Ghislaine Maxwell arrested
July 2, 2020 12:05 PM Subscribe
Ghislaine Maxwell arrested by FBI and accused of 'setting trap' for Epstein victims. Maxwell was arrested in New Hampshire and an FBI indictment charges her with several crimes[NYT link , disturbing content].
Epstein case previously on Metafilter
Epstein case previously on Metafilter
Better check the batteries on the security cameras in the area.
posted by jquinby at 12:18 PM on July 2, 2020 [45 favorites]
posted by jquinby at 12:18 PM on July 2, 2020 [45 favorites]
Last I heard she was in France and therefore would not be extradited. Not sure why she returned, but glad she is in custody.
posted by terrapin at 12:22 PM on July 2, 2020
posted by terrapin at 12:22 PM on July 2, 2020
Statue of Jeffrey Epstein mysteriously appears in Albuquerque
posted by theodolite at 12:30 PM on July 2, 2020 [7 favorites]
posted by theodolite at 12:30 PM on July 2, 2020 [7 favorites]
It seems strange that this sophisticated rich person thought the best way to evade the US justice system was to buy a house in cash in New Hampshire and stop picking up her mail rather than flee somewhere more remote, but...who knows.
I’m very curious to see whether she decides to cooperate, and if so, how.
posted by sallybrown at 12:31 PM on July 2, 2020 [5 favorites]
I’m very curious to see whether she decides to cooperate, and if so, how.
posted by sallybrown at 12:31 PM on July 2, 2020 [5 favorites]
Statue of Jeffrey Epstein mysteriously appears in Albuquerque
They removed that piece of history the same day.
posted by BrotherCaine at 12:36 PM on July 2, 2020 [9 favorites]
They removed that piece of history the same day.
posted by BrotherCaine at 12:36 PM on July 2, 2020 [9 favorites]
Mod note: Removed one post. Please take suicide seriously and avoid joking about it
posted by loup (staff) at 12:48 PM on July 2, 2020 [23 favorites]
posted by loup (staff) at 12:48 PM on July 2, 2020 [23 favorites]
It'll be interesting to see if she rolls over on Prince Andrew.
posted by aramaic at 12:56 PM on July 2, 2020 [18 favorites]
posted by aramaic at 12:56 PM on July 2, 2020 [18 favorites]
Last I heard she was in France and therefore would not be extradited. Not sure why she returned, but glad she is in custody.
I suspect she knows everything Epstein knew. So...October surprise?
posted by Thorzdad at 12:57 PM on July 2, 2020 [6 favorites]
I suspect she knows everything Epstein knew. So...October surprise?
posted by Thorzdad at 12:57 PM on July 2, 2020 [6 favorites]
Courtesy of reddit:
posted by Two unicycles and some duct tape at 12:58 PM on July 2, 2020 [67 favorites]I'm actually surprised she's been arrested in the US, I thought she'd be anywhere but here in order to avoid jail time.She was easy to find in the US. She was the only one trying to cover her face with a mask.
It’s a start.
posted by GenjiandProust at 1:04 PM on July 2, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by GenjiandProust at 1:04 PM on July 2, 2020 [1 favorite]
The statue's caption is in Comic Sans.
posted by fatbird at 1:04 PM on July 2, 2020 [16 favorites]
posted by fatbird at 1:04 PM on July 2, 2020 [16 favorites]
I'm actually surprised she's been arrested in the US, I thought she'd be anywhere but here in order to avoid jail time.
Based on what happened to Epstein it may not be the FBI she wanted to most be hiding from. If she knows half what people suspect she does (and about whom), the FBI is the least of her issues and Jail pretty minor a consequence.
posted by Brockles at 1:05 PM on July 2, 2020 [23 favorites]
Based on what happened to Epstein it may not be the FBI she wanted to most be hiding from. If she knows half what people suspect she does (and about whom), the FBI is the least of her issues and Jail pretty minor a consequence.
posted by Brockles at 1:05 PM on July 2, 2020 [23 favorites]
Please take suicide seriously and avoid joking about it
I hate the Epstein meme. It's not that I don't believe it -- it's certainly something I could believe -- but it's a kind of bullshit performative edginess that has nothing to do with keeping law enforcement accountable or whatever the hell it's supposed to do. And now the same thing has happened to the call to arrest Breonna Taylor's killers.
posted by Countess Elena at 1:05 PM on July 2, 2020 [24 favorites]
I hate the Epstein meme. It's not that I don't believe it -- it's certainly something I could believe -- but it's a kind of bullshit performative edginess that has nothing to do with keeping law enforcement accountable or whatever the hell it's supposed to do. And now the same thing has happened to the call to arrest Breonna Taylor's killers.
posted by Countess Elena at 1:05 PM on July 2, 2020 [24 favorites]
I don’t think Ghislaine is going down as easily as a lot of people think. If Epstein was apparently connected to US intelligence, who is Ghislaine connected to? Because she is the real brains behind this whole thing.
posted by gucci mane at 1:34 PM on July 2, 2020
posted by gucci mane at 1:34 PM on July 2, 2020
But the way this has gone down has made me wonder if she’s not the brains of the thing, but rather the “willing to do the dirty work” player. Without Epstein here, maybe she’s been floundering around? Certainly that’s been true of Prince Andrew...
posted by sallybrown at 1:37 PM on July 2, 2020 [4 favorites]
posted by sallybrown at 1:37 PM on July 2, 2020 [4 favorites]
I wonder if this only happened as part of a deal to "exonerate" the rest.
posted by Beardman at 2:09 PM on July 2, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by Beardman at 2:09 PM on July 2, 2020 [1 favorite]
So, yesterday, according to the local Patch.com, a yacht belonging to Russian billionaire Alexander Mashkevitch, who has ties to Epstein and Maxwell, turned up briefly in Beverly (MA) Harbor before leaving. Maxwell used to live just a bit up the road in Manchester-by-the-Sea. Did the feds decide to grab her before she made an escape?
posted by briank at 2:11 PM on July 2, 2020 [11 favorites]
posted by briank at 2:11 PM on July 2, 2020 [11 favorites]
I don't doubt that she might get murdered by friends turned enemies but why would anyone wait until after she is arrested?
posted by Foci for Analysis at 2:20 PM on July 2, 2020 [2 favorites]
posted by Foci for Analysis at 2:20 PM on July 2, 2020 [2 favorites]
Mod note: A few more comments removed. Folks, I know there is this dark ugly abuse of power and wealth core to this whole thing that makes dark humor about suicide/assassination tempting to reach for, but let's really try and not resort to dry goofing about murder every third comment. You can be frankly skeptical about justice and violent silencing of people without being arch or sarcastic about it.
posted by cortex (staff) at 2:32 PM on July 2, 2020 [14 favorites]
posted by cortex (staff) at 2:32 PM on July 2, 2020 [14 favorites]
Fellow prisoners murdering sex offenders is fairly common. See: John Geoghan.
posted by Melismata at 2:32 PM on July 2, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by Melismata at 2:32 PM on July 2, 2020 [1 favorite]
rule 28.129A of the rules say: ' when suspected of being a triple agent, hide in plain sight and wait for federal protection.
She is a minor treasure trove of smut, fraud, and whispered secrets, perfect for CIA and FBI who might have run this skit.
posted by clavdivs at 2:34 PM on July 2, 2020 [4 favorites]
She is a minor treasure trove of smut, fraud, and whispered secrets, perfect for CIA and FBI who might have run this skit.
posted by clavdivs at 2:34 PM on July 2, 2020 [4 favorites]
Epstein, 2019: 14-page indictment, two charges: one count of sex trafficking and one count of conspiracy to commit sex trafficking.
Maxwell, 2020: 17-page indictment, six charges: conspiracy to entice minors, and enticement of a minor, to travel to engage in illegal sex acts; conspiracy to transport minors, and transportation of a minor, with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, and two of perjury. No rape or sexual assault charges for either individual, despite multiple victims providing accounts of abuse. (In 2005, a woman in Florida told police that "a wealthy man' had molested her daughter; by 2007, prosecutors had drafted a 53-page indictment against Epstein; in 2008, the indictment was 14 pages, and Epstein pled guilty to the solicitation of prostitution and procurement of minors for prostitution as part of a ridiculously lenient deal.) Was Maxwell thought to have other partners in crime?
Ghislaine Maxwell says she was Epstein’s employee not his madam. She wants part of his estate, March 18, 2020. Ghislaine Maxwell's father, media titan Robert Maxwell, died under mysterious circumstances in 1991. Maxwell was the template for the Bond villain Elliot Carver, in 1997's Tomorrow Never Dies. The Death of Robert Maxwell Was as Dramatic and Mysterious as Most of His Life Had Been (Maclean's, November 18, 1991).
posted by Iris Gambol at 2:37 PM on July 2, 2020 [7 favorites]
Maxwell, 2020: 17-page indictment, six charges: conspiracy to entice minors, and enticement of a minor, to travel to engage in illegal sex acts; conspiracy to transport minors, and transportation of a minor, with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, and two of perjury. No rape or sexual assault charges for either individual, despite multiple victims providing accounts of abuse. (In 2005, a woman in Florida told police that "a wealthy man' had molested her daughter; by 2007, prosecutors had drafted a 53-page indictment against Epstein; in 2008, the indictment was 14 pages, and Epstein pled guilty to the solicitation of prostitution and procurement of minors for prostitution as part of a ridiculously lenient deal.) Was Maxwell thought to have other partners in crime?
Ghislaine Maxwell says she was Epstein’s employee not his madam. She wants part of his estate, March 18, 2020. Ghislaine Maxwell's father, media titan Robert Maxwell, died under mysterious circumstances in 1991. Maxwell was the template for the Bond villain Elliot Carver, in 1997's Tomorrow Never Dies. The Death of Robert Maxwell Was as Dramatic and Mysterious as Most of His Life Had Been (Maclean's, November 18, 1991).
posted by Iris Gambol at 2:37 PM on July 2, 2020 [7 favorites]
Despite the fact she was the muse for a bond villain (fuck that's so dark), these cases are real and involve real people and real children, and I personally would just like it if we could used plain language regarding the incidents at hand, and not sensationalist words like "smut". Not to call any one person out, but there is already a problem with the media using intentionally obfuscating language to normalize pedophilia culture.
