Newly released emails from Jeffrey Epstein’s account show Ghislaine Maxwell discussing plea negotiations, fertility arrangements and a list of gifts tied to teenage girls who later accused Epstein and Maxwell of sexual abuse, according to reporting based on a tranche of messages obtained by Bloomberg.
The exchanges include a May 2008 message in which Epstein asked Maxwell, in his characteristically error-filled style, whether he should plead to "lewd and lscivious conduct" or "procuring minors for prostituion." Maxwell, writing from her gmax@ account, replied: "I suppose Lewd and lecivious conduct..I would prefer lewd and lescivious conduct w/a prositute if possible." A month after that exchange, Epstein pleaded guilty to procurement of minors for prostitution in Florida in a plea deal widely criticized by victims and prosecutors.
The emails, part of a larger set Bloomberg said it has obtained, also include what the outlet described as a spreadsheet initialed by Maxwell listing nearly 2,000 gifts, including lingerie and chocolates, some designated for teenage girls who later filed complaints alleging sexual abuse. The messages further show the pair discussing fertility treatment; a 2005 exchange referred to a sperm donation and contained instructions that Epstein could "do the sample at home" and that the sample needed to be produced "within 90 mins of my procedure."
Other passages published from the cache include crude, demeaning descriptions of women and girls. In one message, Epstein rejected a woman as "fat and Asian," and in others he evaluated candidates for sexual encounters in blunt terms. The emails also touch on logistical and personal matters unrelated to the criminal allegations, including a discussion about transporting a 40-pound tortoise to Epstein’s private Caribbean island, Little St James — a property that some accusers have described as the site of abuse.
Maxwell has repeatedly asserted that she was Epstein’s onetime girlfriend turned property manager and that she did not know about the sexual crimes he committed. She is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence after a U.S. jury convicted her of helping to recruit and groom underage girls for Epstein. Epstein died in a Manhattan jail cell in August 2019 while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges.
Victims who have publicly described abuse on Little St James include Virginia Roberts Giuffre, who has alleged she was forced to have sex with Prince Andrew when she was 17; the duke has denied the claim. When Giuffre first named Maxwell as an alleged accomplice, documents show Maxwell circulated defenses disputing her credibility, according to reporting based on the emails.
Bloomberg said the cache contains roughly 18,000 emails from Epstein’s account. Media outlets reviewing portions of those files have published material that adds detail to previously reported interactions between Epstein and Maxwell and to the question of Maxwell’s role in his network.
The newly disclosed messages provide further documentary material that contrasts with Maxwell’s statements to investigators and with public assertions that she was unaware of Epstein’s sexual activities. Lawyers for Maxwell and representatives for parties who have reviewed the emails did not immediately offer comment to reporters at the time of publication of the reports.
The release of the messages adds to a body of public records and court filings that have been mined by journalists and researchers since Epstein’s arrest in 2019 and his subsequent death. Prosecutors, victims and civil litigants have used documents produced in litigation and discovery to build accounts of how Epstein operated and who may have assisted him; the latest tranche of emails is likely to be examined further as part of that ongoing scrutiny.