London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 02, 2026

Maxwell’s new digs: Fla. prison known for yoga, music, abuse

Maxwell’s new digs: Fla. prison known for yoga, music, abuse

Ghislaine Maxwell, the jet-setting socialite turned convicted sex trafficker, is off to Florida to serve a 20-year federal prison sentence for helping financier Jeffrey Epstein sexually abuse underage girls — returning to the same state, but a far cry from the posh lifestyle, where she committed some of her crimes.
Maxwell, 60, was moved last week to FCI Tallahassee, a low-security federal prison in Florida’s capital, from the Brooklyn federal jail where she’d spent the last two years under close watch in light of Epstein’s 2019 jail suicide, the federal Bureau of Prisons said.

It wasn’t clear whether Maxwell would be held in restrictive housing or under other special precautions, given her notoriety and long-standing concerns about her well-being behind bars.

Maxwell, who was convicted last December in Manhattan and sentenced in June, repeatedly complained about her treatment at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, her home since her July 2020 arrest.

Maxwell and her lawyers complained that jail officers were flashing a light into her cell every 15 minutes, interrupting her sleep, and subjecting her to hundreds of searches and pat downs. She also claimed that a guard at the Brooklyn facility physically abused her and that she was punished for complaining about it.

A message seeking comment was left with Maxwell’s lawyers.

Maxwell, who once consorted with royals, presidents and billionaires as the daughter of a British publishing magnate, was convicted of luring teenage girls for Epstein to abuse.

Her monthlong trial featured sordid accounts of the sexual exploitation of girls as young as 14, told by four women who described being abused as teens in the 1990s and early 2000s at Epstein’s palatial homes in Florida, New York and New Mexico.

Maxwell’s new home, FCI Tallahassee, is about 360 miles (580 kilometers) from Epstein’s since-demolished mansion in glitzy Palm Beach where prosecutors say some of the abuse occurred.

The prison, opened in 1938, has about 820 male and female inmates. According to an inmate handbook, people locked up at the facility have access to a wide range of classes and activities, including painting, leather, art and ceramics, musical instruments, team sports such as softball, basketball and volleyball.

The prison also offers yoga, Pilates, movies and an inmate talent show, according to prison consulting firm Zoukis Consulting Group.

Maxwell is joining a short list of notable people who’ve served time at FCI Tallahassee, including Maria Butina, the Russian secret agent who tried to infiltrate conservative U.S. political groups, and Colleen LaRose, known as “Jihad Jane” for providing material support to terrorists. Butina was released in 2019 and deported to Russia. LaRose was released in 2018.

Like many federal prisons, as The Associated Press has reported, FCI Tallahassee has had its share of employees committing crimes in recent years — including sexual abuse of inmates.

In March, former FCI Tallahassee recreation specialist Jimmy Lee Highsmith was sentenced to four years in prison for sexually abusing an inmate between March 2014 and September 2018.

In August 2021, former FCI Tallahassee food service foreman Phillip Golightly was sentenced to two years in prison for sexually abusing an inmate in November 2019.