I can't tell if the veil is too thin, or if the underworld is getting to big to be kept behind the veil, but I honestly kind of feel like I'm losing my mind with all this. "Billionaire arrested for child trafficking gets murdered to keep quiet // Billionaire's Madam arrested for child trafficking before she could escape on a Russian yacht" sound like movie synopsis. I've tried very hard to not go too far down the rabbit hole. Eventually, if you live a life where bad things tend to happen, it's very easy to believe in the proverbial boogey man, get cynical, and believe that everything is ~connected~ and ~the man~ is literally pulling every string out there (A La White Rose in Mr Robot). But, quite a few things are turning out to be true? The racism is inherent in the point of the system. The republicans have ushered the western world into a "post truth" society. And now there's really is a system among the ultra wealthy to create, sustain, and supply a global infrastructure of child trafficking.
It feels like everything is staged. Nothing is a coincidence, everything has been social engineered to oppress and have the power to oppress. that's it, that's what a society is.
posted by FirstMateKate at 3:02 PM on July 2, 2020 [34 favorites]
I can't tell if the veil is too thin, or if the underworld is getting to big to be kept behind the veil, but I honestly kind of feel like I'm losing my mind with all this. "Billionaire arrested for child trafficking gets murdered to keep quiet // Billionaire's Madam arrested for child trafficking before she could escape on a Russian yacht" sound like movie synopsis. I've tried very hard to not go too far down the rabbit hole. Eventually, if you live a life where bad things tend to happen, it's very easy to believe in the proverbial boogey man, get cynical, and believe that everything is ~connected~ and ~the man~ is literally pulling every string out there (A La White Rose in Mr Robot). But, quite a few things are turning out to be true? The racism is
It feels like everything is staged. Nothing is a coincidence, everything has been social engineered to oppress and have the power to oppress. that's it, that's what a society is.
posted by FirstMateKate at 3:02 PM on July 2, 2020 [34 favorites]
Well this is one of the more exciting things to happen in New Hampshire for a while, and certainly in sleepy little Bradford, pop. 1600. She owned 156 acres and a spectacular craftsman style home, bought for a million plus in cash in December through a shell LLC. If you’re going to try to disappear, that’s the right state and town, but the wrong transaction.
posted by schoolgirl report at 3:17 PM on July 2, 2020 [5 favorites]
posted by schoolgirl report at 3:17 PM on July 2, 2020 [5 favorites]
It seems strange that this sophisticated rich person thought the best way to evade the US justice system was to buy a house in cash in New Hampshire and stop picking up her mail rather than flee somewhere more remote, but...who knows.
Perhaps she believes she will be released on bond. Perhaps her deal has already been cut...
posted by chaz at 3:19 PM on July 2, 2020 [1 favorite]
Perhaps she believes she will be released on bond. Perhaps her deal has already been cut...
posted by chaz at 3:19 PM on July 2, 2020 [1 favorite]
Alexander Mashkevitch upthread was onboard the 136m Savarona in Turkey when she was raided in 2010.
The police raid was the culminating point of a secret investigation conducted for months against a Turkish crime organization that trafficked women.
posted by adamvasco at 3:21 PM on July 2, 2020 [2 favorites]
The police raid was the culminating point of a secret investigation conducted for months against a Turkish crime organization that trafficked women.
posted by adamvasco at 3:21 PM on July 2, 2020 [2 favorites]
Posted too soon.
The investigation began several months before the police raid on the yacht. The Turkish police received information about a crime organization that deals with human trafficking and solicitation. The organization was headed, according to the information, by Taufik Arif, a Turkish tycoon, Donald Trump's business partner and owner of a metal production factory in Kazakhstan and many other businesses in the US and Britain.
posted by adamvasco at 3:23 PM on July 2, 2020 [9 favorites]
The investigation began several months before the police raid on the yacht. The Turkish police received information about a crime organization that deals with human trafficking and solicitation. The organization was headed, according to the information, by Taufik Arif, a Turkish tycoon, Donald Trump's business partner and owner of a metal production factory in Kazakhstan and many other businesses in the US and Britain.
posted by adamvasco at 3:23 PM on July 2, 2020 [9 favorites]
The boat is in Boston right now. Probably picking up Cannoli's at Mikes.
posted by sammyo at 3:26 PM on July 2, 2020 [5 favorites]
posted by sammyo at 3:26 PM on July 2, 2020 [5 favorites]
Despite the fact she was the muse for a bond villain
I believe she is his daughter.
The list of people tied into whatever is going on per a book include Ehud Barak. Hopefully whatever was going on will be exposed so society can attempt to prevent such in the future.
Odds are this will fade like the Franklin scandel or the issues around Dynacorp and most of the people involved are going to walk. Given the list of people who might be at risk if the truth was known there is upside for the powerful to make the case fade away VS getting effective change.
posted by rough ashlar at 3:42 PM on July 2, 2020 [4 favorites]
I believe she is his daughter.
The list of people tied into whatever is going on per a book include Ehud Barak. Hopefully whatever was going on will be exposed so society can attempt to prevent such in the future.
Odds are this will fade like the Franklin scandel or the issues around Dynacorp and most of the people involved are going to walk. Given the list of people who might be at risk if the truth was known there is upside for the powerful to make the case fade away VS getting effective change.
posted by rough ashlar at 3:42 PM on July 2, 2020 [4 favorites]
I do kinda wonder if the Queen will end up paying the Paterno price: idolized for most of her life, only to watch it flushed down the toilet if she protected (or allowed to be protected) an alleged serial child sexual abuser. Living just long enough to watch her legacy rot.
Obviously being the constitutional monarch of the UK for 70ish years and protecting your son, is a slightly different situation than the head coach of a football team for 45ish years and protecting an employee... but it's not necessarily better, and both cases implicate the corruption you can get away with if people believe you're an important institution.
posted by Riki tiki at 4:05 PM on July 2, 2020 [10 favorites]
Obviously being the constitutional monarch of the UK for 70ish years and protecting your son, is a slightly different situation than the head coach of a football team for 45ish years and protecting an employee... but it's not necessarily better, and both cases implicate the corruption you can get away with if people believe you're an important institution.
posted by Riki tiki at 4:05 PM on July 2, 2020 [10 favorites]
In the statement read by Acting Attorney Strauss at the press conference, she seemed really angry at Maxwell. I don't know if Strauss drafted it herself, or if it was drafted by her office, or whatever, but it was very strongly worded.
posted by carter at 4:31 PM on July 2, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by carter at 4:31 PM on July 2, 2020 [3 favorites]
What's the bet that this is what Berman got fired over? Someone over at the NY branch of the FBI found out about what was going to go down, leaked it Barr, and Barr crapped himself. Barr immediately tries to parachute their guy in there by Berman "resigning" but Berman fucked it all up and had to be fired. Strauss immediately knew what was going on and signed the indictment ASAP.
posted by Your Childhood Pet Rock at 4:43 PM on July 2, 2020 [24 favorites]
posted by Your Childhood Pet Rock at 4:43 PM on July 2, 2020 [24 favorites]
There are so many crimes orbiting Trump and his cronies that the odds of this high profile one everyone heard of happening to be the one triggering any single corrupt act is IMO really low. It recently broke that Barr fired a US attorney in Texas for a Walmart case for example.
This is all disgusting and I hope Maxwell rolls over on everyone involved, big name or not. I find it a bit inappropriate to see it swept in with other specifically Trumpian scandals, as if whether it gets all the way to him is the most important thing.
posted by mark k at 5:24 PM on July 2, 2020 [19 favorites]
This is all disgusting and I hope Maxwell rolls over on everyone involved, big name or not. I find it a bit inappropriate to see it swept in with other specifically Trumpian scandals, as if whether it gets all the way to him is the most important thing.
posted by mark k at 5:24 PM on July 2, 2020 [19 favorites]
Queen Elizabeth II's situation is also complicated by her role as "Defender of the Faith." Making it obvious she has a favorite child is one thing; attending church with him on January 19, and summoning photographers to document the outing, sends a message. Less than a month after that photo op, a lawsuit linked Andrew to "a second tycoon accused of sexually abusing teen girls on his private Caribbean estate" [designer Peter Nygard]. More women have added their names to a class-action lawsuit alleging they were sexually assaulted by Canadian fashion mogul Peter Nygard. (GlobalNews, June 17, 2020) Eleven women recently joined the lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, bringing the total number of plaintiffs to 57. The amended suit claims several of the new plaintiffs were underage when they say they were sexually assaulted.
[Incidentally, at one time or another, Epstein, Nygard, Harvey Weinstein, and the Archdiocese of Los Angeles all employed 'crisis-response' P.R. firm Sitrick & Co.]
posted by Iris Gambol at 5:25 PM on July 2, 2020 [17 favorites]
[Incidentally, at one time or another, Epstein, Nygard, Harvey Weinstein, and the Archdiocese of Los Angeles all employed 'crisis-response' P.R. firm Sitrick & Co.]
posted by Iris Gambol at 5:25 PM on July 2, 2020 [17 favorites]
I'm glad to see her arrested. I hope this is just the first of many.
posted by Dip Flash at 5:30 PM on July 2, 2020 [8 favorites]
posted by Dip Flash at 5:30 PM on July 2, 2020 [8 favorites]
I don't think it's really paranoid to want some outside, non-DoJ associated, non-Executive Branch associated, people monitoring her captivity and treatment. Amnesty International or the Red Cross perhaps.
We don't know that Epstein was murdered, but the circumstances surrounding his death are suspect, and he appeared to have extremely damaging information on a large number of very powerful people. Given that context suspicion that his apparent suicide was, in fact, a politically motivated murder seems at least not wholly unreasonable.
Maxwell may not know everything Epstein did, but she does appear to have information that is potentially harmful to people in the upper echelons of the current Administration, which means leaving her in the custody of employees of the Administration without neutral observers to assure that she is kept safe and does not, like Epstein, die under mysterious circumstances, seems reasonable.
The problem is that our legal and governmental system has no mechanism to force the Administration to accept neutral observers. And I'm highly doubtful that Barr would want to give any validity to suspicions that Epstein was assassinated by allowing neutral observers here.
