[Extra Details c/o Adam Klasfeld]

The government concluded the direct examination of the house manager, Juan Alessi, ended on Thursday. Cross-examination kicks off this morning.

Before Jury Enters

In pre-trial proceedings, the parties have been arguing about the admission of certain evidence — such as schoolgirl costumes found in Jeffrey Epstein's massage room and art sexualizing minors.

This is being debated now because the upcoming witnesses are expected to be Florida law enforcement. Alessi testified yesterday about remembering seeing two girls in Epstein's house who appeared to be minors: "Jane," who testified earlier this week. The other was Virginia Giuffre, whose civil suit against Maxwell helped spark her criminal prosecution.

Submitted into evidence:

Two photos of Virginia Giuffre, whose account of meeting Ghislaine Maxwell at Trump's Mar-a-Lago was recounted by Epstein's ex-house manager Juan Alessi yesterday: https://archive.md/T993z

Epstein's pilot had told jurors: "she didn't look young."

Alessi: "She looked young."

[Side note: Nobody appeared to interrogate this testimony by Epstein ex-pilot, Lawrence Visoski days ago. "[S]he didn't look young. I mean, wherever you decipher is the definition of 'young,' but she -- she was a woman in my category."]

"All rise."

Jury Enters

The witness is on the stand. Pagliuca's cross-examination begins for the defense.

He asks Alessi about testimony that Epstein and Maxwell both called him "John," not "Juan." Alessi agrees that everyone called him John, and he didn't take it as disrespectful. Alessi conceded at the end of direct examination that he stole $6,300 from Epstein, which he returned.

Pagliuca is rattling off what he describes as other alleged thefts.

Alessi replies: "That's not true."

Q: Do you remember telling him that stole money to pay for the girlfriend's immigration papers?

A: First of all, she was not my girlfriend [...] We were not involved.

Q: Is it true that you stole the money, to pay for the immigration papers?

A: Yes.

Alessi concedes that he testified on Sept. 8, 2009 that he stole from Epstein at least twice.

"I guess it was," he said.

Pagliuci moves for the admission of that testimony.

Q: You weren't poor when you went into Mr. Epstein's house in 2003, and you stole the money?

A: I wasn't poor but the money was sequestered because I was going through a divorce.

Pagliuca turns back to Alessi's testimony about Jane.

Q: Isn't it true that you met Jane in 1998 and 2000?

A: That's not true.

Maxwell's lawyer just said Jane's real name and was admonished by Judge Nathan. Pagliuca moves onto Alessi's testimony that Jane would see Epstein and Maxwell without her mother present.

Q: When Mr. Epstein was going to be in the residence, he wanted you and your wife there?

Only us. No contractors in the house.

Pagliuca asks whether he had to be there 24 hours a day on these occasions.

"Yes, it was slavery," Alessi says. Alessi starts to get testy as Pagliuca asks if Epstein liked to show off the Palm Beach property to famous visitors. "I don't know if he liked to show off that property," he snaps.

The dispute is over what he knew Epstein "liked" to do. Alessi says of Epstein: "He had very little contact with me in the later years." Pagliuca calls that inconsistent with his prior testimony that his direct supervisor was "Mr. Epstein."

"He would deal with me directly, and if he was not available, Ms. Maxwell." Pagliuca's questioning turns to the "Household Manual," which has this bullet point under "Grooming & Guest Relations": https://archive.md/E7G1S Part 1: https://archive.md/vRSbp Part 2: https://archive.md/SOqqF

"Remember that you see nothing, hear nothing, say nothing, except to answer a question directed at you. Respect their privacy."

Recess

Cross-examination resumes with questioning about Virginia Roberts (aka Virginia Giuffre).

Alessi testified that he met Virginia at Mar-a-Lago. Alessi says he doesn't know whether Ghislaine Maxwell went in for a treatment or not. Pagliuca says that he previously testified that Maxwell did. On the weather that day Alessi says he met Virginia Roberts at Mar-a-Lago:

Q: You recalled that it was very hot out.