In 2006, a correctional officer and a federal agent were killed in a gun battle on the prison’s grounds. The officer opened fire as agents attempted to arrest him and several other officers on charges they gave contraband to female inmates in exchange for sex, officials said.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
UK DEFENCE AND TECHNOLOGY STRATEGY TILTS TOWARD SOVEREIGN CAPABILITY AND INDUSTRIAL INVESTMENT
UK ECONOMIC POLICY OUTLOOK SHAPED BY LEADERSHIP TRANSITION AND FISCAL SIGNALS
STERLING STRENGTHENS AMID SHIFTING MONETARY OUTLOOK AND GLOBAL LABOUR MARKET SIGNALS
UK HPV VACCINATION PROGRAM NEARLY ELIMINATES CERVICAL CANCER DEATH RISK IN YOUNG WOMEN
UK EXPANDS PRISON SAFETY REVIEW AS GOVERNMENT SEEKS WIDER SYSTEM REFORM
UK DRIVES DIGITAL ASSETS STRATEGY WITH NEW STABLECOIN REGULATORY MODEL
UK TO EXPAND AI INFRASTRUCTURE THROUGH NEW EUROPEAN TECHNOLOGY PARTNERSHIP
UK LAUNCHES £15 BILLION DEFENCE TECH SHIFT TOWARD ADVANCED MILITARY SYSTEMS
CIVIL SERVICE FACES SHIFT IN POWER STRUCTURE AS REGIONAL GOVERNANCE PLANS EXPAND
WHITEHALL CONSIDERS MAJOR DECENTRALISATION PLAN WITH SECOND GOVERNMENT HUB IN MANCHESTER
UK TARGETS SERVICES EXPORT GROWTH IN TRADE TALKS WITH CHINA AMID GEOPOLITICAL TENSIONS
POLICE WATCHDOG PROBES OFFICERS OVER HANDCUFFING OF DYING TEENAGER IN HAMPSHIRE CASE
UK REGULATORS UNVEIL DUAL OVERSIGHT FRAMEWORK FOR STABLECOINS AND DIGITAL ASSETS
KEIR STARMER ANNOUNCES £15 BILLION DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY BOOST IN FINAL MAJOR POLICY MOVE
ANDY BURNHAM SIGNALS STRICT FISCAL RULES AS LABOUR LEADERSHIP RACE SHAPES MARKET OUTLOOK
POUND STERLING HITS ONE-YEAR HIGH AS BANK OF ENGLAND SIGNALS NO IMMINENT RATE CUTS
UK Government Confirms Rejected Asylum Seekers to Remain Amid Enforcement Challenges
UK-China Economic Talks Focus on Services Trade and High-Value Sectors
Buckingham Palace Revamp Plans Unveiled to Modernise Royal and Public Facilities
Two Dead After Light Aircraft Crash in Essex Field, Investigation Underway
Princess Diana Marked at 65 With UK Tributes Reflecting on Her Public Legacy
England Teachers Face New Pay Cap Rules for Academy School Leaders Under Education Reform
Dublin Security Alert Escalates After Stabbing and Reports of Transport Disruption
UK Government Faces Scrutiny Over £10,000 Asylum Living Cost Contribution Requirement
England Prepares World Cup Knockout Match Against Democratic Republic of Congo
Northern Rail Project Warned of HS2-Style Cost Risks by UK Parliamentary Committee
UK Tightens Asylum Rules as Most Rejected Applicants Expected to Remain in Country
UK Heat Health Alert Issued as Temperatures Expected to Exceed 30°C Across England
Halifax Brand to Disappear From UK High Streets in Lloyds Banking Group Restructuring
England Teachers Receive 6.6 Percent Pay Rise Over Two Years as Schools Warn of Budget Strain
UK Defence Spending Plan Sparks Budget Clash as Regional Infrastructure Projects Face Pressure
Inquest Continues in Northern Ireland into Death of Noah Donohoe in Belfast
UK Travel Industry Calls for Suspension of New EU Border System During Peak Holiday Season
Telegraph Media Group Acquired by German Media Firm in £575 Million Deal Completion
House of Commons Warns Northern Rail Upgrade Risks Repeating High-Speed 2 Cost Overruns
UK Transport Unions Warn of Summer Strike Action Over Pay Disputes
UK Health Secretary Calls Maternity Care Review a “Watershed Moment” for NHS Reform
Nigel Farage Faces Questions Over £270,000 Payment Linked to Gold Marketing Firm
Labour Government Faces Internal Division Over North Sea Oil and Gas Policy Direction
National Screening Committee Invites New Proposals for UK Health Screening Programmes
UK and China Hold Industrial Strategy Talks on Trade and Export Growth Opportunities
UK Defence Funding Gap Widens as £4.7 Billion Shortfall Puts Pressure on Spending Priorities
United Kingdom Faces Historic Demographic Shift as Deaths Forecast to Exceed Births in England and Wales
United Kingdom Introduces Major Motability Scheme Reforms Targeting £1 Billion in Long-Term Savings
Global Billionaire Numbers Rise 13 Percent Amid Artificial Intelligence Stock Boom
Body of Fifteen-Year-Old Boy Recovered from Manchester Reservoir
Major Rail Disruption in UK After Cows Stray Onto Intercity Tracks
UK Launches National Campaign to Reduce Water Consumption After Heatwave
Foreign Secretary David Lammy Raises Case of UK Woman Death with US Authorities
Shetland Islands Council Approves Subsea Tunnel Plans Linking Major Islands
×