An image of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell arm-in-arm at the Queen's log cabin on the royal estate in Balmoral been released as evidence in the socialite's sex-trafficking trial.
The photo, believed to have been taken more than two decades ago, shows Epstein and Maxwell lounging on a bench on the deck of the cabin in the Scottish Highlands.Epstein's arm is outstretched on the bench behind Maxwell, who has one of her hands draped across his legs.
A separate photo shows the Queen in the exact same spot with a plate balanced on her knee, and a red-coloured beverage with a slice of lemon nearby. It had previously been reported by the Daily Mail that the Queen's son, Prince Andrew, took the pair to Balmoral in 1999 along with an entourage which included young women.
The picture of Epstein and Maxwell at the Queen's cabin was released among a cache of photographs shared with the jury at Maxwell's trial in New York yesterday. Maxwell is facing charges of sex-trafficking minors between 1994 and 2004 and flying them to Epstein's Palm Beach mansion.
Some of the abuses are also alleged to have occurred at his Manhattan townhouse, a ranch in New Mexico, an apartment in Paris, and on his estate in the Virgin Islands.
The prosecutors were using the photos to demonstrate the length and intimacy of her relationship with the late pedophile. Prosecutors told the court that the pair were a couple for a time and that their relationship later amounted to being close friends. Maxwell was the "lady of the house" at Epstein's Palm Beach mansion, a house manager testified in the trial, and ran his private residences like "five star hotels."
The other images show Maxwell giving Epstein foot massages onboard his private jet, dubbed the "Lolita Express", and in affectionate embraces on trips around the world. The photos were found on CDs taken from a 2019 FBI raid on Epstein's Manhattan townhouse.
Maxwell has pleaded not guilty to all charges. Epstein was arrested in July 2019 and died by suicide in his jail cell a month later while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges.
