Carole Radziwill Breaks Silence on Past Ties to Ghislaine Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein

Carole Radziwill is doing damage control after her name showed up in the newly released Jeffrey Epstein documents. She talked to the New York Times on Thursday, March 26, and laid out how she knew Ghislaine Maxwell and, to a much lesser degree, Epstein. Short version: she was friendly with Maxwell for a chunk of the early 2000s, says she barely crossed paths with Epstein, and feels blindsided by what came out later.

'Imagine knowing someone and even being friendly with them and then they turn out to be, like, a monster.'

The Maxwell chapter

Radziwill, now 62, says she and Maxwell, 64, were friends for roughly five to six years in the early 2000s. What drew her in, she says, was that Maxwell seemed sharp and educated — not the person you would peg as running crimes of that magnitude. In the files that just dropped, there are emails between the two. One note from Maxwell slathers Radziwill in superlatives — essentially calling her the most wonderful, beautiful, and brilliant person in the room — the kind of over-the-top flattery that reads very differently in hindsight.

What Carole says actually happened

• She met and befriended Ghislaine Maxwell in the early 2000s and stayed friends for about five to six years.
• She encountered Jeffrey Epstein once, at a party Maxwell hosted, but says she never knew him and Maxwell never discussed him with her.
• The newly released Epstein files include emails between Carole and Maxwell, which is why her name is in the mix.
• Through Maxwell, she was introduced to Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor (better known to most as Prince Andrew) for her Glamour magazine 'Lunch Date' column — a very behind-the-scenes glimpse of how social circles overlapped back then.

The Andrew context

Andrew, 66, has been under heavy scrutiny for years over his ties to Epstein. He has denied wrongdoing and, notably, has not been charged with any sexual offense. Radziwill’s point here is that her Andrew connection was professional — a setup for a magazine interview — and came via Maxwell back when all of this looked like standard society networking, not a flashing red light.

Ian Maxwell is still on offense

Ghislaine’s brother, Ian Maxwell, 70, told The Telegraph in February that the royal family has left Andrew twisting in the wind. He argued that Andrew has not been charged and called the saga humiliating for him and embarrassing for the royals. Ian also insists his sister is being used to atone for Epstein’s crimes, calling her a scapegoat and saying her trial was unfair, her conviction unsafe, and her sentence excessive. In his words, she is 'the fall guy' — a claim he’s repeated often.

Where this lands

Radziwill’s stance is straightforward: she was friends with Maxwell back when Maxwell presented as a polished, high-society connector; she did not know Epstein; and she is now horrified by what Maxwell was convicted of. For the record, Ghislaine Maxwell was convicted in 2021 of trafficking minors for Epstein and is serving a 20-year sentence. Epstein died in prison in 2019 at 66 while awaiting trial on child sex trafficking charges. Maxwell’s attorney has been contacted for comment.