The disgraced British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell launched an appeal against her conviction and sentence for trafficking young girls.
A 60-year-old man was jailed for 20 years last month after a jury found him guilty of luring young girls to massage parlors for abuse by a former financier Jeffrey Epstein between 1994 and 2004.
Maxwell’s defense attorneys said they would appeal the verdict after it emerged one of the jurors failed to disclose in court that he had been sexually assaulted.
But in a written ruling, Judge Alison Nathan said the jury’s guilty verdicts were “supported” by witness testimony and documentary evidence, as Maxwell’s bid to overturn the conviction was denied.
Prosecutors called Maxwell “dangerous” during her three-week trial, where jurors heard how she lured young girls to Epstein so he could sexually assault them.
Judge Nathan went on to say that it was significant that although “Epstein was the mastermind behind this scheme”, she was not convicted “as a proxy” for him.
She said: “The defendant’s behavior … was despicable and predatory.
“Ms. Maxwell worked with Epstein to select young victims who were vulnerable and played a key role in facilitating the sexual assault.”
Maxwell has been incarcerated since July 2020.
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Ghislaine Maxwell launches appeals against sex trafficking conviction and sentence
