Ghislaine Maxwell given paper clothes to wear in prison
Ghislaine Maxwell has been issued paper clothes upon checking into the Metropolitan Detention Centre in Brooklyn, New York, officials familiar with the matter have revealed.
While it is unclear whether Ms Maxwell has been placed on suicide watch, her personal clothes and sheets have been removed for fear she may harm herself.
Similar measures are standard procedure for high-profile inmates or new inmates, however it is believed the precautions go far beyond the precautions that were taken when they first arrested Ms Maxwell.
The Bureau of Prisons has declined to comment.
Ms Maxwell, 58, was charged by the Southern District of New York with conspiring to entice minors to travel to engage in illegal sex acts, perjury and other offences.
From at least 1994 to 1997, Maxwell assisted, facilitated and contributed to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged abuse of minor girls, according to the six-count charge sheet.
The concern for Ms Maxwell comes in part because Epstein, 66, killed himself in a federal jail in Manhattan last summer while in custody on sex trafficking charges.
The Bureau of Prisons has been the subject of intense scrutiny and conspiracy theories since then, with staff shake-ups and leadership changes.
Attorney-General William Barr, said to have been ‘livid’ at the time, believes Epstein’s death was the result of the “perfect storm of screw-ups”.
Ms Maxwell’s cell is over the Brooklyn Bridge from where Epstein was held.
The other protocols put in place for Ms Maxwell’s confinement include ensuring that she has a roommate in her cell, is monitored and making sure someone is always with her while she is behind bars, the official said.
Maxwell, the daughter of the late British publishing magnate Robert Maxwell, was the former girlfriend and long-time close associate of Epstein.
Several Epstein victims have described Maxwell as his chief enabler, recruiting and grooming young girls for abuse. She has denied wrongdoing and called claims against her “absolute rubbish”.
-with agencies
Publisher testifies on Trump affair story deal
Conviction overturned in landmark case
Grand jury indicts 18 in fake elector scheme