Which leave us in the ugly situation of fearing that the executive branch of our government may murder Maxwell in order to silence her, and there really being nothing we can do but worry about it.
So I'll worry. And I'll hope she lives long enough to give testimony, and also that she was paranoid enough to leave damning evidence and testimony set to be automatically released on the internet in the event of her death.
posted by sotonohito at 6:14 PM on July 2, 2020 [36 favorites]
We don't know that Epstein was murdered, but the circumstances surrounding his death are suspect, and he appeared to have extremely damaging information on a large number of very powerful people. Given that context suspicion that his apparent suicide was, in fact, a politically motivated murder seems at least not wholly unreasonable.
Maxwell may not know everything Epstein did, but she does appear to have information that is potentially harmful to people in the upper echelons of the current Administration, which means leaving her in the custody of employees of the Administration without neutral observers to assure that she is kept safe and does not, like Epstein, die under mysterious circumstances, seems reasonable.
The problem is that our legal and governmental system has no mechanism to force the Administration to accept neutral observers. And I'm highly doubtful that Barr would want to give any validity to suspicions that Epstein was assassinated by allowing neutral observers here.
Which leave us in the ugly situation of fearing that the executive branch of our government may murder Maxwell in order to silence her, and there really being nothing we can do but worry about it.
So I'll worry. And I'll hope she lives long enough to give testimony, and also that she was paranoid enough to leave damning evidence and testimony set to be automatically released on the internet in the event of her death.
posted by sotonohito at 6:14 PM on July 2, 2020 [36 favorites]
Periodic reminder that Epstein-related matters are of professional and personal interest to AG William Barr. When Bill's dad Donald was headmaster at the Dalton School, he hired an absurdly underqualified, 21-year-old college-dropout Epstein to teach math and science to teens. Barr père is the author of 1973's "Space Relations: A Slightly Gothic Interplanetary Tale;" the novel's plot revolves around sex trafficking.
William Barr Says He's Recused From Epstein Case Over Legal Conflict (Newsweek, July 8, 2019) "I am recused from that matter because one of the law firms that represented Epstein long ago was a firm I subsequently joined for a period of time," Barr told reporters in South Carolina. Earlier today, federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York indicted Epstein on felony charges related to sex trafficking minors, including one count of conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking of minors.
posted by Iris Gambol at 7:28 PM on July 2, 2020 [29 favorites]
William Barr Says He's Recused From Epstein Case Over Legal Conflict (Newsweek, July 8, 2019) "I am recused from that matter because one of the law firms that represented Epstein long ago was a firm I subsequently joined for a period of time," Barr told reporters in South Carolina. Earlier today, federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York indicted Epstein on felony charges related to sex trafficking minors, including one count of conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking of minors.
posted by Iris Gambol at 7:28 PM on July 2, 2020 [29 favorites]
(On preview - doh, Iris Gambol stole my thunder a bit because I type too slow. Editing to remove duplication.)
As noted above - AG Barr's dad wrote a book about (among other things) raping and enslaving teenagers, and the following year he gave Jeff Epstein his first job, working with kids at the Dalton School.
Years later Bill Barr worked with Kirkland & Ellis, the firm that represented Epstein during his Florida investigation. That case ended in 2008 with a generous plea deal that got Epstein 13 months instead of life in prison. (Barr was not with K&E at this time and was not involved in crafting the plea deal.) A district court judge ruled that plea deal unconstitutional in 2019. Prosecutors in AG Barr's DOJ maintained that the plea deal would stand anyway.
When Epstein was indicted again in 2019, this time in the Southern District of New York, AG Barr seems to have decided not to recuse himself from the case, despite their shared history and despite his own earlier statement that he would recuse due to the Kirkland & Ellis connection (as noted by Iris Gambol above). While Epstein's death in jail shut down that case, the Trump administration continued to butt heads with SDNY and Barr recently fired SDNY AG Berman, who would have led the Epstein prosecution.
So we don't really need crazy conspiracy theories here. We've already got well-documented connections between AG Barr, who is Trump's personal attorney in all but name, and Epstein. AG Barr's dad was a pedophilic creep who hired and supported another pedophilic creep. Attorneys associated with Barr ensured Epstein got an unconstitutionally generous plea deal, and Barr's DOJ upheld that deal. Barr recently removed AG Berman, at least in part because of the unfriendly-to-Trump prosecutions coming out of SDNY. If Epstein hadn't died in custody and his prosecution threatened Trump, might Barr have acted to remove Berman earlier? Seems possible. It also seems possible that Barr knew a Maxwell indictment was on the way; certainly would be convenient to have Berman gone and a friendlier-to-Trump AG in place before any further prosecutions in that direction.
All evidence points to AG Barr being willing to do whatever it takes to make sure no SDNY prosecutions hurt Trump, and expecting a DOJ under Barr's control to be any more impartial in the prosecution of Maxwell than they were in the prosecution of Epstein would be a recipe for disappointment.
posted by Two unicycles and some duct tape at 7:59 PM on July 2, 2020 [39 favorites]
As noted above - AG Barr's dad wrote a book about (among other things) raping and enslaving teenagers, and the following year he gave Jeff Epstein his first job, working with kids at the Dalton School.
Years later Bill Barr worked with Kirkland & Ellis, the firm that represented Epstein during his Florida investigation. That case ended in 2008 with a generous plea deal that got Epstein 13 months instead of life in prison. (Barr was not with K&E at this time and was not involved in crafting the plea deal.) A district court judge ruled that plea deal unconstitutional in 2019. Prosecutors in AG Barr's DOJ maintained that the plea deal would stand anyway.
When Epstein was indicted again in 2019, this time in the Southern District of New York, AG Barr seems to have decided not to recuse himself from the case, despite their shared history and despite his own earlier statement that he would recuse due to the Kirkland & Ellis connection (as noted by Iris Gambol above). While Epstein's death in jail shut down that case, the Trump administration continued to butt heads with SDNY and Barr recently fired SDNY AG Berman, who would have led the Epstein prosecution.
So we don't really need crazy conspiracy theories here. We've already got well-documented connections between AG Barr, who is Trump's personal attorney in all but name, and Epstein. AG Barr's dad was a pedophilic creep who hired and supported another pedophilic creep. Attorneys associated with Barr ensured Epstein got an unconstitutionally generous plea deal, and Barr's DOJ upheld that deal. Barr recently removed AG Berman, at least in part because of the unfriendly-to-Trump prosecutions coming out of SDNY. If Epstein hadn't died in custody and his prosecution threatened Trump, might Barr have acted to remove Berman earlier? Seems possible. It also seems possible that Barr knew a Maxwell indictment was on the way; certainly would be convenient to have Berman gone and a friendlier-to-Trump AG in place before any further prosecutions in that direction.
All evidence points to AG Barr being willing to do whatever it takes to make sure no SDNY prosecutions hurt Trump, and expecting a DOJ under Barr's control to be any more impartial in the prosecution of Maxwell than they were in the prosecution of Epstein would be a recipe for disappointment.
posted by Two unicycles and some duct tape at 7:59 PM on July 2, 2020 [39 favorites]
It seems strange that this sophisticated rich person thought the best way to evade the US justice system was to buy a house in cash in New Hampshire and stop picking up her mail rather than flee somewhere more remote, but...who knows.
It's possible she didn't know anyone far enough outside the trafficking circle that she felt she could trust them. And without assistance didn't know how to manage fleeing to another region and keeping hidden there.
There are so many crimes orbiting Trump and his cronies that the odds of this high profile one everyone heard of happening to be the one triggering any single corrupt act is IMO really low.
Is Trump a money launder? Sure looks like it. A creep? A dead beat? Did he illegally cheat the last election? Is he using the Presidency as the biggest grift ever? Did he obstruct justice on multiple occasions? Eveade taxes? All at least plausible. Thing is the average low information American doesn't care/understand about those things viscerally. Raping pretty young white girls trafficked for sexual slavery? That's about the biggest jackpot there could be unless Pence comes out as his gay lover or something. If Maxwell can link him I think he'll go down.
And I still think if the sharks start circling one of these degenerates is going to turn states evidence to save his own skin and out dozens of other people. Trump or associates might be able to get to Epstien or Maxwell but they are going to find it a lot harder to get to the Prince.
posted by Mitheral at 8:27 PM on July 2, 2020 [4 favorites]
It's possible she didn't know anyone far enough outside the trafficking circle that she felt she could trust them. And without assistance didn't know how to manage fleeing to another region and keeping hidden there.
There are so many crimes orbiting Trump and his cronies that the odds of this high profile one everyone heard of happening to be the one triggering any single corrupt act is IMO really low.
Is Trump a money launder? Sure looks like it. A creep? A dead beat? Did he illegally cheat the last election? Is he using the Presidency as the biggest grift ever? Did he obstruct justice on multiple occasions? Eveade taxes? All at least plausible. Thing is the average low information American doesn't care/understand about those things viscerally. Raping pretty young white girls trafficked for sexual slavery? That's about the biggest jackpot there could be unless Pence comes out as his gay lover or something. If Maxwell can link him I think he'll go down.
And I still think if the sharks start circling one of these degenerates is going to turn states evidence to save his own skin and out dozens of other people. Trump or associates might be able to get to Epstien or Maxwell but they are going to find it a lot harder to get to the Prince.
posted by Mitheral at 8:27 PM on July 2, 2020 [4 favorites]
It also seems possible that Barr knew a Maxwell indictment was on the way; certainly would be convenient to have Berman gone and a friendlier-to-Trump AG in place before any further prosecutions in that direction.
posted by chortly at 9:22 PM on July 2, 2020 [5 favorites]
in Thursday's press conference and court filings, prosecutors said they kept a close eye on Maxwell's whereabouts in the year since Epstein was arrested and killed himself in jail, and that they only arrested her once the indictment was "ready."...Attorney Spencer T. Kuvin ... noted that the indictment came from a Grand Jury... "We don't know the timing of that, and obviously Grand Jury minutes are sealed, but they had to wait for that to finish."So a grand jury had been working away on it, and recently finished up. Whether it finished before or after Berman was fired, it was probably easy for Barr to know that a grand jury was working on it and was approaching completion.
posted by chortly at 9:22 PM on July 2, 2020 [5 favorites]
Bill Barr’s father Donald was also an OSS agent, if we wanna go deeper into the weird side of things.
posted by gucci mane at 9:45 PM on July 2, 2020 [6 favorites]
posted by gucci mane at 9:45 PM on July 2, 2020 [6 favorites]
You know it's crap like that that can get a person believing in conspiracy theories and the Illuminati.
posted by Mitheral at 10:31 PM on July 2, 2020 [16 favorites]
posted by Mitheral at 10:31 PM on July 2, 2020 [16 favorites]
How about this:
From The Observer: 2002: Vikram Chatwal, Turban Cowboy
This guy allegedly hung out with Bill Clinton and was a big donor to Hillary’s senate campaign.
posted by gucci mane at 10:54 PM on July 2, 2020 [4 favorites]
From The Observer: 2002: Vikram Chatwal, Turban Cowboy
This guy allegedly hung out with Bill Clinton and was a big donor to Hillary’s senate campaign.
