Ghislaine Maxwell’s life may be in jeopardy behind bars after she allegedly shared new information about Jeffrey Epstein with the U.S. Department of Justice, according to one of the top reporters who first exposed the sex trafficking scandal.
Julie K. Brown, the Miami Herald journalist whose 2018 reporting helped bring Epstein and Maxwell to justice, warned that the 63-year-old British socialite is in imminent danger inside the Federal Correctional Institute in Tallahassee, Florida.
Maxwell could soon meet the same end as her former lover and boss, Epstein.
“It is so easy to cover up a crime in jail,” Brown said on the Daily Beast podcast. “The cameras are broken, guards fall asleep — they are, for the most part, very corrupt.”
Brown said Maxwell could be at risk after agreeing to speak to the Department of Justice and cooperate with investigators looking for answers in Epstein’s client list and mysterious death.
“Yes, it’s possible,” he explained. “But she wouldn’t necessarily be safe anywhere.”
Maxwell recently met with former Trump lawyer Todd Blanche, who now serves as Deputy Attorney General of the United States. Her decision to cooperate with federal investigators has put a target on her back.
The concerns echo the circumstances surrounding Epstein’s mysterious death in August 2019, when he was found dead in his cell at the Metropolitan Correctional Centre in Manhattan. While the Justice Department insisted this month that Epstein died by suicide, serious questions remain about the suspicious circumstances.
“Look at Epstein,” Brown told podcast host Joanna Coles. “He was probably one of the most high-profile prisoners that we’ve ever had, and he still was managed to be found dead. Anything’s possible.”
Recently released surveillance footage from inside the jail that officials promised would provide “full raw” coverage was missing three crucial minutes. The DOJ also acknowledged multiple protocol failures, including Epstein being left unattended, security cameras being broken, and guards neglecting their rounds during the incident.
Former Daily Beast editor-in-chief Tina Brown revealed that an FBI source had ominously warned just after Epstein’s 2019 arrest: “Epstein will never make it to trial. There are towels on the inside.”
Maxwell’s safety concerns have existed since her 2020 arrest. A November 2023 report by the Justice Department’s Inspector General found that the Tallahassee prison where Maxwell is serving her 20-year sentence suffers from significant security problems, including “weaknesses with inmate search procedures and limited security camera coverage.”
Two people were found dead at the facility last year—one federal inmate and another at the adjacent detention center—with no causes of death released to the public.
Maxwell has already faced threats while behind bars. According to reports, two inmates discovered that Maxwell had received extra food from a kitchen worker to maintain her vegan diet. The inmates, known as “Las Cubanas” due to their Cuban heritage, allegedly threatened her unless she gave them her entire $360 monthly commissary allowance.
Maxwell reported the pair to prison authorities, and they were placed in solitary confinement for nearly 50 days. Upon their release, Maxwell became so paranoid about retaliation that she stopped using the showers, according to reports.
“It is the mission of the [Bureau of Prisons] to operate facilities that are safe, secure, and humane,” A Bureau of Prisons spokesperson said. “We take seriously our duty to protect the individuals entrusted in our custody, as well as maintaining the safety of our employees and the community.”
Brown also suggested that Maxwell could face pressure to clear President Donald Trump’s name if she wants to secure a reduced sentence or early release.
“My guess is they’re going to try to find something, because this story isn’t going away for Trump,” Brown said. “So my guess is they’re going to try to figure out some way to have her make public a statement of some sort that Trump wasn’t involved.”
Meanwhile, Maxwell is fighting her legal battles on multiple fronts. The House Oversight Committee, led by GOP Chairman James Comer, subpoenaed her to testify from prison about Epstein’s crimes and his mysterious client list, with a deposition scheduled for August 11.
Maxwell’s attorneys responded by requesting immunity in exchange for her testimony, saying she “would be willing — and eager — to testify openly and honestly, in public, before Congress” if immunity were granted. However, an Oversight Committee spokesperson told Fox News that the committee “will not consider granting congressional immunity for her testimony.”
Maxwell’s legal team also requested questions in advance and asked to delay the deposition until after the Supreme Court rules on her latest appeal. On Monday, her attorneys petitioned the High Court to overturn her December 2021 conviction for grooming minors for Epstein and his client’s sexual abuse.