Ghislaine Maxwell, a convicted sex trafficker, was reportedly punished by authorities at the Federal Correctional Institute Tallahassee for a recorded jailhouse interview that aired in January.
The former British socialite was handcuffed and slung into solitary confinement for 48 hours after prison authorities accused her of profiting from a media interview, according to the Daily Mail.
“She protested her innocence but was marched off to the Special Housing Unit (SHU) — a ‘prison within a prison’ comprising tiny, grim cells where inmates are locked up for 23 hours at a time and fed through slits in the door.”
The news outlet quoted unnamed “insiders” as saying that the inmate they know as “Max” “was just minding her own business when they came in, turned her around and handcuffed her.”
“She got really upset, she was crying, she was yelling that she hadn’t received any money, but nobody saw her again for three days.”
The Mail’s source said, “The SHU is not a nice place.”
“It’s like a little box and you’re only allowed out to shower once a day. There’s no contact from anyone, no privileges, they slide your meals through a slot.”
According to the report, if Maxwell had been paid for her appearance in the interview, which aired on TalkTV on January 23, she would have violated the terms of her 20-year federal prison sentence.
The method by which the interview was obtained was also questioned. According to the report, as federal prisoner number 02879-509, she is only permitted to make video calls to family members and friends on a list approved by the federal prison.
The interviews were apparently conducted over phone calls with her friend, filmmaker Daphne Barak.
Several of Maxwell’s comments during those interviews made headlines.
One widely publicized remark was that she believed Epstein did not commit suicide in his jail cell in 2019, contrary to the official narrative.
“I believe that he was murdered,” Maxwell said.
“I was shocked” when she learned of his death, she said. “And I was curious as to how it had happened. Because, in my opinion, he was going to… I was certain he would file an appeal. And I was confident that he was protected by the non-prosecution agreement.”
She also expressed regret for her association with Epstein during the interview. “I honestly wish I’d never met him, you know, looking back now,” she told the interviewer. “I probably wish I had stayed in England.”
The fact that she refused to apologize to the young victims of her crimes was perhaps the most infamous aspect of her widely publicized January interview.
The best sentiment she could muster was, “I wish them time to heal and to be able to have a productive and good life going forward.”
Maxwell also used the interview to call into question the authenticity of a photograph of Prince Andrew, Duke of York, with Virginia Giuffre, who was then known as Virginia Roberts, when she was a teenager.
“It’s a fake,” Maxwell insisted. “I don’t believe it’s real for a second, in fact, I’m sure it’s not. There’s never been an original.”
The Daily Mail published a story a week after her claim was made public, quoting a Florida-based photographic expert as saying he believed the photo was genuine.
The photo was taken on a Kodak disposable camera and developed at a Walgreens pharmacy in West Palm Beach, Florida, on March 13, 2001, according to The Mail, which was the first news outlet to publish it 12 years ago.
The photo “was developed at a one-hour lab making it virtually impossible to doctor,” according to the report.
