Ghislaine Maxwell has been moved from a federal prison in Florida to a lower-security one in Texas much closer to her family.
She was moved after two days of talks with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche—Donald Trump’s former personal attorney—and a direct demand for a presidential pardon.
“We can confirm, Ghislaine Maxwell is in the custody of the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) at the Federal Prison Camp (FPC) Bryan in Bryan, Texas,” a spokesperson for the bureau of prisons said.
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The move was predicted on The Daily Beast Podcast on Monday by Julie K. Brown, the reporter who broke open the scandal.
She told podcast host Joanna Coles, “I think they’re gonna move her out of the prison that she’s in in Florida. I’m sure that there’s some concern or at least on her part of her safety because she’s, you know, she’s really in the news right now and she believes that Epstein was murdered. Whether you agree with that or not, I’m sure she has some safety concerns.”
The deal is a concession to Maxwell on two fronts.
The move places Maxwell, 63, who is serving a 20-year sentence for sex trafficking, in a minimum security facility—the lowest level of restriction in the federal system and a step down from the low-security prison she was previously in.
It also helps her family see her. Public records show that Maxwell’s sister Christine, 74, and her husband, Roger Malina, own an apartment in Dallas, just short of three hours drive from the federal detention center in Bryan, Texas—making it closer to them than her former prison camp in Tallahassee. Public records also suggest that Christine’s twin sister, Isabel, has also used the Texas apartment as a base, while maintaining an address in Sausalito, California.
The new prison is a dorm-style facility that houses other high-profile criminals, including Theranos fraudster Elizabeth Holmes and former The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star Jen Shah.
The prison features a study, a game room, and arts and crafts classes for inmates to take advantage of. Inmates also have access to technical courses and video calls with family.
Maxwell seems to be taking advantage of surging pressure on Trump to release new information in the Epstein case.
Trump has faced outcry—especially from his MAGA supporters—over the administration’s decision to end its investigation into the government’s Epstein files.
Maxwell’s interview with the Justice Department, which lasted eight hours and saw her discuss more than 100 people related to the case, was part of the Trump administration’s effort to quell the uproar.
Afterwards, Maxwell’s legal team made it clear that she is seeking a presidential pardon for her role in the underage sex crimes. Maxwell has also petitioned Congress to support her bid for clemency in exchange for testimony.
The White House and the Justice Department did not immediately return request for comment on Maxwell’s prison transfer.
Trump, for his part, has not ruled out pardoning Maxwell. Pressed about it by reporters last week, Trump said he hadn’t thought about a pardon but observed that it’s within his power.
Asked in July 2020 about the sex trafficking charges Maxwell was facing at the time, Trump said: “I wish her well.”
“I’ve met her numerous times over the years, especially since I lived in Palm Beach, and I guess they lived in Palm Beach,” he said. “But I wish her well, whatever it is.”
In the 1990s and early 2000s, Trump was a friend of Epstein’s and was photographed alongside both Maxwell and Epstein.
In 2024, the Daily Beast exclusively published audio tapes recorded in 2017 in which Epstein said that he was once Trump’s “closest friend.”
