Sunday 26 June 2022 01:27 AM Ghislaine Maxwell's brother Ian defends the convicted sex trafficker's 'clear ... trends now

Ghislaine Maxwell's brother has defended the convicted sex trafficker's 'clear conscience' and claims she 'never would have been found guilty in any civilised country' ahead of her sentencing.

Ian Maxwell says his 60-year-old sister has been wronged by the US justice system and is set to spend decades behind bars because of 'unsubstantiated allegations'.

Writing in the Telegraph, the businessman also bemoaned that the British socialite had not fled to France before being taken into custody by the US authorities following their investigation into her relationship with paedophile Jeffery Epstein.

France has no extradition treaty with the US, meaning she 'could now be cooling her heels in the Med' instead of languishing in New York's Metropolitan Detention Center, he wrote. 

The 66-year-old said he believes that his sister decided to stay because she has a 'clear conscience'.

He wrote: 'I believe her when she says that she has committed no crime whatsoever and, apart from the fact that I believe her because I know her so well, the fact of her staying convinces me even more.'

Ghislaine is facing a 55-year prison sentence after being convicted of five federal sex-trafficking charges relating to her role in recruiting and grooming teenage girls to be sexually abused by Epstein, who took his own life while in prison in 2019. 

Some of her victims will face her in court in New York on Tuesday, while several have also written emotional victim impact statements which will be read out at the hearing.

Mr Maxwell said his sister had been the victim of 'unsubstantiated allegations' and that her family will be 'throwing all our efforts behind appealing her sentence'.

He wrote: 'I feel great sympathy for any girls or women who have genuinely been abused but

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