WASHINGTON, United States (AFP)—Jeffrey Epstein’s accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell refused on Monday to answer questions from a congressional panel but said she was prepared to speak if granted clemency by President Donald Trump.

Maxwell, 64, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence for sex trafficking, was subpoenaed by the House Oversight Committee to discuss her relations with Epstein.

Rather than answer the committee’s questions, however, the former British socialite invoked her Fifth Amendment right to not incriminate herself.

“As expected, Ghislaine Maxwell took the Fifth and refused to answer any questions,” committee chairman James Comer told reporters. “This is obviously very disappointing.”

“We had many questions to ask about the crimes she and Epstein committed as well as questions about potential co-conspirators,” he said.

Maxwell’s attorney, David Markus, said she would be prepared to speak publicly if granted clemency by Trump.

“If this Committee and the American public truly want to hear the unfiltered truth about what happened, there is a straightforward path,” Markus said in a statement. “Ms Maxwell is prepared to speak fully and honestly if granted clemency by President Trump.”

Markus also said that Trump and former president Bill Clinton — both of whom were once friendly with Epstein — are “innocent of any wrongdoing.”

“Ms Maxwell alone can explain why, and the public is entitled to that explanation,” he said.

Maxwell is the only person convicted of a crime in connection with Epstein, who died in a New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial for sex trafficking.

Maxwell was convicted in 2021 of supplying underage girls to Epstein, who had ties to powerful business executives, politicians, celebrities and academics, and had been subpoenaed to testify virtually from the Texas prison where she is serving her sentence.

Her deposition comes amid the recent release by the Justice Department of millions of documents, photographs and videos related to the investigation into Epstein.

The Justice Department has said no new prosecutions are expected but a number of political and business leaders have been tarnished by scandal or resigned after their ties with Epstein were revealed in the files.

– ‘Unrepentant’ –

Democratic lawmaker Suhas Subramanyam, who attended the closed-door deposition by Maxwell, said she was “unrepentant.”

“She was very robotic, and you know, she was not at all remorseful about pleading the Fifth today,” Subramanyam said. “This is all strategy for her to try to get a pardon from President Trump.”

The House Oversight Committee has also summoned Clinton and his wife, former secretary of state Hillary Clinton, to testify about their interactions with Epstein.

The Clintons have called for their depositions to be held publicly to prevent Republicans from politicizing their testimony.

Trump was once a close friend of Epstein but has not been called to testify by the House Oversight Committee, which is led by members of his Republican Party.

Trump fought for months to prevent release of the vast trove of documents about Epstein but a rebellion among Republicans forced him to sign off on a law mandating release of all the records.

The extraordinary move reflected intense political pressure to address what many Americans, including Trump’s own supporters, have long suspected to be a cover-up to protect rich and powerful men in Epstein’s orbit.