I asked what his social life had been like recently, and he mentioned a dinner party at the Manhattan townhouse of Lady Ghislaine Maxwell, the daughter of the late British media baron Robert Maxwell. The guest of honor, said Mr. Chatwal, was Prince Andrew, who told a “quite humorous” joke involving Pepto-Bismol and his brother Prince Charles’ girlfriend, Camilla Parker Bowles. Then Ms. Maxwell told a story about how she flew a Blackhawk helicopter in Colombia and fired a rocket into a supposed terrorist camp.Wasn’t Clinton sending Blackhawk helicopters to Colombia to fight FARC during his admin? 🤔 this one is a major conspiracy theory but look at the players involved in this story.
posted by gucci mane at 10:54 PM on July 2, 2020 [4 favorites]
blackhawk downton abbey.
posted by clavdivs at 11:40 PM on July 2, 2020 [19 favorites]
posted by clavdivs at 11:40 PM on July 2, 2020 [19 favorites]
Everything you need to know about American politics: regardless of who won the 2016 election, both candidates had connections to Epstein and Maxwell. Maxwell was at Chelsea Clinton’s wedding!! I hate our ruling class.
posted by MisantropicPainforest at 3:58 AM on July 3, 2020 [38 favorites]
posted by MisantropicPainforest at 3:58 AM on July 3, 2020 [38 favorites]
look at the players involved in this story
I really try not to link to the Daily Mail (because gross), but their columnist Richard Kay, who’s well-connected to the British royals, elaborated on just how close Maxwell was to the family, beyond Andrew:
(If we’re comparing Paterno and QEII, at least Paterno didn’t spend his life embracing and proclaiming his inherent right to rule over other human beings based on his bloodline...that’s a different level of ego tripping.)
posted by sallybrown at 5:11 AM on July 3, 2020 [6 favorites]
I really try not to link to the Daily Mail (because gross), but their columnist Richard Kay, who’s well-connected to the British royals, elaborated on just how close Maxwell was to the family, beyond Andrew:
Maxwell was once a welcome visitor to royal homes, an overnight guest at Sandringham as well as being invited to one of the starriest parties ever thrown at Windsor Castle, the so-called Dance of the Decades in the summer of 2000....On another occasion the vivacious socialite was photographed at Prince Andrew’s side in the Royal Enclosure at Ascot, where admission is at ‘Her Majesty’s discretion’....The BBC says Maxwell was at Sandringham because Andrew was throwing her a surprise birthday party there, at the Queen’s house.
Such was the importance of the role Maxwell played in Andrew’s life that it was even claimed he once asked the Queen’s permission to take her on an official work trip. This was refused.
(If we’re comparing Paterno and QEII, at least Paterno didn’t spend his life embracing and proclaiming his inherent right to rule over other human beings based on his bloodline...that’s a different level of ego tripping.)
posted by sallybrown at 5:11 AM on July 3, 2020 [6 favorites]
> Then Ms. Maxwell told a story about how she flew a Blackhawk helicopter in Colombia and fired a rocket into a supposed terrorist camp.
This reminded me of that scene in the Blade Runner sequel where the villainous replicant was nonchalantly directing lethal drone strikes while getting a manicure. When I watched it I thought it was a bit on the nose, but...
posted by The Card Cheat at 7:32 AM on July 3, 2020 [1 favorite]
This reminded me of that scene in the Blade Runner sequel where the villainous replicant was nonchalantly directing lethal drone strikes while getting a manicure. When I watched it I thought it was a bit on the nose, but...
posted by The Card Cheat at 7:32 AM on July 3, 2020 [1 favorite]
It also seems possible that Barr knew a Maxwell indictment was on the way; certainly would be convenient to have Berman gone and a friendlier-to-Trump AG in place before any further prosecutions in that direction.
Berman was a Trump appointee who turned out to be unexpectedly independent. But his acting replacement, Audrey Strauss, is career DOJ and reputed to be the straightest shooter. So if Barr wants a friendlier AG he better do a little more firing and replacing pretty quick.
posted by a snickering nuthatch at 7:41 AM on July 3, 2020 [2 favorites]
Berman was a Trump appointee who turned out to be unexpectedly independent. But his acting replacement, Audrey Strauss, is career DOJ and reputed to be the straightest shooter. So if Barr wants a friendlier AG he better do a little more firing and replacing pretty quick.
posted by a snickering nuthatch at 7:41 AM on July 3, 2020 [2 favorites]
So if Barr wants a friendlier AG he better do a little more firing and replacing pretty quick.
There’s no real point. All of the rest in the hierarchy are career DOJ and aren’t going to be amenable to being Barr’s lackey. Berman fucked it up for Trump/Barr by getting fired instead of resigning. Under the Vacancies Act control of SDNY automatically went to Strauss and everything was put in motion.
posted by Your Childhood Pet Rock at 8:39 AM on July 3, 2020 [12 favorites]
There’s no real point. All of the rest in the hierarchy are career DOJ and aren’t going to be amenable to being Barr’s lackey. Berman fucked it up for Trump/Barr by getting fired instead of resigning. Under the Vacancies Act control of SDNY automatically went to Strauss and everything was put in motion.
posted by Your Childhood Pet Rock at 8:39 AM on July 3, 2020 [12 favorites]
Lock her up and throw away the key, and then do the same to every other fucking sleaze ball that molester her victims.
The Epstein statue was brilliant. He's an exact contemporary analogue of the men valorized in all those Confederate statues.
posted by Sublimity at 9:30 AM on July 3, 2020 [3 favorites]
The Epstein statue was brilliant. He's an exact contemporary analogue of the men valorized in all those Confederate statues.
posted by Sublimity at 9:30 AM on July 3, 2020 [3 favorites]
Berman was a Trump appointee who turned out to be unexpectedly independent. But his acting replacement, Audrey Strauss, is career DOJ and reputed to be the straightest shooter. So if Barr wants a friendlier AG he better do a little more firing and replacing pretty quick.
Berman played his cards well. Barr attempted to have Berman quietly resign and then Barr wanted to illegally install his crony Craig Carpenito as acting prosecutor without Senate confirmation. But Berman stood his ground and made it a big media and public relations snafu until Barr had to back down. This resulted in Barr having to follow procedure and Strauss taking Berman's place instead of a corrupt Trump toady.
posted by JackFlash at 9:33 AM on July 3, 2020 [24 favorites]
Berman played his cards well. Barr attempted to have Berman quietly resign and then Barr wanted to illegally install his crony Craig Carpenito as acting prosecutor without Senate confirmation. But Berman stood his ground and made it a big media and public relations snafu until Barr had to back down. This resulted in Barr having to follow procedure and Strauss taking Berman's place instead of a corrupt Trump toady.
posted by JackFlash at 9:33 AM on July 3, 2020 [24 favorites]
I didn’t realize this thread was about Trump. Huh.
posted by GenjiandProust at 9:44 AM on July 3, 2020 [2 favorites]
posted by GenjiandProust at 9:44 AM on July 3, 2020 [2 favorites]
Mod note: Hi, a nudge to stay on topic and not derail this into general Trump discussions
posted by travelingthyme (staff) at 9:57 AM on July 3, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by travelingthyme (staff) at 9:57 AM on July 3, 2020 [3 favorites]
Perhaps Ghislaine Maxwell can fill in some blanks for Epstein's ‘bewildered’ friends
Marina Hyde / The Guardian
For too long, we have let rich people get away with the worst crimes, just because they are rich, and a subset of us all (not Mefites, but humans) admire wealth uncritically. Trump says the quiet part out loud, and he was a friend of Epstein's. This is not about Trump, but it is about the age of Trump, where everything is suddenly out there for all to see. The racism, the colonialism, the pedophilia, the grift, the treachery, the corruption and much, much more. I know, all of us curious and neurotic people on MetaFilter have always known it all, but it's just not like that for many other people. Also, it's easier to believe in conspiracy theories than to acknowledge that the very people you admire are criminal and that those riches you admire are ill-gained.
posted by mumimor at 10:28 AM on July 3, 2020 [18 favorites]
Marina Hyde / The Guardian
For too long, we have let rich people get away with the worst crimes, just because they are rich, and a subset of us all (not Mefites, but humans) admire wealth uncritically. Trump says the quiet part out loud, and he was a friend of Epstein's. This is not about Trump, but it is about the age of Trump, where everything is suddenly out there for all to see. The racism, the colonialism, the pedophilia, the grift, the treachery, the corruption and much, much more. I know, all of us curious and neurotic people on MetaFilter have always known it all, but it's just not like that for many other people. Also, it's easier to believe in conspiracy theories than to acknowledge that the very people you admire are criminal and that those riches you admire are ill-gained.
posted by mumimor at 10:28 AM on July 3, 2020 [18 favorites]
Fox News breaks the story of a woman whom Maxwell and Epstein raped repeatedly when she was age 14-16 in the early 90s (warning for disturbing details in the story).
posted by sallybrown at 10:46 AM on July 3, 2020 [12 favorites]
She claimed Maxwell was not always in the room when she was abused by Epstein, but that when she was it was to teach her how to satisfy the convicted pedophile. “It was her more or less, coaching,” Doe said. “Do it this way and do it that way, because once you become a model, this is what they’re going to expect from you.”Looking back on these years of stories, the immense evil of these people almost helped them cover it up, because I want so much to believe they can’t be true. I hope this woman gets the chance to testify that she’s asking for.
posted by sallybrown at 10:46 AM on July 3, 2020 [12 favorites]
From their point of view, the only difference between all of this and what they do in the open is the age of the women. Most of the ultra-rich know each other and go to each others parties, weddings, estates and islands, and are densely connected in a web of investments and favors. Among the goods that they trade amongst themselves is access to other elites: special parties, celebrities, and beautiful women (and men), including of course sex workers. Like anyone else seeking to work or mingle in these circles, high-end sex workers are extensively trained by those who know both worlds. And because it is sex-work and for the super-rich and celebrities, this work and training, as well as the associated parties and activities, is generally kept from public view using fairly high-end methods including employing folks who previously worked in government security. None of that is controversial or even hidden.