A: I recalled that very much.

They are disputing whether he said the meeting happened in 2001 or 2002.

Pagliuca has been grilling Alessi as to whether his testimony about this encounter changed in subtle ways over the years, e.g. whether Maxwell got a treatment then.

Q: That's when Ms. Maxwell had her treatment, right?

A: I don't know what she had. I'd never seen the treatments.

Alessi on Epstein: "He never shared anything about his personal life with me."

"He never suggested, implied or tell me anything about it."

Alessi agreed after being asked on cross-examination that he said Epstein asked him to take down pictures of Maxwell when other women visited the house.

Q: Why did you think he told you to take her pictures down?

A: I had no idea, sir.

Pagliuca asks if a number of foreign people visited the house, including people with accents. Alessi agrees.

A: "English accents. French accents. Italian accents."

Q: Lots of different accents?

Alessi answers in the affirmative.

Pagliuca asks Alessi whether he ever arranged professional massages for Epstein at The Breakers at Palm Beach. After Pagliuca asks whether these arrangements made Alessi a sex trafficker, the prosecutor objects.

Sustained. (Context: Those massages in question were professional messages from a Palm Beach spa.)

Pagliuca asks whether he ever heard someone looking afraid, screaming or in distress. "No, sir. Never."

The lawyer asks if he ever saw any signs that anyone was hurt or injured during these massages. He replies no.

Pagliuca asks if anyone ever complained to him. "I wish they would have," he says, "because I would have done something to stop it." But the witness says no, nobody ever complained.

Q: When you were working for Mr. Epstein, you didn't have any doubt that the girls were provided for massages were not of proper age, correct?

Prosecutor: I'm going to object to form.

Judge: Sustained.

Asked whether he believed the people sent to perform sessions on Epstein were "of age," Alessi responds: "I believed so."

Cross examination concludes. No redirect. Alessi steps down.

The government calls their next witness: Gregory Parkinson, a crime scene investigator. "Good afternoon, Mr. Parkinson," AUSA says, a few minutes before noon. "Good afternoon," Parkinson replies, as the morning ends. Now retired, Parkinson worked as a crime scene manager with the Palm Beach Police Department.

The government introduces a map of Palm Beach with a red dot that the witness identifies as the El Brillo property. Parkinson gives jurors the lay of the land. Testimony turns to Parkinson's visit to Epstein's property, 358 El Brillo Way.

Parkinson describes his search of Epstein's Palm Beach property on Oct. 20, 2005. He says he went into the:

• Garden room, on the south side, passed into
• The Lake Room, which was like an office and a library, and also
• walked into the kitchen area.

Parkinson says that evidence was transferred to the FBI in 2006. Parkinson describes a photo submitted into evidence: Epstein's kitchen. Next photo: Another view of the same room.

1726GMT

Recess

1855GMT

The afternoon session begins:

Parkinson is viewing and being questioned about a video of a walk-through of Epstein's Palm Beach residence. Parkinson describes a photograph of Pope John Paul with Jeffrey Epstein.

Parkinson: "That is a picture of Fidel Castro with Jeffrey Epstein."

The video, which the press and public cannot see, turns to the second floor of Epstein's Palm Beach residence.

[Deleted a tweet with a generalized description of the photos and art that prosecutors said authorities found in Epstein's house. Instead, I'm sharing my colleague's story that has this in greater detail. https://archive.md/V4caF ]

The witness just concluded a viewing of the walkthrough video. The prosecutor instructs the witness to view three exhibits. AUSA is leading the witness through photographs, which are being openly displayed.

Witness on one of them: "This is a view from the garden room, standing at the [...] southeast, looking at the northwest." (Jurors are being asked to privately view another exhibit.)

2003GMT

Mid-afternoon recess.

Service advisory: Much of this testimony is visual, including of sealed exhibits that are not available to the press and public. Live-tweets will be sporadic.

