GHISLAINE'S JAIL NIGHTMARE

The disgraced socialite is fighting to be released from prison after a court denies her fourth bail application

- KIM ABRAHAMS

IT’S hard to believe the woman peering out of the photo was once a glossy social butterfly, equally at home among the billionaires, politicians and celebrities who frequented London and New York high society.

This woman is pinched and wrinkled, her hair grey and a nasty bruise smudged beneath one eye – a million miles from the flawless, designer-clad personality the world is used to seeing.

The snapshot, released by her lawyer, Bobbi Sternheim, is the first glimpse the public has had of Ghislaine Maxwell (59) since her arrest in July last year on charges of sex-trafficking underage girls for her late billionaire ex-boyfriend, Jeffrey Epstein (YOU, 16 July 2020).

Until now, the disgraced daughter of late British publishing tycoon Robert Maxwell had only been seen in court sketches as no cameras or recording devices are permitted at hearings.

Her legal team included the photo of Ghislaine with a black eye in a court filing as part of their ongoing concerns about her treatment at New York’s Metropolitan Detention Centre (MDC).

Ghislaine has previously protested about her “hellhole” jail conditions, claiming she’s being mistreated.

She says prison guards have even gone so far as to stand over her while she uses the toilet and have accused her of not flushing, leading to an unbearable stench in her cell.

But Ghislaine has denied this, saying the smell is caused by rotting pipes. She claims the facility is so filthy even her salad has mould on it.

Her lawyers say that since being taken into custody she’s endured more than 1 400 body searches and was physically abused when she was shoved into her cell by a guard prior to a pat-down probe.