Victims hail ‘a great day for justice’
‘Brutal, ruthless behaviour’ ‘Hopefully just the beginning’
One of Jeffrey epstein’s victims yesterday declared his sex trafficking ring had finally been ‘taken down’.
Jennifer Araoz, who claims the financier raped her when she was 15, described Ghislaine Maxwell as ‘the centre of that ring’.
she said epstein’s victims could ‘take a breath of relief’ following Maxwell’s dramatic arrest, adding: ‘i know that i can’t be hurt any more.’
Miss Araoz claims one of epstein’s recruiters picked her up outside her school in new york in 2001 when she was just 14. they persuaded her to come to epstein’s £65million mansion, where he later raped her.
she said yesterday: ‘My fellow epstein survivors and i are able to take a breath of relief, as Maxwell’s arrest means some justice for survivors can exist.
‘for years i feared epstein and his ring. Maxwell was the centre of that sex trafficking ring. now that the ring has been taken down, i know that i can’t be hurt any more.
‘Day after day, i have waited for the news that Maxwell would be arrested and held accountable for her actions.
Her arrest is a step in that direction, and it truly means that the justice system didn’t forget about us.’
Among those who welcomed the news was lawyer David Boies, whose clients include prince Andrew’s accuser Virginia roberts. the 36-year-old says she was forced to have sex with the Duke of york three times when she was just 17.
Mr Boies, who also represents epstein victims sarah ransome, Juliette Bryant, teresa Helm and sisters Maria and Annie farmer, said: ‘this is a great day for justice. Jeffrey epstein did not and could not have acted alone.
‘Our clients are very pleased, and very grateful, to the prosecutors that this important step has been taken towards bringing Jeffrey epstein’s co-conspirators to justice.’
Gloria Allred, who represents 16 of epstein’s victims, said: ‘i hope that finally [Maxwell] will be accountable if the evidence presented in court proves beyond a reasonable doubt that she had a role in assisting and recruiting young girls to be sex trafficked and sexually victimized.’
Lisa Bloom, who represents five epstein victims, said: ‘Maxwell’s brutal, ruthless behaviour caused my client tremendous pain.
‘We applaud her long overdue arrest today. All others accused of enabling Jeffrey epstein’s predations must immediately be brought to justice as well.’ spencer Kuvin, who represents six epstein victims, sounded a note of caution. ‘We are very happy that the attorney’s office has decided to move forward on this arrest, which is hopefully just the beginning,’ he said.
‘We’re hopeful that there will continue to be additional arrests with respect to other co-conspirators.’ However, he added some victims ‘are very skeptical because there have been arrests in the past and the Us government has not followed through’.
epstein struck a deal with officials in 2009 which saw him admit soliciting a minor for prostitution but receive just 18 months in jail. He was rearrested last year but killed himself in prison while awaiting trial for sex trafficking.
His victims – feared to number in the hundreds – include British former playboy model Anouska de Georgiou, who says she was groomed as a child by epstein after meeting him in London in the 1990s.
‘When Jeffrey would see me he would physically shake because he wanted to get at me,’ she recounted last year, telling Us tV network nBC: ‘if you’re a young person walking into a mansion... and all the people who are present are acting as though this is OK and you’re the only one who thinks it’s weird, it’s hard to say something.’