Judge Nathan on the video: "I don't see why a public version can't be made," in redacted form, to protect the privacy of "a few individuals."

Maxwell's lawyer Bobbi Sternheim tells the judge that sealing the roughly 40-minute video conveys a public impression that the house was a "domicile of debauchery." Only a couple of images in the video were at issue, she said.

2055GMT

Court is back in session after a long recess. Jurors are examining various photographs of Epstein's residence. Some are sealed.

Epstein's actual green massage table was brought into the courtroom and shown to the jury.

A corresponding photograph of the sticker underneath it shows it was Made in the USA.

Cross-examination—Maxwell's counsel asks Parkinson of his knowledge of the defendant.

Q: You don't know who Ghislaine Maxwell is?

A: I do not.

Parkinson's testimony concludes, and the witness is excused.

Testifying now is Michael Dawson, who was one of the detectives who searched Epstein's residence. He said they were looking for the massage table, sex toys, correspondence and other materials. Dawson introduces a photograph of Epstein's sex toys into evidence. Brand name: The "Twin Torpedos."

Judge Nathan: "We're done for the night."

She is prompt about stopping proceedings at 5 p.m. (2200GMT). Noting this is their first weekend apart, the judge urges the jury not to discuss or research the case over the break.

Court Adjourned

Wish this was stickied. I'll be searching for your update Monday. Good shit.

[Summary from The Independent]

Before the jury was brought in this morning, pre-trial proceedings included whether certain evidence should be admitted.

This includes schoolgirl costumes found in the massage room and art sexualising minors. This follows Mr Alessi’s testimony on Thursday about his duties including cleaning the massage room after it was used, and finding sex toys there.

The defence counsel is cross-examining Epstein’s former housekeeper Juan Alessi, after his detailed description of life inside the Palm Beach mansion on Thursday.

He testified about remembering seeing two girls in Epstein’s house who appeared to be minors. The first, “Jane,” testified earlier this week including graphic descriptions of her abuse.

The second was Virginia Giuffre, whose civil suit against Ms Maxwell helped spark her criminal prosecution.

Entered into evidence are two photos of Ms Giuffre who Mr Alessi described as looking young. Epstein’s former pilot said on Monday that she was a “woman”.

Mr Alessi said on Thursday that Epstein and Ms Maxwell would call him John, not his actual name, Juan.

In cross-examination, he says that everyone called him John and he did not take offence.

On Thursday he admitted that he stole $6,300 from Epstein when his marriage was falling apart and he was struggling financially.

Ms Maxwell’s lawyer asks whether he actually stole money twice, which he admits that he did. Mr Alessi says he went back to the house and stole $5,600 from Epstein’s briefcase.

He testified in September 2009 that he stole twice from his employer.

The judge admonished defence counsel for saying “Jane”’s real name during questioning, leading to a sidebar and the name being struck from the record.

The questioning returns to the Palm Beach house.

Mr Alessi says that when Epstein was going to be in residence he only wanted him and his wife there — no contractors.

The former housekeeper describes the setup as “slavery”.

Asked if Epstein liked to show off the house to famous visitors, Mr Alessi snaps that he does not know what his former boss liked to do.

“He had very little contact with me in the later years,” says Mr Alessi, prompting an accusation that his testimony is inconsistent as he had previously said his direct supervisor was Epstein.

“He would deal with me directly, and if he was not available, Ms Maxwell.”

Mid-morning recess has been called.

Mr Alessi is now being questioned about Virginia Giuffre and meeting her at Mar-a-Lago, Donald Trump’s property in Palm Beach, per his testimony.

He confirms that he recalls it was a hot day but there is a dispute as to whether he said it happened in 2001 or 2002.

On Thursday he testified about seeing Ms Giuffre: “She looked young. She had blonde hair, and she had a long white uniform, like the nurses.”

Mr Alessi said that his former boss: “never shared anything about his personal life with me”.

“He never suggested, implied, or tell me anything about it.”

The former housekeeper also said that he was told to remove pictures of Ms Maxwell when other women vistied the house.

