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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Nicola Methven

Jeffrey Epstein survivor on how she 'checked out of her body' during 18-month long abuse

A survivor of paedophile Jeffrey Epstein and accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell says they ran a sex trafficking operation like a “factory”.

Juliette Bryant was 20 when she fell for Maxwell’s lies that the American billionaire would help her become a top model.

Instead, she was flown to his private island in the Caribbean as a sex slave.

Speaking for the first time about her ordeal, Juliette said: “He fed off the terror. There was something about the energy of a girl being scared that he liked.”

Recruited in her home nation of South Africa, she was flown to the island and describes seeing “at least” 60 girls there.

Juliette says she was “petrified” of Epstein and couldn’t turn him down because of the threats made against her.

She was often summoned to have sex with him up to three times a day.

In the third part of BBC documentary series House of Maxwell, she describes the sex trafficking operation as a “factory”. She claims it was being run for Epstein by Ghislaine, the British socialite and youngest daughter of disgraced media tycoon Robert Maxwell.

She said: “Ghislaine was running the girls and would tell us when we had to go to his bedroom. You couldn’t say no, there was just no option.

“You didn’t want to make them angry, it would have been very, very scary. No one even tried to stand up against them

Ghislaine and Jeffrey (DAILY MIRROR)
Bryant felt able to approach lawyers when Epstein was found dead (New York State Sex Offender Regi)

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“His bedroom was pitch dark and ice cold. I just checked out of my body and let him do what he wanted because I didn’t know what else to do. I tried to escape this room in my mind, tried to pretend it wasn’t happening.

“People ask why I went back. No one disobeyed Epstein. Before I was sent home he took me to his office and told me that a woman had accused him of rape and he’d planted drugs in her apartment and had her sent to prison. He said that he had my family’s name on a list.”

Ghislaine, found guilty of five sex trafficking charges in December, is awaiting sentencing and her lawyers have said work has already started on her appeal.

The film also showcases Prince Andrew’s extremely close friendship with both Ghislaine and Epstein.

  • House of Maxwell starts on BBC2 on April 4 with all episodes on iPlayer.

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