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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
National
Megan Sheets ,Sravasti Dasgupta,Arpan Rai and Eleanor Sly

Ghislaine Maxwell trial verdict – live: ‘Disappointed’ defence vows to appeal after socialite found guilty

REUTERS
Watch live reaction outside court after Ghislaine Maxwell found guilty of five sex trafficking charges

Ghislaine Maxwell has been found guilty of five federal sex trafficking charges after six days of deliberation.

Jurors considered six charges against Ms Maxwell, who is accused of recruiting and grooming teenage girls for convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein to abuse.

She pleaded not guilty to all charges and said she is being made a scapegoat for Epstein’s acts after he died in 2019 while awaiting his own trial.

After about 40 hours of deliberation, the jury found her guilty of five charges:

  • Count 1: Conspiracy to entice a minor to travel to engage in illegal sex acts - maximum sentence of five years
  • Count 3: Conspiracy to transport a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity - maximum sentence of five years
  • Count 4: Transporting a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity - maximum sentence of 10 years
  • Count 5: Conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of minors - maximum sentence of five years
  • Count 6: Sex trafficking of minors - maximum sentence of 40 years

She was found not guilty of the sixth, for enticing a minor to travel to engage in illegal sex acts.

If ordered to serve all five sentences consecutively, Ms Maxwell could spend the next 65 years behind bars.

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