Ghislaine Maxwell Agrees to Unsealing of Names of 'John Does' Involved in 'Sex Trafficking Schemes'

© AP Photo / John MinchilloJeffrey Epstein Associate
Jeffrey Epstein Associate - Sputnik International, 1920, 18.01.2022
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Attorneys for Epstein sex abuse accuser Virginia Giuffre had earlier asked a judge to unseal material from an earlier civil lawsuit she filed against the tycoon’s “pimp”, Ghislaine Maxwell, claiming they contain “vast swathes of information” about their “sex trafficking operation”.
Jeffrey Epstein’s former “pimp”, Ghislaine Maxwell, is no longer fighting to keep secret the names of eight people featured in a settled civil lawsuit as having partaken in the duo’s sex trafficking schemes, according to court papers.
A lawyer for Maxwell stated in a letter to federal Judge Loretta Preska this week that the disgraced British socialite would no longer object to the unsealing of identities of the “John Does”.
Epstein “victim” Virginia Giuffre (nee Roberts) had been long seeking to reveal the names of several "John Does" who purportedly had sex with young women procured for them by Maxwell and the late billionaire pedophile. The individuals in question are all linked to a 2015 defamation case brought by Giuffre, who claimed Epstein, with Maxwell’s assistance, sexually abused her while she was a minor. The case was settled in 2017.
© AP Photo / Bebeto MatthewsIn this Aug. 27, 2019, photo, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, center, who says she was trafficked by sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, holds a news conference outside a Manhattan court where sexual assault claimants invited by a judge addressed a hearing following Epstein's jailhouse death in New York
In this Aug. 27, 2019, photo, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, center, who says she was trafficked by sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, holds a news conference outside a Manhattan court where sexual assault claimants invited by a judge addressed a hearing following Epstein's jailhouse death in New York - Sputnik International, 1920, 18.01.2022
In this Aug. 27, 2019, photo, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, center, who says she was trafficked by sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, holds a news conference outside a Manhattan court where sexual assault claimants invited by a judge addressed a hearing following Epstein's jailhouse death in New York
Previously, Maxwell, through her attorneys, had objected to the unsealing of the identities of the individuals known in court papers as "Does 17, 53, 54, 55, 56, 73, 93, and 151."
On 12 January Sigrid McCawley, an attorney for Giuffre, had filed a brief, inquiring about Maxwell’s previous objections on the issue, according to the Independent.

"[G]eneralised aversion to embarrassment and negativity that may come from being associated with Epstein and Maxwell is not enough to warrant continued sealing of information... Now that Maxwell’s criminal trial has come and gone, there is little reason to retain protection over the vast swaths of information about Epstein and Maxwell’s sex-trafficking operation that were originally filed under seal in this case."

Maxwell’s attorney Laura Menninger, in her letter to Judge Loretta Preska, said her client no longer wanted to pursue the objections.
"After careful review of the detailed objections submitted by Non-Party Does 17, 53, 54, 55, 73, 93 and 151, counsel for Ghislaine Maxwell writes to inform the Court that she does not wish to further address those objections," stated Menninger.
Furthermore, she added that seven of those eight individuals had already submitted objections through their own attorneys.
Maxwell, accordingly, “leaves it to this Court to conduct the appropriate review consistent with the Order and Protocol for Unsealing Decided Motions", concluded Menninger.
Now, New York federal court Judge Loretta Preska is to consider the arguments set forth by each of the anonymous "John Does", which have been made in court filings.
© REUTERS / HANDOUTAn undated photo shows Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.
An undated photo shows Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. - Sputnik International, 1920, 18.01.2022
An undated photo shows Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.
A review of court filings cited by MailOnline showed that six of the "John Does" have objected to making their identities public to avoid "annoyance and embarrassment".
There has not been any clarification if any one of the “John Does” is Prince Andrew.
In this Aug. 27, 2019, photo, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, center, who says she was trafficked by sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, holds a news conference outside a Manhattan court where sexual assault claimants invited by a judge addressed a hearing following Epstein's jailhouse death in New York - Sputnik International, 1920, 16.01.2022
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In August 2021 Virginia Giuffre filed a civil case in New York under the state's Child Victims Act alleging that the Duke of York sexually abused her when she was 17 in London, New York, and the US Virgin Islands. According to Giuffre, she was brought there by Jeffrey Epstein and his "madam" Ghislaine Maxwell. The prince has repeatedly denied the allegations.
The decision by Maxwell's legal team to drop the fight against the unsealing of names was taken on the same day that a federal judge denied Prince Andrew's attempt to dismiss the lawsuit from Giuffre.
Defense attorney Bobbi Sternheim speaks with Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell during her trial in a courtroom sketch in New York City, U.S., December 28, 2021. - Sputnik International, 1920, 14.01.2022
US Judge Sets Sentencing of Epstein Associate Ghislaine Maxwell for 28 June
60-year-old Ghislaine Maxwell, a former girlfriend of Jeffrey Epstein, was found guilty on 29 December of recruiting underage girls to be sexually abused by the late billionaire financier between 1994 and 2004 at his various properties. She is now facing sentencing on 28 June, with the prospect of spending up to 60 years in a US jail.
Jeffrey Epstein was arrested in 2019 on charges of organising the sex trafficking of underage girls. While denying all charges and awaiting trial, the tycoon was found dead in his New York federal jail cell in 2019, with his death being ruled a suicide.
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