The Times Maxwell did not say a word while she was being arrested.
When asked if she was surprised to be found by police, the source said: 'What do you think?'
The six charges filed against her include conspiracy to entice minors to travel to engage in illegal sex acts and enticement of a minor to travel to engage in illegal sex acts.
She is further charged with conspiracy to transport minors with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity and transportation of a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity.
Yesterday one former associate of her late paedophile boyfriend Jeffrey Epstein predicted she would co-operate fully with the authorities in a bid to reduce any future jail time, adding: 'There's a lot of people very worried. She knows everything.'
One lawyer representing Epstein victims, Gloria Allred, said: 'If Miss Maxwell decides that she is going to co-operate and talk about Prince Andrew... Prince Andrew might want to get to the prosecutors first.'
The duke's allies insisted he wants to 'do his best', claiming he had tried unsuccessfully to break the deadlock with US prosecutors three times in the past month.
The comments came as former Epstein associate Steven Hoffenberg, a convicted fraudster who worked with the financier in the 1980s, said of Maxwell: 'She's going to co-operate and be very important. There's a lot of people very worried. She knows everything. She'll totally co-operate.'
Lawyer Lisa Bloom, who represents six of Epstein's victims, said it was 'highly likely' Maxwell, 58, would strike a plea deal with prosecutors.
Another lawyer representing more Epstein victims, Spencer Kuvin, agreed. 'I think [Maxwell] will talk,' he said.
'She will be in panic mode, and will want to do anything to get a lighter sentence. For anyone who has culpability for anything over the past ten to 15 years, I'd be nervous.'
Chillingly, he added: 'I don't think she is going to get out of jail alive. I said the same thing about Jeffrey Epstein and people laughed at me. I think she knows way too much... I just have this gut feeling.'
Epstein hanged himself in his cell last August while awaiting trial on child sex charges. His guards were found to have faked records saying they had checked on him.
Andrew’s immediate fate is in the hands of Home Office officials, who must decide whether to grant US officials’ request for ‘mutual legal assistance’ made in April. Under the terms of a 1994 treaty between the US and UK, this could see the duke forced to give evidence in a courtroom
Andrew's immediate fate is in the hands of Home Office officials, who must decide whether to grant US officials' request for 'mutual legal assistance' made in April. Under the terms of a 1994 treaty between the US and UK, this could see the duke forced to give evidence in a courtroom

Conspiracy theories abound that Epstein was killed to stop him talking about his powerful friends. Prince Andrew stayed with Epstein at his mansions in New York, Florida and the Caribbean, where women have claimed they were abused. He also flew on Epstein's private jet, nicknamed the 'Lolita Express'.
However, he insisted last year that he never saw, witnesses or suspected 'any behaviour of the sort' that led to Epstein's arrest and conviction for child sex offences.
London mayor Sadiq Khan was among those urging the duke to talk to US officials, telling LBC: 'I think it's really important for those of us in positions of power and influence to lead by example.
'We shouldn't lose sight of... who the victims are. The victims were children at the time, vulnerable children, young women, and it's really important that anybody who's got information helps the FBI and that includes Prince Andrew as well.'
Virginia Roberts, who claims she was Epstein’s teenage sex slave and was forced to have sex with Prince Andrew three times, thanked the FBI for arresting ‘an evil monster’. Pictured: The Prince with a 17-year-old Virginia Roberts as Ghislaine Maxwell stands in the background circa 2001
Virginia Roberts, who claims she was Epstein's teenage sex slave and was forced to have sex with Prince Andrew three times, thanked the FBI for arresting 'an evil monster'. Pictured: The Prince with a 17-year-old Virginia Roberts as Ghislaine Maxwell stands in the background circa 2001
Mrs Allred, who represents five Epstein victims, told Good Morning Britain: 'I'm just so tired of the excuses. The victims want the truth.
'We know that Prince Andrew was at Epstein's home in London and in Manhattan and elsewhere, so he is an important person, and if Miss Maxwell decides that she is going to co-operate and talk about Prince Andrew and what he did there, Prince Andrew might want to get to the prosecutors first.'
Yesterday sources close to the duke, 60, claimed he wants 'to do his best to offer his assistance as a witness'.
They insisted his legal team had been proactive, sending three emails in the past month to the Americans to 'open negotiations' to discuss the terms under which he might give a witness statement.
Maxwell was picked up by the FBI and NYPD detectives at 8.30am at the property in Bradford, New Hampshire, she had bought in December 2019 using a limited liability company called Granite Reality LLC to shield her name
 Maxwell was picked up by the FBI and NYPD detectives at 8.30am at the property in Bradford, New Hampshire, she had bought in December 2019 using a limited liability company called Granite Reality LLC to shield her name 

