- Conspiracy theories claim Ghislaine Maxwell's prison video is fake or features a double
- Maxwell appeared remotely from prison during a deposition by the US House Oversight Committee
- She invoked the Fifth Amendment repeatedly when questioned about Epstein and trafficking links
Conspiracy theories involving Ghislaine Maxwell, the long-time associate of convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, are gaining momentum online. The authenticity of her recent deposition video and related photographs has come under question on social media.
The speculation began after a prison deposition video surfaced, prompting some users to claim that the woman seen on screen is not Maxwell but a body double.
The footage, released by the US House Oversight Committee, shows Maxwell appearing remotely from prison. During questioning about her links to Epstein and her trafficking conviction, she repeatedly invoked the Fifth Amendment. In the footage, Maxwell declined to answer when asked whether she was close to Epstein.
After the video was made public, social media users began to circulate side-by-side comparisons of the deposition footage and photographs of Maxwell taken before her 2020 arrest. Some of the posts said there were visible differences in her facial features, with users claiming to notice differences in facial structure. A section of users also attributed these perceived changes to weight gain or natural ageing, while others went further, suggesting the presence of a body double or alleging the video had been staged.
These claims have circulated widely online, even as no credible evidence has emerged to support suggestions that the person in the deposition is not the same individual linked to Epstein. “Is it even her?” asked a user.
A post shared on X by commentator Mario Nawfal added to the online speculation. It stated, “People are speculating that the woman shown in prison photos looks nothing like Ghislaine Maxwell, with a different nose and different eyes. Now the theory floating around is that not only is Epstein not dead… but Ghislaine isn't even the one sitting in that cell! Even though I doubt this to be true, anything is possible now!”
“She's either chubbed up on carb-heavy prison food or that's a different person,” wrote another user.
A user said Maxwell is not in prison and that the situation has been staged or faked. “Ghislaine Maxwell is not really in prison. That is just another one of those staged events that is not true. They want the public to believe they got some degree of justice in the Epstein matter when they did not. The child predators and traffickers are still operating unhindered,” read the comment.
“Seriously, someone needs to look into this, cuz that's not Ghislaine Maxwell, that's Mike Meyers,” wrote another user.
Another wrote, “Prison seems to have butched up Ghislaine Maxwell. She now has a new jawbone and a new nose. Middle-aged, or quite clearly not the same woman?”
Maxwell was convicted in 2021 on federal sex trafficking charges, including conspiracy to transport minors for illegal sexual activity, involvement in a broader sex trafficking conspiracy and sex trafficking of a minor. She is currently serving a 20-year prison term.
