US House staff visited Ghislaine Maxwell's Texas prison amid claims of preferential treatment and allegations of misconduct. Lawmakers expressed concerns over the Bureau of Prisons' lack of transparency during the visit.
Key points
US House staff visited Ghislaine Maxwell's prison in Texas
Concerns about preferential treatment and misconduct allegations
Lawmakers reported uncooperative responses from prison staff
Investigation led by Democratic representatives Robert Garcia and Jamie Raskin
Mentioned in this story
Ghislaine MaxwellJeffrey EpsteinBureau of PrisonsRobert GarciaJamie Raskin
Staff from the House oversight and judiciary committees visited the Texas prison where Ghislaine Maxwell, the longtime associate of Jeffrey Epstein, is serving her sentence, according to Democratic lawmakers.
In a statement, Robert Garcia and Jamie Raskin, Democratic representatives, said staff from the committees traveled to the minimum security federal prison camp in Bryan, Texas, on Tuesday to seek answers about Maxwell’s transfer there, and about allegations that she has received preferential treatment at the prison camp.
According to the Democratic lawmakers, prison staff provided the committee staff with “an extensive tour of the grounds and programming of the facility”.
However, the lawmakers claimed that the “Bureau of Prisons leadership repeatedly shut down our lines of questioning or could not provide basic information about our central concerns, including Ms. Maxwell’s extraordinary treatment, allegations of sexual assault at the facility, and retaliation against inmates who tried to blow the whistle.”
“We also have serious concerns about the accuracy and veracity of information received by our investigative staff” the lawmakers said, adding that their investigation would continue.
The Bureau of Prisons (BOP) did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Maxwell is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for her role in Epstein’s sex trafficking scheme. Last summer, she was transferred from a federal prison in Florida to the minimum security Bryan prison camp, which houses around 635 female inmates.
The move came around a week after Maxwell was interviewed by then-deputy attorney general, Todd Blanche, about the Epstein case. The interview occurred amid mounting political and public pressure on the Trump administration for more transparency around the Epstein case and to release more records related to the late convicted sex offender.
Q&A
What prompted the US House staff to visit Ghislaine Maxwell's prison?
The visit was prompted by allegations of Maxwell receiving preferential treatment and concerns about her transfer to the minimum security facility.
What did the lawmakers discover during their visit to the prison?
Lawmakers received a tour of the facility but reported that prison staff were uncooperative regarding questions about Maxwell's treatment and other serious allegations.
Who are the Democratic representatives involved in the investigation of Maxwell's treatment?
The investigation is led by Democratic representatives Robert Garcia and Jamie Raskin.
What are the main concerns raised by the lawmakers regarding the prison conditions?
Lawmakers raised concerns about Maxwell's extraordinary treatment, allegations of sexual assault at the facility, and retaliation against whistleblowing inmates.
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Maxwell’s transfer sparked backlash, especially from Democrats who noted that convicted sex offenders are generally placed by the BOP in low security prisons, such as the Florida prison where Maxwell had previously been held, rather than minimum-security facilities.
Speaking to CNN this week, Garcia said that the prison’s warden told the committee staff during the visit on Tuesday that Maxwell is the “only of the 600 plus women that are there, she is the only convicted sex offender at that facility, and he could not answer and does not know why she was actually moved there.”
Garcia also said that the staff were not granted access to Maxwell during the visit.
“Uniformly, by the way, all the staff came back with the same conclusion, which is that this is a park-like campus, and Ghislaine Maxwell should not be there” he added.
Blanche has defended the transfer, arguing that it was necessary for Maxwell’s safety, citing threats against her.
The congressional visit this week follows a November letter Raskin sent to Donald Trump, in which he said that the judiciary committee had received information from a whistleblower alleging that Maxwell had been receiving favorable treatment at the Texas facility.
In the letter, Raskin asked the president whether he had directed Blanche or “anyone else in your Administration to provide Ms. Maxwell with the transfer to the prison camp, favorable and preferential treatment in prison, or special accommodations for her communications and interaction with her family and the outside world”, among other questions.
Among the allegations were claims that Maxwell received custom-prepared meals, that her guests were permitted to bring computers, and that she had access to a puppy and more.
At the time, the Bureau of Prisons said in a statement that “allegations of misconduct, including any suggestion of preferential treatment, are taken seriously and thoroughly investigated” through internal processes. It added that violations of this policy can result in disciplinary action that can include firing and prosecution.
The BOP’s standards of employee conduct “explicitly prohibits all staff from providing preferential treatment to any inmate”, the agency said.
In January, Raskin and Garcia sent another letter, this time to then-attorney general Pam Bondi, calling on her to allow them to visit the Texas prison camp and to interview the warden.
In the letter, they said more than a dozen whistleblowers had come forward with accounts of Maxwell’s treatment and other alleged incidents at the facility.
The lawmakers said that among the allegations were claims that Maxwell had been allowed to use a laptop without supervision, that she was able to keep more personal and legal possessions than other inmates, that she is provided bottled water while other inmates drank tap water, and that she has been granted access to staff-only areas to watch television alone.
Maxwell’s lawyer, David O Markus, in January rejected the allegations that Maxwell was receiving preferential treatment.
In a statement to the New York Times, he said that “the rule of law matters most when it protects the least popular defendant” adding that “humane treatment isn’t special treatment, and political prison tours don’t move the country forward.”
