Ghislaine Maxwell hires lawyer who helped bring notorious gangster El Chapo to justice

‘He will be talking to her about the benefits of becoming a cooperating witness,’ claims former colleague Jennifer Rodgers

Ghislaine Maxwell has hired the lawyer who helped prosecute “El Chapo“ to defend her against charges of child sex trafficking.

Last week, Ms Maxwell was charged with facilitating the sexual abuse of minors and was moved to a New York jail ahead of a bail hearing on Friday.

The British socialite has been accused of luring and grooming underage girls, so her former boyfriend and business associate, Jeffrey Epstein, could abuse them.

Last year, Epstein died in his cell after he was arrested for the sex trafficking of minors. His death was ruled a suicide by the medical examiner, but Epstein’s lawyers dispute the finding.

Recent court filings show that Maxwell, 58, has hired Christian Everdell, who is the former assistant US attorney for the Southern District of New York (SDNY AUSA), to represent her in court, according to the New York Post.

Mr Everdell and his team were awarded the True American Hero Award for their work in investigating and subsequently prosecuting the notorious former head of the Sinola Cartel, Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, in 2019.

Guzman is currently serving a sentence of life in prison, plus 30 years and must forfeit assets worth more than $12.6bn (£9.9bn), after he was convicted on charges of murder, money laundering and drug traffacking.

Jennifer Rodgers, who is a former colleague of Mr Everdell, suggested that he will try to get Ms Maxwell to turn over high profile names to get her a lenient sentence.

“Chris Everdell was a longtime SDNY AUSA (who I happened to supervise once upon a time). He will of course do what is in the best interests of his client,” she tweeted.

“But no doubt he will be talking to her about the benefits of becoming a cooperating witness.”

The 58-year-old will make her first appearance in federal court on Friday, for a bail hearing in Manhattan that will determine whether she will remain in custody during the trial.

Audrey Strauss, the acting US attorney in the Southern District of New York, filed a memo last week that argued that Ms Maxwell should be detained throughout the legal proceedings.

The attorney said that Ms Maxwell “poses an extreme risk of flight; that she will not be able to rebut the statutory presumption that no condition or combination of conditions will reasonably assure the appearance of the defendant as required.”

She added that “the court should therefore order her detained.”

Ms Maxwell could face up to 35 years in prison if she is convicted of the charges against her.