The last contact was made within the past few days but there has been no response, the sources said.
The FBI has made no secret of its wish to meet Andrew face-to-face and question him under oath – suggesting a statement drafted with his lawyers would not suffice.
One insider said Andrew and his team were puzzled as to why other high-profile men linked to Epstein were not being pursued with the same vigour.
'It seems like the duke is a high-profile scalp for the Department of Justice and they are using his name to rattle cages and look like they are actively doing something,' they said.
Andrew's immediate fate is in the hands of Home Office officials, who must decide whether to grant US officials' request for 'mutual legal assistance' made in April.
Under the terms of a 1994 treaty between the US and UK, this could see the duke forced to give evidence in a courtroom.
A specialist unit of civil servants within the Home Office is 'processing' the request 'via the normal channels', sources said.
Once their recommendation has been made, the final ruling is expected to be made by Home Secretary Priti Patel.
With no time limit attached to the request, officials may not wish to rush their decision. They may also hope the prince resolves the situation himself.
British socialite Maxwell, the daughter of disgraced newspaper tycoon Robert Maxwell, now faces six federal charges including child abuse, trafficking and perjury.
She was said to have spent the first day following her arrest at Merrimack County Jail in Boscawen, New Hampshire. She will eventually be transferred to Manhattan, where she could end up in the jail where Epstein, 66, killed himself.
She was arrested in a secluded property in the New Hampshire, fittingly called 'TuckedAway'. The Mail can reveal it was bought via limited company Granite Reality, which was established on November 18 last year.
This was one day after Prince Andrew's Newsnight interview, intended to clear up his relationship with Epstein but which led to him quitting frontline royal duties.
Maxwell has already made one brief court appearance in New Hampshire but has not entered any plea to allegations relating to three girls, one as young as 14 and another in London.
She allegedly befriended schoolgirls and took them shopping before luring them into Epstein's clutches, as well as abusing them herself. She has previously denied all allegations of wrongdoing.
Virginia Roberts, who claims she was Epstein's teenage sex slave and was forced to have sex with Prince Andrew three times, thanked the FBI for arresting 'an evil monster' after she was given the news by her lawyer in an early morning phone call.
Miss Roberts – whose claims the prince strenuously denies – added: 'When I got the call, I was elated, crying tears of joy, laughing... finally, we got her. This woman found me, groomed me, abused me and handed me over to Jeffrey and his friends.'
The mum-of-three who lives near Cairns in Queensland, said: 'When I got the call I was elated, crying tears of joy, laughing... finally we got her.
'It felt even better than when Jeffrey got arrested - he was a pedophile, they cannot be cured. They either belong in jail or six feet under. Ghislaine, on the other hand, is an evil monster.
Ms Roberts claims it was Maxwell who first spotted her while she worked as a spa attendant at Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort, less than a mile away from Epstein's Palm Beach mansion.
'This woman found me, groomed me, abused me and handed me over to Jeffrey and his friends,' she added.
She also vowed that Prince Andrew would be the next person arrested after the FBI found Ghislaine Maxwell, and pleaded with him to cooperate with US investigators.
'He knows what he has done. He is going to go to jail. He has already lost so much but that is not enough. Justice has to prevail. He has to be held accountable.'

No comments