The only difference from their point of view seems to be that when the women are under 17, they take slightly more precautions and leave the "grooming" to specialists like Maxwell and Epstein. But from their perspective, it's just another facet of luxury: beautiful young women are just another commodity, a minor extension of the sort of beautiful adult women who are trafficked in the open. Epstein's non-prosecution and death may require conspiracies to explain, but the rest of it doesn't: you just have to posit that they treated and considered under-age women not much differently than adult women, apart from a few extra precautions that they probably considered prudent but not deeply important.
posted by chortly at 12:23 PM on July 3, 2020 [19 favorites]
The only difference from their point of view seems to be that when the women are under 17, they take slightly more precautions and leave the "grooming" to specialists like Maxwell and Epstein. But from their perspective, it's just another facet of luxury: beautiful young women are just another commodity, a minor extension of the sort of beautiful adult women who are trafficked in the open. Epstein's non-prosecution and death may require conspiracies to explain, but the rest of it doesn't: you just have to posit that they treated and considered under-age women not much differently than adult women, apart from a few extra precautions that they probably considered prudent but not deeply important.
posted by chortly at 12:23 PM on July 3, 2020 [19 favorites]
Barr Says Epstein’s Suicide Resulted From ‘Perfect Storm of Screw-Ups’ : Worth reading again in case anyone still trusts Barr.
The guards who didn't check on Epstein and falsified logs are going to trial on June 22nd; the trial has been delayed multiple times.
posted by benzenedream at 12:58 PM on July 3, 2020 [4 favorites]
The guards who didn't check on Epstein and falsified logs are going to trial on June 22nd; the trial has been delayed multiple times.
posted by benzenedream at 12:58 PM on July 3, 2020 [4 favorites]
The Sun is quoting Steven Hoffenberg, who's 'close to the Maxwell family' as saying:
posted by box at 1:16 PM on July 3, 2020 [3 favorites]
"She’s going to cooperate and be very important. Andrew may be very concerned, and there’s a lot of people very worried, a lot of powerful people been named [in the scandal], and she knows everything.Hoffenberg also spent eighteen years in prison for a Ponzi scheme he ran with Epstein (and has been talking bad about Epstein for about a year now), so I'm not sure how much weight I'm attaching to what he has to say.
She’ll totally cooperate."
posted by box at 1:16 PM on July 3, 2020 [3 favorites]
Everyone knew that Maxwell was Epstein's partner in crime, and yet she was still hobnobbing with the Clintons and others after Epstein was convicted, after everyone knew exactly what she was up to, with no room for plausible deniability.
I find it mind-boggling that both candidates in 2016 were up to their necks in Epstein and his gang.
posted by chaz at 1:24 PM on July 3, 2020 [11 favorites]
I find it mind-boggling that both candidates in 2016 were up to their necks in Epstein and his gang.
posted by chaz at 1:24 PM on July 3, 2020 [11 favorites]
Yeah if this thread isn't supposed to turn into a Trump thread, it probably shouldn't turn into a Clinton thread either.
posted by Homo neanderthalensis at 1:32 PM on July 3, 2020 [8 favorites]
posted by Homo neanderthalensis at 1:32 PM on July 3, 2020 [8 favorites]
You knew it was coming... The Ghislaine Maxwell I know, by Alan Dershowitz
posted by Noisy Pink Bubbles at 1:46 PM on July 3, 2020 [13 favorites]
posted by Noisy Pink Bubbles at 1:46 PM on July 3, 2020 [13 favorites]
dershowitz's every utterance enrages me
posted by erattacorrige at 2:59 PM on July 3, 2020 [10 favorites]
posted by erattacorrige at 2:59 PM on July 3, 2020 [10 favorites]
dershowitz's every utterance enrages me
Yes, but he makes it very clear what he and his peers believe: if you are in the presence of prominent people, you must be innocent. (On the other hand, if you are in a dollar store, it's most likely you are guilty).
posted by mumimor at 3:20 PM on July 3, 2020 [17 favorites]
Yes, but he makes it very clear what he and his peers believe: if you are in the presence of prominent people, you must be innocent. (On the other hand, if you are in a dollar store, it's most likely you are guilty).
posted by mumimor at 3:20 PM on July 3, 2020 [17 favorites]
You knew it was coming...In which he says almost nothing about Maxwell and quite a bit about himself.
posted by theory at 3:23 PM on July 3, 2020 [2 favorites]
I'm actually surprised she's been arrested in the US, I thought she'd be anywhere but here in order to avoid jail time.
Ok, so I have been thinking about this further. I skimmed the thread, so I missed it if its been covered.
No, it doesn't make sense for her to be in the US at all, if avoiding US legal issues is her aim or concern. Literally ANYWHERE else would be safer in that regard, especially having around $20M to play with. That buys you a lot of privacy. So.... surely it is reasonable to conclude that she had that under control and avoiding OTHER parties, perhaps with the protection of US authorities in some way, was her priority.
I don't know how to track the timelines of her movements, but everything about her in articles suggests some kind of serious infatuation/love affair/obsession with Epstein. Healthy or mutual or otherwise, she ADORED him. So.... I'm just wondering if it makes sense that she was only trying to avoid justice/FBI/US Authorities before he died, and afterwards had a very different agenda - to punish and get revenge on whoever killed him. That would make more sense if she was negotiating some kind of amnesty/safety deal, and also makes sense for the timing between 'case is ready to go' and 'sudden arrest in surprisingly visible place' as well as no signs or reporting of any kind of raid or undercover operation to actually find her. Now she doesn't care about getting caught by the FBI, she just wants to make sure she is protected to get her revenge.
So, assuming she knows damn well who either killed or ordered Epstein's death in some way (or, being generous/naive) contributed to his feeling trapped or ven simply didn't protect him enough after his arrest, she'd have made sure those people had zero control over her or her future when negotiating a deal with the FBI. To make them pay for what happened to Epstein. I know that sounds all spy novel, but SO MUCH stuff is out of some spy novel level shit around this. The last few years have shown me rather starkly that devious, secretive manipulations of people and organisations is FAR more rife than was previously thought possible. So... I'm open to some levels of crazy theories right now as long as they don't involve pizza.
posted by Brockles at 4:33 PM on July 3, 2020 [6 favorites]
Ok, so I have been thinking about this further. I skimmed the thread, so I missed it if its been covered.
No, it doesn't make sense for her to be in the US at all, if avoiding US legal issues is her aim or concern. Literally ANYWHERE else would be safer in that regard, especially having around $20M to play with. That buys you a lot of privacy. So.... surely it is reasonable to conclude that she had that under control and avoiding OTHER parties, perhaps with the protection of US authorities in some way, was her priority.
I don't know how to track the timelines of her movements, but everything about her in articles suggests some kind of serious infatuation/love affair/obsession with Epstein. Healthy or mutual or otherwise, she ADORED him. So.... I'm just wondering if it makes sense that she was only trying to avoid justice/FBI/US Authorities before he died, and afterwards had a very different agenda - to punish and get revenge on whoever killed him. That would make more sense if she was negotiating some kind of amnesty/safety deal, and also makes sense for the timing between 'case is ready to go' and 'sudden arrest in surprisingly visible place' as well as no signs or reporting of any kind of raid or undercover operation to actually find her. Now she doesn't care about getting caught by the FBI, she just wants to make sure she is protected to get her revenge.
So, assuming she knows damn well who either killed or ordered Epstein's death in some way (or, being generous/naive) contributed to his feeling trapped or ven simply didn't protect him enough after his arrest, she'd have made sure those people had zero control over her or her future when negotiating a deal with the FBI. To make them pay for what happened to Epstein. I know that sounds all spy novel, but SO MUCH stuff is out of some spy novel level shit around this. The last few years have shown me rather starkly that devious, secretive manipulations of people and organisations is FAR more rife than was previously thought possible. So... I'm open to some levels of crazy theories right now as long as they don't involve pizza.
posted by Brockles at 4:33 PM on July 3, 2020 [6 favorites]
The boringest theory is just that SDNY made it clear to her a year ago that if she wouldn't run, they wouldn't arrest her, not until the grand jury was finished and the indictment was in. SDNY didn't want to enter into legal battles before they were ready, and she was happier to live in a mansion for a few more months than risk some crazy escape plan. They have someone keep an eye on her, and she gets a presumably much-needed guard detail. No spy stories necessary, and most likely we just end up as usual, with no real cooperation, no major revelations, and some jail time.
posted by chortly at 5:58 PM on July 3, 2020 [18 favorites]
posted by chortly at 5:58 PM on July 3, 2020 [18 favorites]
What if she cuts a deal with Trump to implicate a bunch of innocent people Trump hates? Seems to me that would work pretty well. There's your October surprise.
posted by CynicalKnight at 10:13 PM on July 3, 2020 [2 favorites]
posted by CynicalKnight at 10:13 PM on July 3, 2020 [2 favorites]
There are some interesting details I hadn’t seen before in this Tatler piece on her society background first published in November 2019, including that the “little black book” was hers, not Epstein’s, and that her father may have abused her. It puts her relationship with Epstein into some context.
posted by sallybrown at 5:05 AM on July 4, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by sallybrown at 5:05 AM on July 4, 2020 [3 favorites]
It puts her relationship with Epstein into some context.