Mr Alessi said that his former boss: “never shared anything about his personal life with me”.

“He never suggested, implied, or tell me anything about it.”

The former housekeeper also said that he was told to remove pictures of Ms Maxwell when other women vistied the house.

As the cross-examination of MR Alessi drew to a close, he was asked if he ever heard someone screaming in distress or looking afraid.

“No, sir. Never.”

Asked if he ever saw any sign that someone was hurt or injured or any sign of violence in the massage room, he also replies that he did not.

Ms Maxwell’s attorney asks if anyone ever complained to him, to which he responds: “I wish they would have, because I would have done something to stop it.”

Asked if he believed those sent to perform massages on Epstein were “of age”, he said that he believed so.

Cross-examination concludes with no redirect.

New witness: Gregory Parkinson, crime scene investigator Assistant US Attorney Maurene Comey welcomes Gregory Parkinson, a crime scene investigator to the stand. Now retired, he once worked as a crime scene manager with the Palm Beach Police Department.

Mr Parkinson describes visiting Epstein’s property on 20 October 2005 on a report of a theft of currency. He met Epstein at the property and went into the garden room and the lake room, which was used as a study, and then into the kitchen area.

Court breaks for lunch recess

The Independent’s Bevan Hurley reports from the court in Lower Manhattan.

Juan Alessi provided some of the most colourful testimony of the trial so far. He was a combative witness who frequently clashed with defence attorney Jeffrey Pagliuca. Mr Pagliuca tried to point out numerous inconsistencies between Mr Alessi’s testimony in court and previous sworn statements he had made in depositions.

During the morning session, Judge Alison Nathan reminded counsel they were not to use the real name of the witness known as Jane. Shortly afterward, Mr Pagliuca said Jane’s real name and realising he had made a mistake, apologised.

Judge Nathan ordered that the mention be struck from the court record and admonished Mr Pagliuca. “You must carefully abide by my ruling,” she said, before calling both sets of lawyers into a sidebar.

Mr Pagliuca asked the witness about an order given by Epstein to remove all photos of Ms Maxwell before he entertained other female guests. Mr Alessi said it would have occurred about three or four times.

“You never told Ms Maxwell about removing the other pictures?” asked Mr Pagliuca. “It was a secret between you and Mr Epstein.” Mr Alessi became agitated in the witness box, replying: “It was not a secret, it was a mandate.” When asked again if it was a secret, Mr Alessi said: “He never shared any of his personal life with me… he never suggested, implied anything.”

He was then asked why he thought he was told to take the pictures down. “I have no idea.”

Images entered as exhibits in the trial of disgraced British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell have been released by the New York court at which the case is being heard.

In opening statements, Ms Maxwell’s defence team described her former partner and associate Jeffrey Epstein’s lifestyle as like that of James Bond, and many of the images released attest to that, showing lavish properties and a fleet of private aircraft.

Ms Maxwell is accused of sex trafficking and grooming underage girls to be abused by the late disgraced billionaire financier Epstein. She is also accused of directly participating in the abuse.

Ms Maxwell has pleaded not guilty to eight charges of sex trafficking and other crimes.

Afternoon session begins. The jury, but not the media or public, are being shown a video of the search warrant execution at Epstein’s Palm Beach house.

Crime scene investigator Gregory Parkinson is answering Assistant US Attorney Maurene Comey’s questions about it, noting the three-car garage and photos of Epstein with Pope John Paul II and Fidel Castro.

Housekeeper drove accuser ‘Jane’ to Epstein’s Palm Beach mansion aged 14 Jeffrey Epstein’s former housekeeper testified that the first accuser in Ghislaine Maxwell’s sex trafficking trial was a frequent visitor to his Palm Beach mansion when she was 14 years old.

Juan Patricio Alessi, who worked at Epstein’s Palm Beach property for 12 years, gave evidence on day four of Ms Maxwell’s trial in New York’s federal courthouse.

