Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell, after answering questions for six hours on Thursday, is meeting for a second day on Friday with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche.
Maxwell is “hoping for another productive day” as she sits for another interview at the Tallahassee federal courthouse, her lawyer told ABC News on his way inside the federal courthouse in Tallahassee, Florida.
Blanche didn’t speak to reporters upon his arrival. On social media, Blanche said he would reveal what he learned from Maxwell “at the appropriate time.”
Attorney General Pam Bondi and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche look on as US President Donald Trump (not on frame) speaks during a news conference in the Brady Briefing Room of the White House on June 27, 2025, in Washington, DC.
Andrew Caballero-reynolds/AFP via Getty Images
Sources told ABC News that Maxwell initiated Thursday’s meeting with Blanche. Maxwell is currently appealing her 20-year prison sentence for child sex trafficking and other offenses in connection with Epstein, the deceased financier and convicted sex offender.
“We don’t want to get into the substance of the questions,” said Maxwell’s attorney, David O. Markus, about Thursday’s meeting. “There were a lot of questions and we went all day and she answered every one of them. She never said I’m not going to answer, never declined.”
It is almost unheard of for a convicted sex trafficker to meet with such a high-ranking Justice Department official, especially one who used to be the president’s top criminal defense attorney.
Annie Farmer, who testified against Maxwell at trial, questioned why Maxwell was granted a meeting with the deputy attorney general in the first place.
“It’s very disappointing that these things are happening behind closed doors without any input from the people that the government asked to come forward and speak against her in order to put her away,” Farmer said. “There were so many young girls and women that were harmed by her.”
Maxwell’s attorney said on Friday she’s been treated poorly for the last five years and is grateful to be able to meet with Blanche as she appeals her sex trafficking conviction and seeks to leave prison.
“If you looked up scapegoat in the dictionary, her picture would be next to the definition,” Markus said. “She’s keeping her spirits up as best she can.”
Blanche’s meetings with Maxwell comes as the Justice Department has tried to quiet calls from Senate Republicans to release more information about Epstein and his interaction with high-profile figures.
And it comes as questions swirl about Trump’s connections to Epstein and reports that his name appeared in the Epstein files.
The Wall Street Journal reports that Attorney General Pam Bondi told President Trump in May that his name was mentioned in the Epstein files multiple times, along with other high-profile people.
Trump has denied that account, and appearing in the files is not necessarily indicative of any wrongdoing.
“I want all the information out,” said Republican Sen. Josh Hawley from Missouri.
“Just put everything out, make it as transparent as you can,” echoed Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham from South Carolina.
The Justice Department said earlier this month that it planned to release no additional information despite an earlier commitment to do so.
