Ghislaine Maxwell’s brother breaks silence to demand she’s released and slams ‘brutal and degrading’ treatment in jail
GHISLAINE Maxwell’s brother has broken his silence calling for her release and slamming her “brutal and degrading” treatment in prison.
Ian Maxwell, 64, has blasted the “bizarre and cruel” US legal system as his sister rots in a Brooklyn jail ahead of her trial this summer.
Ghislaine’s brother Ian, right, has demanded her release on bail[/caption]Ghislaine, 59, a British socialite, is accused of procuring young girls for her former lover Jeffrey Epstein – a convicted paedohpile and alleged sex trafficker.
She remains on round-the-clock suicide watch with US authorities fearing she will meet the same fate as Epstein – who killed himself in prison in August 2019 while awaiting trial.
According to her family, Ghislaine is being held in a tiny cell and is watched by cameras 24/7.
Her brother says her hair is falling out, she has lost 20lbs and is losing “the ability to concentrate.”
Ian told the Telegraph: “As you know, my sister is being held in the most appalling conditions and subjected to brutal and unusual treatment and yet she is a pretrial detainee.
“This means she is innocent and she is entitled to the presumption of innocence.”
Ian added that his sister’s treatment was a “disgrace to any civilised democracy.”
Ghislaine was arrested by the FBI at a secluded $1million house in New Hampshire last July.
She is also charged with perjury in relation to a 2016 sworn testimony in which she denied trafficking alleged Epstein victim Virginia Roberts – who alleges she was forced to sleep with Prince Andrew, a claim he denies.
Ian said his sister, the Oxford-educated daughter of media tycoon Robert Maxwell, is being held in a cell measuring 6ft by 9ft which includes a “concrete bed and toilet.”
He said: “She has 10 cameras trained on her, including one mobile camera 24/7.
“Four guards observe her all the time and presumably another is looking at the camera feeds.
“She is not allowed in the corners of her cell. She is not allowed within 2.5ft of the cell door.”
Her brother explained that she has endured these “brutal” conditions for 250 days.
“This is simply wrong”, he adds.
Ian said the family are “convinced she will be acquitted” insisting the public impression of his sister is “entirely wrong.”
He said the family has “managed to pull together” $28.5million for Ghislaine’s bail.
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Ian said his sister even gave up her British and French passports to prove to US authorities that she was not a flight risk – something he calls “a great sacrifice.”
The socialite has been denied bail and faces 50 years in jail if found guilty on all charges.
She denies all allegations of misconduct made against her.