NEED TO KNOW
- During a meeting with freed American-Israeli hostages Keith Siegel and his wife Aviva, first lady Melania Trump was asked about Ghislaine Maxwell’s alleged prison treatment
- The question was posed in reference to the “special treatment” Maxwell is said to be receiving, per a whistleblower
- Trump didn’t answer the question and instead said the event was put in place to honor the Siegels
First lady Melania Trump was confronted about Ghislaine Maxwell’s alleged prison treatment in an awkward exchange during a press conference on Wednesday, Feb. 4.
Trump appeared at the news briefing with freed American-Israeli hostages Keith Siegel and his wife Aviva. Keith was released from Hamas captivity in Gaza a year ago, over 480 days after he was taken from his and Aviva’s Kibbutz Kfar Aza home during the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023. Aviva was also captured and released during a temporary cease-fire in November 2023, according to the Associated Press.
During Trump’s appearance with the Siegels on Wednesday, she was questioned about demands from Jeffrey Epstein’s survivors that Maxwell be moved to a high-security prison. Maxwell was convicted of sex trafficking in 2021 for her role in grooming victims for Epstein and is currently serving out her 20-year sentence in the low-security Federal Prison Camp (FPC) in Bryan, Texas.
“There’s a call from many Epstein survivors that Ghislaine Maxwell move to a high security prison. Do you know why that happened?” a reporter asked Trump.
“We are here celebrating the release and the life of these two incredible people, so let’s honor that,” she responded.
The calls for Maxwell’s relocation to a high-security prison come months after a whistleblower alleged that Maxwell has received special treatment behind bars, Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee said.
Lawmakers allege in a press release that prison staff are waiting on her “hand and foot.”
According to the whistleblower, one of Maxwell’s purported perks is having meals that were “customized and prepared by federal prison camp staff and then personally delivered to her in her cell by longtime federal employees.”
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Other allegations include Maxwell being allowed to go to recreation areas after hours and her visitors being given access to a “special cordoned off area for visitors to arrive, as well as an assortment of snacks and refreshments for her guests.”
In one instance, according to the whistleblower, an inmate who trains puppies was instructed to give one to Maxwell for a period of time so she could “play with the puppy, even though neither inmates nor staff are ordinarily allowed to pet the service dogs in training.”
Previously, NBC News and CBS News reported that Maxwell was seeking a commutation of her sentence from President Donald Trump.
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During her event with the Siegels, Melania said that a previous meeting with the couple is featured in her new documentary Melania.
“After Aviva was freed, she called me, wanted to see me and we set up a meeting in New York,” the first lady said as she sat between the Siegels in the White House’s Blue Room. “It was an emotional meeting, and it is captured on camera and available to see in my film, Melania.”
When asked by a reporter whether it was appropriate for her to use an official White House event to promote the reported $40 million Amazon MGM Studios documentary, she retorted, “This is not a promotion.”
“We are here celebrating the release of the hostages, of Aviva and Keith,” Melania continued. “They were in Washington, D.C., and they called me. They said they would like to come over to thank me and to give hugs, and that’s why we are here. It’s nothing to do with promotion.”
Melania is now in theaters.
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