#Ghislaine Maxwell ordered held without bail on child sex-trafficking charges

Convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged madam and one-time girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell was ordered held without bail Thursday when she appeared via video in a New Hampshire federal court on child sex-trafficking charges.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the judge, the lawyers and the defendant all appeared for the initial presentment and removal hearing by video in Concord District Court.

The public could not access the video feed but could listen to the hearing.

Magistrate Judge Andrea Johnstone apprised Maxwell of the charges against her, and Maxwell answered her questions in a soft voice. After the British socialite, 58, waived her right to have a detention hearing in New Hampshire, the judge ordered her held without bail.

“Miss Maxwell, you are remanded to the custody of the United States Marshal,” the judge said.

In a six-count Manhattan federal indictment, Maxwell is accused of grooming three underage victims for sex with Epstein in places including his Upper East Side townhouse, New Mexico, Florida and London.

“The victims were as young as 14 years old when they were groomed and abused by Maxwell and Epstein, both of whom knew that certain victims were in fact under the age of 18,” the indictment says of the conduct that started as early as 1994.

Maxwell was arrested at about 8:30 a.m. Thursday at her home in Bradford, New Hampshire, where she has allegedly been hiding out on the 156-acre property.

Prosecutors argued in a detention memo that she should remain locked up without bail, calling her an extreme flight risk because she has three passports and $20 million in the bank.

She has gone to great lengths to conceal her whereabouts since Epstein’s indictment was unsealed in July 2019, switching locations at least twice and changing her phone number, prosecutors said in the memo.

The financier and convicted pedophile, 66, hanged himself in jail last year after his arrest on child sex-trafficking charges.

Maxwell faces charges of conspiracy to entice minors to travel to engage in illegal sex acts, enticement of a minor to travel to engage in illegal sex acts, conspiracy to transport minors with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, transportation of a minor with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity and two counts of perjury.

If convicted, she faces up to 35 years in prison.