Maxwell questioned over Duke of York by Trump officials
The former girlfriend of convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein was asked about the royal for the first time during two days of meetings with the US deputy attorney general, a source told the Mail on Sunday.
They said: 'This is the first time anyone has asked Ghislaine about any of the men.
'She told the truth and didn't back away from any questions. She wants the truth to come out.'
Maxwell, who is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for her role in helping Epstein recruit and abuse underage girls, is the only person to have ever been convicted in connection with his crimes.
In 2021, Virginia Giuffre, who was trafficked by Epstein, claimed she was raped and abused by the Duke on three separate occasions, when she was 17.
The Duke has always vehemently denied the allegations, insisting he has 'no recollection' of meeting Giuffre, who died by suicide earlier this year.
Without admitting liability, the Duke allegedly paid his accuser more than £12 million in an out-of-court settlement in February 2022.
Maxwell's lawyer said she answered 'every question' put to her by Trump administration officials during the nine-hour interview at Tallahassee Federal Prison in Florida.
The 63-year-old was granted a limited form of immunity, allowing her to answer questions put to her by Todd Blanche, the US deputy attorney general, without risk of her responses later being used against her, sources said.
This included being quizzed about 'more than 100 different people', according to an individual familiar with the meeting.
'The limited immunity deal is a huge risk for her because this case is so politicised she only has immunity so long as she hasn't lied,' a source told the Mail on Sunday.
'She was asked about a laundry list of people including Prince Andrew, Bill Gates, Les Wexner, Bill Clinton, Alan Dershowitz, Leon Black and a Who's Who of powerful Wall Street moneymen and financiers.
'There were Silicon Valley names in there along with world leaders, other non-British royals aside from Andrew and famous names from the world of show business.'
The interview comes amid growing political pressure on Donald Trump who has been dogged by allegations that the White House is suppressing information contained in the so-called Epstein files.
The documents have remained sealed despite promises made by the president's administration to release them.
'Funny business'
According to reports, Pam Bondi, the US attorney general, told Mr Trump he appeared in the files weeks before her department announced it would not be releasing any more of the documents.
Department of Justice (DoJ) officials reviewed the files earlier this year and discovered Mr Trump's name appeared multiple times, senior officials told the Wall Street Journal.
Mr Trump is said to have privately told people he fears being accused of 'funny business' because of his former friendship with the financier.
The president, who is currently making a scheduled trip to Scotland, is expected to meet with the US deputy attorney general in the coming days to discuss the interview with Maxwell.
Speaking with reporters on Friday, Mr Trump refused to rule out granting clemency to the disgraced British socialite in exchange for her testimony.
'I'm allowed to do it, but it's something I haven't thought about,' he said of Maxwell.
'Fake news stories'
Responding to the allegations, Steven Cheung, the White House communications director, told The Telegraph: 'The fact is that the president kicked him [Epstein] out of his club for being a creep.
'This is nothing more than a continuation of the fake news stories concocted by the Democrats and the liberal media, just like the Obama Russiagate scandal, which President Trump was right about.'
Meanwhile, Maxwell's family have previously suggested that the convicted sex trafficker could use 'government misconduct' to challenge her imprisonment, claiming 'she did not receive a fair trial'.
David Markus, Maxwell's lawyer, briefly spoke with reporters ahead of his client's renewed questioning, describing her as a 'scapegoat'.
'The truth will come out about what happened with Mr. Epstein and she's the person who's answering those questions,' he added.
Legal appeals against Maxwell's sex trafficking convictions have been rejected by the courts, however.
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