By New York Post. Jeffrey Epstein’s longtime housekeeper on Thursday testified that Ghislaine Maxwell was the “lady of the house” at the powerful pedophile’s Florida mansion — and that countless young women hung out there, including two who appeared to be minors.

Juan Alessi dished about working for the late financier in Palm Beach for more than a decade, telling a Manhattan jury he saw “many, many, many females” in their 20s socializing with Epstein and Maxwell, usually topless.

Alessi recalled seeing two girls who appeared to be minors over the course of his employment, which ended in 2002. He identified one of the two as “Jane,” — a Maxwell accuser who testified earlier this week — describing her as a “striking, beautiful” girl who looked to be around 14 or 15.

The other minor, Alessi said, was Virginia Roberts Giuffre, who has accused both Epstein and Maxwell of sex-trafficking her when she was a teenager.

Alessi described how Maxwell first met Giuffre in the parking lot of Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort, where she ordered him to stop the car so she could hop out to talk to the young blonde. (Read more from “Epstein’s Former Housekeeper: Ghislaine Maxwell Was ‘Lady of the House’” HERE)

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Jeffrey Epstein’s Little Black Book Makes Its Courtroom Debut

By Slate. On day four of the Ghislaine Maxwell trial, government exhibit 52 made its much anticipated debut. This is Jeffrey Epstein’s “little black book”—the telephone directory containing names and numbers for a huge roster of Epstein’s wealthy and powerful friends, and also, presumably, some of the people who’ve accused him of crimes.

The book was introduced as the prosecution’s witness Juan Alessi was on the stand. Alessi was the butler/driver/go-fer at Epstein’s Palm Beach house from around 1991 until 2002. He described the decadent atmosphere around the mansion, which he said was run “like a five-star hotel.” He was expected to keep wads of hundred dollar bills stocked in each of Epstein’s cars at all times. He said there were many women who hung around Epstein’s pool, and that they were topless “75-80 percent of the time.” He said Maxwell, who he called the “lady of the house,” took many photos of these topless women, and displayed them in frames on her desk there. He also said it was obvious that Maxwell was in charge of running the household. And she slept in Epstein’s bedroom, with Epstein. . .

A lot of these details were vital to the prosecution’s case. But for the story beyond the story—the curiosity around Jeffrey Epstein, how he got his wealth, what he knew about his famous friends—the little black book was the real object of interest. A prosecutor took it out of its own dedicated accordion file, handed it around for the defense team and judge to inspect, and then brought it up to Alessi on the witness stand. He identified it as the kind of address book that would be at Epstein’s house, and he said he recognized many of the entries.

Before the start of the trial, NPR reported that prosecutors say the information in the book “will help establish who and what Maxwell knew—including ‘an inference that the defendant knew that at least some of these individuals were minors.’” But we got no juicy details from the little black book today. No boldface names. It’s possible we never will. The prosecution seems to want to put a heavily redacted version of it into evidence. There were long sidebar arguments about what could be admitted, and why. As the lawyers jawed at each other, Alessi, still on the stand, just casually flipped through the book’s pages, perusing them with interest. (Read more from “Jeffrey Epstein’s Little Black Book Makes Its Courtroom Debut” HERE)

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By Daily Beast. They were young girls who dreamed of becoming professional musicians, or models, or actresses—but they often came from poor families and their parents needed money. They were the perfect targets for a pair of high-society “predators” who dazzled them with fabulous wealth and promised them the world—and who then allegedly groomed, molested, and raped them.

Such was the story presented by federal prosecutors on the first day of Ghislaine Maxwell’s trial in connection to multimillionaire Jeffrey Epstein’s sex-trafficking ring. . .

The jury will hear from Epstein’s pilots, household staff, members of law enforcement, and a former employee of the multimillionaire. Evidence in the trial will include “a schoolgirl outfit,” flight logs, and FedEx records showing Epstein’s gifts to a girl who was only 15 years old. . .

Prosecutors called Maxwell Epstein’s “best friend and right hand” in court on Monday. “She preyed on vulnerable young girls, manipulated them, and served them up to be abused… That is what this trial is all about,” said Assistant U.S. Attorney Lara Pomerantz. She claimed Maxwell was drawn to Epstein’s life of luxury, which included sumptuous private homes in New Mexico, New York, and Paris, a private island, private planes, and astounding wealth. (Read more from “Schoolgirl Outfits, Gifts to Teens, Sex Abuse ‘Every Day’: Feds Slam Ghislaine Maxwell on 1st Day of Trial” HERE)

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Prosecutor Tells Jury Ghislaine Maxwell Groomed Minors for Epstein’s Sexual Abuse

By NBC News. The much-anticipated trial of Ghislaine Maxwell got underway Monday in New York City with a prosecutor and defense attorney painting conflicting portraits of the accused enabler of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Assistant United States Attorney Lara Pomerantz, who gave the federal prosecutors’ opening statement, said Maxwell identified and targeted vulnerable young women and then “served them up” to Epstein.

“She put them at ease and made them feel safe, all so that they could be sexually abused by a middle-aged man,” Pomerantz said. “There were times when she was in the room when it happened.”

Maxwell was no mere Epstein employee, Pomerantz said. She was “the lady of the house” who made sure that what happened behind closed doors stayed behind closed doors. And she and Epstein “had a playbook.”

“First they got access to young girls,” the prosecutor said. “Then they gained their trust.” (Read more from “Prosecutor Tells Jury Ghislaine Maxwell Groomed Minors for Epstein’s Sexual Abuse” HERE)

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Ghislaine Maxwell’s Lawyer Reveals Defense Strategy: The Bible, ‘Manipulated’ Victims and a ‘Scapegoat’

By New York Post. Ghislaine Maxwell’s defense attorneys on Monday portrayed her as a scapegoat being accused because of “the bad behavior of men,” — one in particular — since prosecutors never had a chance to put late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein on trial.

Her lawyer, Bobbi Sternheim, invoked the Bible at the start of her opening statement, arguing that women have been condemned for crimes committed by men since the beginning of time.

“Ever since Eve was accused of tempting Adam with the apple,” said Sternheim. “Women have been blamed for the bad behavior of men.”

“Ghislaine is on trial here and you heard about the conduct of Jeffrey Epstein. She is filling that hole. And filling an empty chair,” said Sternheim, adding that her client was a “convenient stand-in” for the dead sex offender.

Sternheim also took aim at the four alleged victims in the case, claiming they had been taken advantage of by aggressive civil defense attorneys and, in some cases, are searching for a payday. (Read more from “Ghislaine Maxwell’s Lawyer Reveals Defense Strategy: The Bible, ‘Manipulated’ Victims and a ‘Scapegoat’” HERE)

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