I've been thinking of how she, like most sexual offenders, is probably also a victim. That doesn't exonerate her. Just adds a dimension to the story.
posted by mumimor at 5:42 AM on July 4, 2020 [3 favorites]
I've been thinking of how she, like most sexual offenders, is probably also a victim. That doesn't exonerate her. Just adds a dimension to the story.
posted by mumimor at 5:42 AM on July 4, 2020 [3 favorites]
> Everything you need to know about American politics: regardless of who won the 2016 election, both candidates had connections to Epstein and Maxwell. Maxwell was at Chelsea Clinton’s wedding!! I hate our ruling class.
the epstein circle is a dangling thread, and if someone were to start properly pulling on it the whole top of the power structure would come undone. fascists like trump, liberals like the clintons, aristos like prince andrew, financiers like jes staley, business tycoons like les wexner, and even the money men behind elite academia (see: the mit media lab) would all soon be naked.
and we can’t presume that this is the only loose thread like this — the davos set is crawling with grubby clubby little conspiracies designed to keep them extracting labor and pleasure from all of the rest of us.
i don’t know what is to be done, though given that i’m framing the question in terms of “what is to be done?” might be a hint as to what i suspect the answer might be. i am surprised and a little thrilled that the sdny is going in on maxwell, though one can’t pin any real hopes on the actions of a “good cop” — cops aren’t good, and when push comes to shove the good cops are often ultimately powerless. and, as we all suspect, what happened to that joker epstein could easily happen to his harley quinn.
posted by Reclusive Novelist Thomas Pynchon at 5:51 AM on July 4, 2020 [13 favorites]
the epstein circle is a dangling thread, and if someone were to start properly pulling on it the whole top of the power structure would come undone. fascists like trump, liberals like the clintons, aristos like prince andrew, financiers like jes staley, business tycoons like les wexner, and even the money men behind elite academia (see: the mit media lab) would all soon be naked.
and we can’t presume that this is the only loose thread like this — the davos set is crawling with grubby clubby little conspiracies designed to keep them extracting labor and pleasure from all of the rest of us.
i don’t know what is to be done, though given that i’m framing the question in terms of “what is to be done?” might be a hint as to what i suspect the answer might be. i am surprised and a little thrilled that the sdny is going in on maxwell, though one can’t pin any real hopes on the actions of a “good cop” — cops aren’t good, and when push comes to shove the good cops are often ultimately powerless. and, as we all suspect, what happened to that joker epstein could easily happen to his harley quinn.
posted by Reclusive Novelist Thomas Pynchon at 5:51 AM on July 4, 2020 [13 favorites]
Just adds a dimension to the story.
And while I think Brockles is right that there was infatuation/love involved, at least on her side, it was also a classic transactional relationship between them where they both dreamed of being rich and influential and needed the other: she had the background but not the money, he had the money but not the social class. Their existence vouched for each other for shallower acquaintances. “Well he’s friends with Ghislane, so...”
One of many flaws in their scheme was that building it around wanting to be among the rich and powerful meant there were a lot of threads outside the two of them, like Reclusive Novelist Thomas Pynchon points out, as opposed to a Bonnie and Clyde thing. Maybe they’ll all ultimately get away with it (if you consider Epstein’s fate an escape) but I’m still deludedly optimistic that more will come out. There’s just too many people involved with competing motives.
posted by sallybrown at 6:53 AM on July 4, 2020 [3 favorites]
And while I think Brockles is right that there was infatuation/love involved, at least on her side, it was also a classic transactional relationship between them where they both dreamed of being rich and influential and needed the other: she had the background but not the money, he had the money but not the social class. Their existence vouched for each other for shallower acquaintances. “Well he’s friends with Ghislane, so...”
One of many flaws in their scheme was that building it around wanting to be among the rich and powerful meant there were a lot of threads outside the two of them, like Reclusive Novelist Thomas Pynchon points out, as opposed to a Bonnie and Clyde thing. Maybe they’ll all ultimately get away with it (if you consider Epstein’s fate an escape) but I’m still deludedly optimistic that more will come out. There’s just too many people involved with competing motives.
posted by sallybrown at 6:53 AM on July 4, 2020 [3 favorites]
I just want to quickly debunk the myth that sexual predators were often abused themselves - abstract link - the stats are something like 3 or 4% of predators were sexually abused, so 96-97% of predators were in fact not abused. I push back on the idea that sexual predation is a learned behavior inherited from personal experience. However, about one in 5 girls and one in 12 boys will be sexually abused before their 18th birthday.
So if you take this at face value, the rate of predators who were also sexually abused themselves is lower than the general population.
posted by erattacorrige at 8:29 AM on July 4, 2020 [11 favorites]
So if you take this at face value, the rate of predators who were also sexually abused themselves is lower than the general population.
posted by erattacorrige at 8:29 AM on July 4, 2020 [11 favorites]
she had the background but not the money, he had the money but not the social class
Didn't Maxwell have a super rich father?
posted by erattacorrige at 9:00 AM on July 4, 2020
Didn't Maxwell have a super rich father?
posted by erattacorrige at 9:00 AM on July 4, 2020
the stats are something like 3 or 4% of predators were sexually abused, so 96-97% of predators were in fact not abused.
FWIW, I wasn't imagining that she had been sexually abused. The Tatler article describes brutal punishment, and a father who could be cruel towards his children in general.
Didn't Maxwell have a super rich father?
Yes, but...
posted by mumimor at 9:08 AM on July 4, 2020 [1 favorite]
FWIW, I wasn't imagining that she had been sexually abused. The Tatler article describes brutal punishment, and a father who could be cruel towards his children in general.
Didn't Maxwell have a super rich father?
Yes, but...
posted by mumimor at 9:08 AM on July 4, 2020 [1 favorite]
Didn't Maxwell have a super rich father?
I bet she was still what many of us would consider wealthy, but the Tatler article describes her view and the view of the people she knew growing up as being that she was “broke” and had to remake herself from “nothing” when she moved to NY after her father’s death and the exposure of his financial crimes, and describes Epstein as kind of rescuing her from that.
posted by sallybrown at 9:29 AM on July 4, 2020
I bet she was still what many of us would consider wealthy, but the Tatler article describes her view and the view of the people she knew growing up as being that she was “broke” and had to remake herself from “nothing” when she moved to NY after her father’s death and the exposure of his financial crimes, and describes Epstein as kind of rescuing her from that.
posted by sallybrown at 9:29 AM on July 4, 2020
Broke in the sense of having more in her checking account than most people have in their retirement accounts.
posted by benzenedream at 5:58 PM on July 4, 2020 [10 favorites]
posted by benzenedream at 5:58 PM on July 4, 2020 [10 favorites]
There's some very strange stuff going on with Barr and Epstein, according to Heather Cox Richardson , including the Southern District of New York and Bill Barr's father's connection to Epstein. I can't believe this is happening in this country.
posted by etaoin at 9:12 PM on July 4, 2020 [9 favorites]
posted by etaoin at 9:12 PM on July 4, 2020 [9 favorites]
There is no “humanizing” these people, because they are all humans. Just humans of such a higher class than any of us here in metafilter could possibly imagine. Child trafficking through intelligences agencies? Mossad? CIA? Cmon man. What is this shit?
posted by gucci mane at 9:19 AM on July 5, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by gucci mane at 9:19 AM on July 5, 2020 [1 favorite]
The NYT is reporting that a DC lobbyist known for taking on unsavory clients “expressed discomfort about the possibility of assisting Prince Andrew, and talks about the potential representation appear to have fizzled.” Probably another bad sign for him, that people are leaking to reporters that they have nothing to do with him...
posted by sallybrown at 11:01 AM on July 5, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by sallybrown at 11:01 AM on July 5, 2020 [3 favorites]
Snopes now has this article up: No, Ghislaine Maxwell Has Not Tested Positive for COVID-19 in Jail
posted by Catblack at 12:45 PM on July 5, 2020 [2 favorites]
posted by Catblack at 12:45 PM on July 5, 2020 [2 favorites]
Sounds like Epstein and Maxwell may have also been matchmakers of some kind, bringing young women into their circle and introducing them to eligible “wealthy benefactors” to marry.
posted by sallybrown at 8:56 AM on July 6, 2020
posted by sallybrown at 8:56 AM on July 6, 2020
According to former Reddit CEO Ellen Pao, Maxwell attended a Kleiner Perkins (her former VC firm) party in 2011.
posted by Noisy Pink Bubbles at 10:06 AM on July 6, 2020
posted by Noisy Pink Bubbles at 10:06 AM on July 6, 2020
Pao seems to be an actual human among the SV elite. Contrast her 2011 disgust with the radio silence about the March 2011 post-TED dinner Epstein attended with Bezos, Sergey Brin, Marissa Meyer, and Elon Musk.
posted by benzenedream at 3:55 PM on July 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by benzenedream at 3:55 PM on July 6, 2020 [1 favorite]
Richard Kay (royal-whisperer for the Daily Mail) panders to Andrew while pleading Prince Andrew's silence is ruinously damaging his mother... he MUST end this excruciating stand-off. If the Richard Kay crowd is urging Andrew to talk, it’s really game over for him, despite all the ludicrous hand waving of Andrew’s intent:
posted by sallybrown at 5:07 PM on July 6, 2020 [7 favorites]
Is he guilty of evasion or is he a victim too of over-zealous prosecutors who, to Andrew’s thinking anyway, have ignored the high profile and pressing claims of figures linked to Epstein in the U.S. – namely President Trump and ex-president Bill Clinton – for the glory of a royal scalp? Even so the duke has hardly helped himself....Oh, poor Andrew, all the “theatrical” and gauche American attorneys “harrying” him! Oh, the poor queen, having to see that picture of Ghislane on the throne: “They haven’t quite ruined her summer, but it’s been close.“
‘It is such a shock that this should happen with the Duke of York because he is normally a stickler for propriety,’ says the aide. ‘I’ve heard him tell people off for not eating properly at the table.’... ‘He had no intention to deceive but with some of his answers he ended up deceiving, which is different.’ Another close figure says: ‘Andrew is naive and unworldly, a product of the royal bubble.’
posted by sallybrown at 5:07 PM on July 6, 2020 [7 favorites]
Headlines this morning are reporting that, according to Maxwell’s ex-friend, she’s got thumb drives stashed away of all Epstein’s sex tapes, including all his friends, and that’s her insurance policy, probably with a “dead man’s switch” to release them if she gets “suicided” in custody like Epstein.
