NEW YORK (AP) — A prosecutor says Ghislaine Maxwell and the late Jeffrey Epstein were partners in crime in the sexual abuse of teenage girls.
The statement was made during the first day of Maxwell's sex trafficking trial. She is charged with six counts of conspiracy and sex trafficking charges.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Lara Pomerantz alleged that Maxwell recruited and groomed girls for Epstein to abuse from 1994 to 2004.
Defense lawyer Bobbi Sternheim countered in an opening statement, saying Maxwell was being made a scapegoat after Epstein killed himself in jail two years ago.
Maxwell used to date Epstein and has been jailed in Brooklyn since her arrest last year.
She says she is innocent.
The British socialite faces up to 70 years in prison if she's convicted on all counts.
The trial is expected to last six weeks.
