The woman accused of being a long-time accomplice to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein allegedly stowed $4 million in an offshore Swiss bank account. She is currently fighting to be released on bail.
Ghislaine Maxwell hid at least $4 million in a Swiss bank account, prosecutors in the Southern District of New York, or SDNY, alleged in a response to her request for release on bail. The 58-year-old British socialite’s arrest last week on federal charges including enticement of minors and sex trafficking is the latest chapter in the years-long effort by victims of Jeffrey Epstein for justice.
The opaque finances of Epstein, who died by suicide in August, have caused trouble for wealth managers. Last week, Deutsche Bank paid $150 million to New York officials for managing Epstein’s wealth. Barclays boss Jes Staley is being scrutinized by U.K. officials over his relationship with the disgraced financier which spanned 15 years and two wealth managers – J.P. Morgan, then the British bank.
Tinfoil Mobile
The SDNY’s prosecutors didn’t identify the Swiss bank it alleges Maxwell hid money or set up a trust for her in Switzerland. The bail document also references an undisclosed British bank. Maxwell, an impeccably-connected heiress, was nabbed last week at a reclusive New Hampshire luxury home she bought – with more than $1 million in cash – last year.
Prosecutors detailed how arresting officers found a mobile phone wrapped in aluminum foil – apparently Maxwell's «misguided effort» to evade detection. She appeared to be guarded by British former intelligence officers – and was shifting money including in the Swiss accounts as recently as last summer.
Maxwell appeared unprepared when federal agents descended on her New Hampshire home to arrest her. «Through a window, the agents saw the defendant ignore the direction to open the door and, instead, try to flee to another room in the house, quickly shutting a door behind her,» the SDNY wrote.
Hobnobbing With Royalty
Maxwell, reportedly worth $10 million and with residences in several countries, is precisely the type of complex and multi-shoring client that wealth managers are keen for. Her alleged role in Epstein’s trafficking and abuse is emerging through numerous accounts by his victims; she and Epstein were reportedly financially entangled as well – though prosecutors haven't detailed this.
A member of Britain’s wealthy class, Maxwell introduced the Brooklyn-born Epstein to royalty (Prince Andrew has been shifted out of active duties because of his association with the couple). Maxwell's family was at the center of one of the biggest scandals in Britain in recent years: her father, media tycoon Robert Maxwell, died under mysterious circumstances in 1991 after vanishing from a luxury yacht – named the Lady Ghislaine.
Flight Risk
A 460 million pounds ($580 million) shortfall at a Maxwell company pension fund was discovered shortly after his death. Ghislaine effectively fled to New York, where she began keeping company with Epstein. A fellow student at Oxford, Anne McElvoy, suggested last month that for Maxwell, Epstein «became the center of her life and the vortex» when her own business ventures foundered.
A judge is set to rule on whether Maxwell, currently being held in a federal prison in Brooklyn, can be released on bail. Maxwell wants to be freed on a $5 million bond as she awaits trial, subject to home confinement, and electronic monitoring. SDNY's prosecutors argue her money – including in Switzerland – and reclusiveness makes her an «extraordinary» flight risk.