If she doesn’t, she’s in line for “Worst Mosaad Agent/Bond Villain Ever”.
posted by Pirate-Bartender-Zombie-Monkey at 7:01 AM on July 7, 2020 [3 favorites]
If she doesn’t, she’s in line for “Worst Mosaad Agent/Bond Villain Ever”.
posted by Pirate-Bartender-Zombie-Monkey at 7:01 AM on July 7, 2020 [3 favorites]
Oh what a surprise, it's something unsavory it's Deutsche Bank again which Settles Over Ignored Red Flags on Jeffrey Epstein.
The German lender repeatedly overlooked suspicious transactions, including payments to people a New York regulator described as his co-conspirators.
posted by adamvasco at 9:27 AM on July 7, 2020 [2 favorites]
The German lender repeatedly overlooked suspicious transactions, including payments to people a New York regulator described as his co-conspirators.
posted by adamvasco at 9:27 AM on July 7, 2020 [2 favorites]
“They haven’t quite ruined her summer, but it’s been close.“
There's coronavirus, quarantine, and her oldest son and heir catching coronavirus. The Queen's summer wasn't already ruined?!?
posted by jenfullmoon at 12:18 PM on July 7, 2020 [2 favorites]
There's coronavirus, quarantine, and her oldest son and heir catching coronavirus. The Queen's summer wasn't already ruined?!?
posted by jenfullmoon at 12:18 PM on July 7, 2020 [2 favorites]
The Queen got lots of people randomly beseeching God to save her. That soaks up a whole lot.
posted by Pirate-Bartender-Zombie-Monkey at 1:14 PM on July 7, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by Pirate-Bartender-Zombie-Monkey at 1:14 PM on July 7, 2020 [3 favorites]
Man, DB sure seems to have their fingers in every nasty pie. How are they still operating? Peer behind any shady oligarch and you'll find a DB banker doing his laundry.
posted by aramaic at 1:56 PM on July 7, 2020 [7 favorites]
posted by aramaic at 1:56 PM on July 7, 2020 [7 favorites]
This is apparently Maxwell's twitter account
posted by Noisy Pink Bubbles at 3:58 PM on July 7, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by Noisy Pink Bubbles at 3:58 PM on July 7, 2020 [1 favorite]
Maxwell was a prolific Reddit user apparently and the first person to hit 1 million karma.
I was going to post a link but there's always more and it's always worse.
posted by fullerine at 8:25 AM on July 8, 2020
I was going to post a link but there's always more and it's always worse.
posted by fullerine at 8:25 AM on July 8, 2020
That seems extremely unlikely to me...what is the source?
posted by sallybrown at 8:49 AM on July 8, 2020 [6 favorites]
posted by sallybrown at 8:49 AM on July 8, 2020 [6 favorites]
I think it's a real shame she got arrested before she could sign on to the Harper's letter.
posted by Lentrohamsanin at 9:14 AM on July 8, 2020 [11 favorites]
posted by Lentrohamsanin at 9:14 AM on July 8, 2020 [11 favorites]
The reddit account stopped posting the day she got arrested. Was the in the top 10 of redit accounts, and you don't get that without crazy bot support. and had a history of posts supporting child rape.
Now that could describe a lot of redditors, but it is sortof convincing.
posted by Iax at 9:24 AM on July 8, 2020
Now that could describe a lot of redditors, but it is sortof convincing.
posted by Iax at 9:24 AM on July 8, 2020
Man, DB sure seems to have their fingers in every nasty pie. How are they still operating? Peer behind any shady oligarch and you'll find a DB banker doing his laundry.
How did BCCI manage to stay open - it was protected 'till it was not. Same with HSBC.
Maxwell will want her share of Jeff's estate and keep what money she has and the simplist way to get it is to cooperate fully. If she has as many recording as some people believe she does us coming to know what the truth is depends on the DOJ/AG actually doing their jobs given the structure of the criminal justice system.
posted by rough ashlar at 9:39 AM on July 8, 2020 [1 favorite]
How did BCCI manage to stay open - it was protected 'till it was not. Same with HSBC.
Maxwell will want her share of Jeff's estate and keep what money she has and the simplist way to get it is to cooperate fully. If she has as many recording as some people believe she does us coming to know what the truth is depends on the DOJ/AG actually doing their jobs given the structure of the criminal justice system.
posted by rough ashlar at 9:39 AM on July 8, 2020 [1 favorite]
I’m still amazed anyone at all has been arrested for anything in this at all. Guess money can’t sweep everything under the rug.
I’m not holding my breath on anything happening other than all the blame being placed on Maxwell and no one else of any stature being named or indicted for soliciting or engaging with a minor.
If someone huge like Clinton or Dershowitz goes down for this I will buy a somewhat expensive bottle of champagne and drink myself silly out of fancy glasses my grandma left me.
posted by affectionateborg at 10:20 AM on July 8, 2020 [8 favorites]
I’m not holding my breath on anything happening other than all the blame being placed on Maxwell and no one else of any stature being named or indicted for soliciting or engaging with a minor.
If someone huge like Clinton or Dershowitz goes down for this I will buy a somewhat expensive bottle of champagne and drink myself silly out of fancy glasses my grandma left me.
posted by affectionateborg at 10:20 AM on July 8, 2020 [8 favorites]
Here is an alternative explanation of the username maxwellhill from a tweet by someone saying they are a fellow mod at r/worldnews. Make up your own mind what's convincing here. I'm just saying there are many other possibilities of who is behind that account, and some of them don't involve rich people caring about being in a top ten list with their imaginary Internet points.
https://twitter.com/hasharin/status/1280885264056025090
posted by primal at 12:36 PM on July 8, 2020 [2 favorites]
https://twitter.com/hasharin/status/1280885264056025090
Maxwellhill is a Malaysian man please stop this nonsense. I mod r/worldnews with him. Maxwell Hill is literally the name of a place in Malaysia it is not a reference to his name.(Link in quote added by me.)
posted by primal at 12:36 PM on July 8, 2020 [2 favorites]
Mod note: Let's set down the reddit account speculation thing. There either will or won't be some clear confirmation there, and if there is someone can round it up then.
posted by cortex (staff) at 4:25 PM on July 8, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by cortex (staff) at 4:25 PM on July 8, 2020 [1 favorite]
A friend of Maxwell’s asserts in this interview that Maxwell is covered by the federal immunity from prosecution deal that Epstein negotiated the first time.
posted by Pirate-Bartender-Zombie-Monkey at 6:34 PM on July 8, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by Pirate-Bartender-Zombie-Monkey at 6:34 PM on July 8, 2020 [1 favorite]
Note: discussion of Maxwell and immunity in that previous video starts ~3:30
posted by Pirate-Bartender-Zombie-Monkey at 6:49 PM on July 8, 2020
posted by Pirate-Bartender-Zombie-Monkey at 6:49 PM on July 8, 2020
Maxwell can't be immune: that federal immunity deal, even if valid, doesn't bind other US Attorney's offices. So she might have been able to make that argument if she were charged in Florida, but this is SDNY. Cite: Ken White on "All the President's Lawyers"
posted by suelac at 3:10 PM on July 9, 2020 [4 favorites]
posted by suelac at 3:10 PM on July 9, 2020 [4 favorites]
Maxwell can't be immune: that federal immunity deal, even if valid, doesn't bind other US Attorney's offices. So she might have been able to make that argument if she were charged in Florida, but this is SDNY. Cite: Ken White on "All the President's Lawyers"
Thank you random internet person for having a better grasp of law and logic than the BBC.
posted by roolya_boolya at 6:40 PM on July 9, 2020 [3 favorites]
Thank you random internet person for having a better grasp of law and logic than the BBC.
posted by roolya_boolya at 6:40 PM on July 9, 2020 [3 favorites]
I wouldn't jump to the BBC as my go-to experts on US law, especially on nuanced issues like whether different states and the federal government can make legal agreements that bind each other.
I do assume that they'd do some diligence before making those claims in an article or news report. But it wasn't the BBC making those claims in this video, it was their interviewee, Conchita Sarnoff. I don't know much about her other than what they said in the interview and some light googling, but she admits to being a longtime friend of Maxwell's, and is also apparently one of the people who exposed Epstein's ring in the first place and is the head of an anti-trafficking organization?
A curious person, but regardless there's nothing I've seen that suggests she has particular expertise on those legal wrinkles either. She throws "statute of limitations" in at the end of that interview as another reason Maxwell might be protected, which seems to undermine the certainty of her previous point.
Long story short, while I don't know suelac or whether their argument about Maxwell's (lack of) immunity holds water, I wouldn't defer to the statements from this interview as legal canon either.
posted by Riki tiki at 3:02 PM on July 10, 2020 [1 favorite]
I do assume that they'd do some diligence before making those claims in an article or news report. But it wasn't the BBC making those claims in this video, it was their interviewee, Conchita Sarnoff. I don't know much about her other than what they said in the interview and some light googling, but she admits to being a longtime friend of Maxwell's, and is also apparently one of the people who exposed Epstein's ring in the first place and is the head of an anti-trafficking organization?
A curious person, but regardless there's nothing I've seen that suggests she has particular expertise on those legal wrinkles either. She throws "statute of limitations" in at the end of that interview as another reason Maxwell might be protected, which seems to undermine the certainty of her previous point.
Long story short, while I don't know suelac or whether their argument about Maxwell's (lack of) immunity holds water, I wouldn't defer to the statements from this interview as legal canon either.
posted by Riki tiki at 3:02 PM on July 10, 2020 [1 favorite]
The January 2020 USVI "Epstein Enterprise" lawsuit alleges two decades of criminal activities, through 2018; Maxwell could be added to that suit.
Ghislaine Maxwell requests bail due to 'significant' coronavirus risk (BBC, July 10, 2020) Ms Maxwell's defence team said her detention at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York, puts her at "serious risk" of contracting coronavirus. They said she was not a flight risk and asked the judge to release her from custody on $5m (£4m) bail, signed by six of her associates and secured by a $3.75m (£3m) on property in the UK.
