Ghislaine Maxwell and Kevin Spacey disrespected Queen by sitting on her throne in Buckingham Palace, reveals pic
In what was a clear breach of royal protocol and will undoubtedly bring the spotlight back on the royal family as it tries to distance itself from the Jeffrey Epstein scandal, a newly uncovered photograph shows Ghislaine Maxwell posing on the throne at Buckingham Palace with Kevin Spacey.
Maxwell, a confidante and former girlfriend of Epstein, was arrested last week in New Hampshire and has been accused of being complicit in his sex crimes. She is facing sex-trafficking charges and has reportedly been put on suicide watch over fears that she will meet the same fate as the multimillionaire financier, who was found dead in his cell following his arrest last year.
A socialite and heiress, Maxwell is the daughter of media mogul Robert Maxwell and was pictured sitting on Queen Elizabeth II's throne alongside 'House of Cards' star Kevin Spacey in a 2002 snap obtained that was obtained by The Telegraph. You can see the photo here.
The pair was reportedly at the palace for a tour on the behest of Prince Andrew, who was been accused by Epstein's alleged former 'sex slave' Virginia Giuffre of having sex with her when she was just 17 years old. "They [Maxwell and Spacey] were larking about on the thrones, doing regal waves," one source told The Telegraph. "Ghislaine sat on the Queen’s throne with Spacey pretending to be the Duke of Edinburgh."
"No one can recall if Andrew was in the throne room at the time but he was in charge of the visit," the source added.
The thrones on which Maxwell and Spacey were pictured sitting are located in the Throne Room, which is only accessible through public tours of the palace or during state visits and official functions. They were used by Andrew's parents, the Queen and Prince Phillip, for her 1953 coronation, and it is against royal protocol for anyone else to sit on them.
Max Foster, the royal correspondent for CNN, said the throne was a representation of the monarch's authority and that "no one else has the right to sit in it" because it "would be seen as a sign of disrespect towards Queen and country." Besides Spacey, who had faced allegations of sexual assault and harassment from multiple men, in both the UK and the US, also present during that trip to Buckingham Palace was former president Bill Clinton, another well-known ally of Epstein.
The tour of Buckingham Palace was reportedly organized for Clinton, who, too, has faced increased scrutiny in recent times over his friendship with Epstein, a convicted pedophile who was facing federal charges for the sex trafficking of minors in Florida and New York before his death. Maxwell was arrested last week for her alleged role in recruiting, grooming, and sexually abusing girls as young as 14, with Jennifer Araoz, one of Epstein's victims, previously stating in a civil lawsuit that she "provided organizational support for Epstein's sex-trafficking ring."
It was reported that Maxwell will be "fully cooperating" with the FBI in its child sex probe and that some of the world's most powerful people, including Prince Andrew, who has repeatedly denied any involvement in Epstein's crimes, will be "very worried."