Ghislaine Maxwell Plans To Plead The Fifth In Epstein Probe
In a move that instantly raised alarm bells across Washington and fueled long-simmering suspicions of a politically engineered cover-up, Ghislaine Maxwell has formally notified the House Oversight Committee that she will invoke her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination in the congressional probe into Jeffrey Epstein and the Justice Department’s handling of the case.
According to the statement delivered through her lawyers late last week, Maxwell will be invoking her Fifth Amendment right if called by prosecutors, effectively collapsing lawmakers’ plans to question the convicted sex trafficker about one of the most explosive scandals in modern political history.
While not unexpected, the announcement has drawn intense scrutiny due to the circumstances surrounding Maxwell’s upgraded incarceration conditions, circumstances critics say were designed to ensure exactly this outcome. After years of speculation that the Trump administration sought to shield powerful allies and associates named in the Epstein orbit, Maxwell’s stonewalling is now being widely interpreted as the final, predictable step in a cover-up plan that began long before she ever reached a courtroom.
According to a special report from Politico, Maxwell’s legal team informed House Oversight Chairman James Comer on Friday that she would refuse to answer every question presented to her after they declined to meet her demands in exchange for her testimony. Comer acknowledged that the committee had little recourse, admitting it would be “a waste of taxpayer dollars” to send staff to Texas to interview a witness prepared only to plead the Fifth.
“Her lawyers have replied that she’s not going to answer any questions,” Comer said. “She’s only going to plead the Fifth. I mean, I could spend a bunch of taxpayer dollars to send staff and members down there, and if she’s going to plead the Fifth, I don’t know that that’s a good investment.”
Maxwell had previously attempted to negotiate conditions for her cooperation, requesting immunity and advance access to all committee questions—terms Comer called entirely unacceptable. She also insisted she would not testify until all appeals of her 2021 conviction were resolved, a position rendered uncertain after the Supreme Court declined to review her case earlier this year.
With Maxwell’s refusal now formalized, the committee’s plans to question her about Epstein’s network, political relationships, and possible intelligence ties are effectively dead in the water.
But the heart of the controversy lies not just in Maxwell’s refusal to testify—rather, in what many believe enabled it.
In July, Maxwell was interviewed over two days by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche. Days later, she was abruptly transferred to a minimum-security federal prison camp in Texas, an environment often criticized as extraordinarily lenient given the severity of her crimes. The women-only camp, described as “low-restriction” and “camp-like,” features recreational amenities and far fewer restrictions than typical federal prisons.
As NBC News reported earlier this month, Maxwell has told friends and relatives she is “much happier” in the new facility. A whistleblower recently informed House Judiciary Democrats that Maxwell is receiving unusually favorable treatment and is actively preparing a request for President Donald Trump to commute the remainder of her 20-year sentence; a decision he had repeatedly denied that he had been asked to do so, but said he would look into it with the DOJ.
The timing of these developments, combined with Maxwell’s strategic silence, has reignited accusations that her transfer and treatment were part of a calculated effort to keep her from cooperating with investigators. Critics argue that the Trump administration, already under scrutiny for its handling of Epstein’s death and the secretive management of Epstein-related files, created conditions that removed any incentive for Maxwell to talk.
The theory is simple: a comfortable prison stay in exchange for perpetual silence.
Maxwell’s decision to plead the Fifth now completes what many opponents describe as the Trump administration’s long-running strategy to secure Maxwell’s silence by offering bargaining pressures that typically push high-level offenders to cooperate.
With Maxwell now refusing to testify, the House Oversight Committee’s investigation faces a major setback, but Comer has vowed to continue efforts to interview others, including Bill and Hillary Clinton, but the witness with the most direct knowledge of Epstein’s modern operations has effectively taken herself off the board.
Meanwhile, Trump himself continues to face bipartisan pressure to release Epstein-related documents. Congress voted nearly unanimously last week to compel the DOJ to release the files. Trump, who changed course days before the vote to confirm the effort, signed the legislation last week, starting a 30-day window for the Justice Department to deliver the records. The administration subsequently filed a motion to unseal grand jury records—though the timing has only deepened suspicions that disclosure is being carefully managed, if not outright stalled.
SEE ALSO:
Democrats Demand Answers After Epstein Accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell’s Transfer
Epstein Survivors Speak Out, Trump Responds, Labels It A ‘Democrat Hoax’
Donald Trump Signs Bill To Release The Epstein Files
Ghislaine Maxwell Plans To Plead The Fifth In Epstein Probe was originally published on newsone.com