Under the proposed bail conditions, Ms Maxwell, 58, would surrender her passports from the US, UK and France and would confine herself to a property in New York with electronic GPS monitoring. [...] A federal judge in Manhattan will decide on Tuesday whether to grant bail.
--
The defense team also claims Maxwell had not been in contact with Epstein "for more than a decade before his death," but there are probably more group party photos to disprove that, and he is thought to have funded her TerraMar Project enviro charity (founded in 2012 and abruptly shuttered in July 2019, days after his arrest.)
posted by Iris Gambol at 3:57 PM on July 10, 2020
Ghislaine Maxwell requests bail due to 'significant' coronavirus risk (BBC, July 10, 2020) Ms Maxwell's defence team said her detention at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York, puts her at "serious risk" of contracting coronavirus. They said she was not a flight risk and asked the judge to release her from custody on $5m (£4m) bail, signed by six of her associates and secured by a $3.75m (£3m) on property in the UK.
Under the proposed bail conditions, Ms Maxwell, 58, would surrender her passports from the US, UK and France and would confine herself to a property in New York with electronic GPS monitoring. [...] A federal judge in Manhattan will decide on Tuesday whether to grant bail.
--
The defense team also claims Maxwell had not been in contact with Epstein "for more than a decade before his death," but there are probably more group party photos to disprove that, and he is thought to have funded her TerraMar Project enviro charity (founded in 2012 and abruptly shuttered in July 2019, days after his arrest.)
posted by Iris Gambol at 3:57 PM on July 10, 2020
IAAL, IANYL, etc etc. That said, Ken White (aka @popehat) has been pretty reliable on a lot of this stuff, and he's a former deputy US Attorney. If he says an agreement with one US Attorney can't bind another, I'm likely to accept that.
posted by suelac at 3:58 PM on July 10, 2020 [4 favorites]
posted by suelac at 3:58 PM on July 10, 2020 [4 favorites]
Ghislaine Maxwell reportedly moved from ‘cell to cell’ to avoid assassins
posted by Noisy Pink Bubbles at 8:09 AM on July 13, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by Noisy Pink Bubbles at 8:09 AM on July 13, 2020 [3 favorites]
twitter thread covering bail hearing. bail not granted.
posted by logicpunk at 12:20 PM on July 14, 2020 [2 favorites]
posted by logicpunk at 12:20 PM on July 14, 2020 [2 favorites]
Livetweet thread of Maxwell's bail hearing; she pleads not guilty and is denied bail
posted by Noisy Pink Bubbles at 12:25 PM on July 14, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by Noisy Pink Bubbles at 12:25 PM on July 14, 2020 [1 favorite]
Ghislaine Maxwell is married, prosecutors say in court
Prosecutors say Maxwell, who has pleaded not guilty to involvement in Jeffrey Epstein crimes, has declined to identify spouse to officials
posted by adamvasco at 4:20 PM on July 15, 2020
Prosecutors say Maxwell, who has pleaded not guilty to involvement in Jeffrey Epstein crimes, has declined to identify spouse to officials
posted by adamvasco at 4:20 PM on July 15, 2020
Assistant U.S. Attorney Allison Moe said Maxwell posed as a journalist named Janet Marshall when she purchased the New Hampshire property with cash. A man calling himself Scott Marshall was with her, identifying himself as a one-time member of the British military who planned on writing a book. (WPIX, July 14, 2020) While at the property, the couple told the estate agent that they wanted to purchase it quickly with a wire transfer and said that they were setting up a limited liability company (LLC) to do it. Ms Moe said that Maxwell bought the property for $1.07m (£852,276) with a “carefully anonymized LLC,” and added that the estate agent realised who Maxwell was when they saw her on the news shortly after. (The Independent, July 14, 2020) Re: Scott Borgerson, the tech CEO who has been tied to Jeffrey Epstein's alleged madam, Ghislaine Maxwell (Business Insider, August 17, 2020) The Daily Mail reported Maxwell had become a "homebody" who was "hiding out" at Borgerson's home, and that the pair have been dating for around five years. However, Borgerson denied the report Wednesday to Business Insider, and said Maxwell is a "former friend."
posted by Iris Gambol at 1:41 PM on July 16, 2020
posted by Iris Gambol at 1:41 PM on July 16, 2020
Home assault gunman shot and killed the son of a federal judge recently appointed to oversee a lawsuit against Deutsche Bank linked to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein. Judge Salas was not hurt in the assault.
posted by adamvasco at 5:16 AM on July 20, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by adamvasco at 5:16 AM on July 20, 2020 [1 favorite]
Mark Anderl, her husband, was also shot and seriously injured in the attack that killed their son. Though Salas was assigned to the Deutsche Bank case four days ago, it appears the prime suspect is a) a plaintiff's attorney from an unrelated suit which began in 2015 (Judge Salas's opinion, March 29, 2018) and b) already deceased of "what is believed to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound." Authorities identify primary suspect in the fatal shooting at a federal judge's house and say he is dead (CNN, July 20, 2020)
Dead Attorney With Rage Against Women Eyed in Killing of NJ Federal Judge's Son: Sources (NBC, July 20, 2020) [Roy] Den Hollander [was] a notoriously anti-feminist men's rights attorney, whose vitriolic website and book condemn women in rage-filled terms. In one of his books, he specifically blasted Salas by name as "lazy and incompetent" and said her only accomplishment was being a high school cheerleader. Den Hollander appeared in her court at one time as counsel in a lawsuit over the all-male military draft.[...] Authorities are also looking into whether Den Hollander is connected in any way to the July 11 death of a well-known men's rights activist in California.
posted by Iris Gambol at 3:45 PM on July 20, 2020
Dead Attorney With Rage Against Women Eyed in Killing of NJ Federal Judge's Son: Sources (NBC, July 20, 2020) [Roy] Den Hollander [was] a notoriously anti-feminist men's rights attorney, whose vitriolic website and book condemn women in rage-filled terms. In one of his books, he specifically blasted Salas by name as "lazy and incompetent" and said her only accomplishment was being a high school cheerleader. Den Hollander appeared in her court at one time as counsel in a lawsuit over the all-male military draft.[...] Authorities are also looking into whether Den Hollander is connected in any way to the July 11 death of a well-known men's rights activist in California.
posted by Iris Gambol at 3:45 PM on July 20, 2020
The first thing I thought of when I heard the shooter died of a “self-inflicted wound”; Arlington Road. And I hate that.
Worst. Timeline.
posted by Pirate-Bartender-Zombie-Monkey at 6:39 PM on July 20, 2020 [2 favorites]
Worst. Timeline.
posted by Pirate-Bartender-Zombie-Monkey at 6:39 PM on July 20, 2020 [2 favorites]
Trump says he wishes accused sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell well and has 'met her numerous times' (The Independent, July 21, 2020) Donald Trump says he wishes Ghislaine Maxwell well following charges against the socialite as part of an alleged sex trafficking ring with Jeffrey Epstein. He also said he doesn't "know the situation" regarding Prince Andrew, who federal prosecutors have said has dismissed their attempts to discuss the case despite his relationship with Maxwell.[...] A reporter asked the president about his relationship to Prince Andrew and whether be believed Maxwell is going to "turn in powerful men" as she faces trial.
"I don't know, I haven't really been following it too much," he said. "I just wish her well, frankly. I've met her numerous times over the years, especially since I lived in Palm Beach and I guess they lived in Palm Beach. But I wish her well, whatever it is. I don't know the situation with Prince Andrew, I just don't know. Not aware of it."
posted by Iris Gambol at 3:59 PM on July 21, 2020 [2 favorites]
"I don't know, I haven't really been following it too much," he said. "I just wish her well, frankly. I've met her numerous times over the years, especially since I lived in Palm Beach and I guess they lived in Palm Beach. But I wish her well, whatever it is. I don't know the situation with Prince Andrew, I just don't know. Not aware of it."
posted by Iris Gambol at 3:59 PM on July 21, 2020 [2 favorites]
Judge Salas was not hurt in the assault
The latest Gaslit Nation ep has a specific, sobering take on this story: "While the motivations of the killer are unclear, the threats to her family are part of a broader pattern of brutal attacks on officials, including the judges in the Manafort and Stone cases, the impeachment witnesses, and many more. We also discuss the shooter and his ties to the Russian mafia and discuss how widespread this mafia culture has become."
posted by progosk at 3:02 AM on July 22, 2020 [2 favorites]
The latest Gaslit Nation ep has a specific, sobering take on this story: "While the motivations of the killer are unclear, the threats to her family are part of a broader pattern of brutal attacks on officials, including the judges in the Manafort and Stone cases, the impeachment witnesses, and many more. We also discuss the shooter and his ties to the Russian mafia and discuss how widespread this mafia culture has become."
posted by progosk at 3:02 AM on July 22, 2020 [2 favorites]
A bunch of documents are released in the Maxwell case, but with plenty of redactions.
posted by Noisy Pink Bubbles at 7:48 AM on July 31, 2020 [4 favorites]
posted by Noisy Pink Bubbles at 7:48 AM on July 31, 2020 [4 favorites]
People figured out that all of those "redactions" (black hilighting) are easily removed by transferring the file dump to other file formats or even using Adobe Acrobat and so all of the names are being published in lists w sources etc and the files are being mirrored and archived all around the internet
posted by erattacorrige at 9:25 AM on July 31, 2020 [3 favorites]
posted by erattacorrige at 9:25 AM on July 31, 2020 [3 favorites]
Unfortunately it looks like document 143 (which, as far as I can tell, doesn't have anything of much interest) of the files is the only one which has that defect; all the other redactions are either done physically on scanned documents or digitally done properly.
posted by Noisy Pink Bubbles at 2:59 PM on July 31, 2020
posted by Noisy Pink Bubbles at 2:59 PM on July 31, 2020
Here is a link to the PDF files, redacted.
posted by erattacorrige at 11:39 AM on August 1, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by erattacorrige at 11:39 AM on August 1, 2020 [1 favorite]
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posted by Freedomboy at 12:10 PM on July 2, 2020 [30 favorites]