Jurors at the New York sex-abuse trial of Ghislaine Maxwell, the ex-girlfriend and longtime associate of Jeffrey Epstein, were shown a law enforcement videotape of the interior of a Florida estate where prosecutors say she and the financier exploited underage victims when the pair lived there together.
The video, which was played for the panel of jurors on Friday afternoon, was shot during a 2005 raid at the Palm Beach home, which was decorated with nude photos and paintings of young women — decor that federal prosecutors in Manhattan claim is proof of a sexualized atmosphere encouraged by Maxwell, Epstein’s “partner in crime.”
Maxwell, a British socialite, was Epstein’s onetime girlfriend and, later, employee. Prosecutors said she took the girls on shopping trips and movie outings, talked to them about their lives and encouraged them to accept financial help from him.
The government also says she helped to create a sexualized atmosphere by talking with the girls about sex and encouraging them to give Epstein massages. A woman identified as “Jane” testified this week that she had sexual interactions with Epstein at age 14 with Maxwell in the room and sometimes participating.
Maxwell, 59, denies the allegations against her, and her lawyers say prosecutors are going after her because they can’t try Epstein.
Also on Friday, former Epstein housekeeper Juan Patricio Alessi returned to the witness stand on Friday to face cross-examination over his testimony that “Jane” and another woman who has accused Epstein of sexually abusing her as teens were repeated visitors at the Palm Beach mansion, where Maxwell was “the lady of the house.”
A lawyer for the British socialite sought to discredit Alessi — who worked for Epstein from 1990 to 2002 — by confronting him with a deposition from a civil case that the defense says was inconsistent with his trial testimony.
This is an excerpt from Fox News.
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