Mr Alessi said Ms Maxwell was the “lady of the house” and maintained an iron grip over every aspect of life at the Palm Beach mansion. Mr Alessi said he had picked up the accuser – who testified under the pseudonym Jane – from her school and home and drove her to Epstein’s home beginning in 1994.

Video walkthrough of the Epstein house concludes and the prosecutor instructs Mr Parkinson to look at three exhibits.

Jeffrey Epstein ordered all photos of Ghislaine Maxwell removed from his Palm Beach mansion when he entertained female guests, a New York federal court was told.

Cross-examination of Juan Alessi, who worked full-time at Epstein’s Palm Beach mansion from 1991 to 2002, continued in Ms Maxwell’s sex-trafficking trial on Friday. ‘It was not a secret, it was a mandate,’ housekeeper testifies of removing Maxwell pictures.

Why the Ghislaine Maxwell trial attracts QAnon extemists: “Where is Hillary Clinton?” asks the woman in the camouflage jersey. Speaking to her followers on TikTok, superimposing herself in front of a news story about jurors in the trial of Ghislaine Maxwell, she quickly declares the whole thing a whitewash: “These people need to be arrested! Nothing is ever gonna f***ing get done!”

It is just one drop in the tide of conspiracy theories that Ms Maxwell’s trial has unleashed throughout the internet. As journalists across the world follow every detail of the courtroom drama in New York City, social networks from Twitter to Telegram are awash in posts, videos, and meme images weaving each update into existing fantasy narratives.

As the jury took a snack break, Judge Allison Nathan commented on the video: “I don’t see why a public version can’t be made.”

She suggested it could be in a redacted form, to protect the privacy of “a few individuals”. Prosecution says they will work on that.

Ms Maxwell’s defence lawyer Bobbi Sternheim says that sealing the video (which is approximately 40 minutes long) gives the impression to the public that the house was a “domicile of debauchery”. In fact, she argues, only a couple of images were at issue.

The court is back in session after a long recess with the jurors now examining more photographs of the Epstein Palm Beach residence.

Some of the evidence is sealed. Mr Parkinson described one exhibit as “a bathroom with a phone and a pink, three-cushion couch.” He points out a portable, collapsible massage table.

Assistant US Attorney Maurene Comey has offered Epstein’s actual green massage table into evidence as Government Exhibit 51. It was brought into the courtroom and shown to the jury.

“I asked that the exhibit be published for the jury by setting the table up.”

After Mr Nathan confirmed that it was manufactured in Vista, California, Ms Comey said she had no further questions.

Mr Everdell of the defence was invited to cross-examine the witness. Ms Maxwell’s counsel asks Parkinson about his knowledge of the defendant. He says he does not know Ghislaine Maxwell.

Mr Parkinson confirms that he was called to the Palm Beach property to investigate a burglary after Epstein reported several thousand dollars had been stolen. It is difficult for the media in the courtroom to report on the line of questioning given that so much of the evidence is sealed. The witness is excused.

With just over 20 minutes of Friday’s proceedings left to go, the prosecution introduces a new witness, Michael Dawson of the Palm Beach Police Department.

He was one of the detectives who searched Epstein’s residence. Mr Dawson said they were looking for the massage table, sex toys, correspondence, and other materials. He testifies that there were a lot of photographs of nude females.

In addition to the massage table, a phone book, a photo of a nude female, and a sex toy called the “Twin Torpedos” were seized. A photograph of Epstein’s sex toys was introduced into evidence.

Court adjourns for the weekend Cross-examination of Mr Dawson begins with just ten minutes of court time left and immediately goes to a sidebar.

Questioning starts by referring to Juan Alessi’s admission to stealing from Epstein, but same as all week, Judge Nathan promptly ends proceedings at 5pm sharp.

Noting that this is their first weekend apart, she reminds the jury not to discuss or research the case over the break.

Wow. Evidence was transferred to the FBI in 2006. And we wonder why it's taken over 15 years? The damned FBI should be on trial, too.