'whistleblower' Who Provided House Democrats With Ghislaine Maxwell Documents Speaks Out

A whistleblower who came guardant to House Democrats alleging convicted activity offender Ghislaine Maxwell received preferential curen astatine a national situation campy successful Texas says she was not motivated by politics.

Instead, “this was astir communal quality decency and doing what’s correct for each inmates,” Noella Turnage, a caregiver who worked astatine Federal Prison Camp Bryan since 2019 until she was fired past week, told NBC News connected Monday.

She added that erstwhile moreover 1 inmate is wrongly retaliated against, “and power gets different 1 protected, personification had to opportunity something.”

The entranceway to Federal Prison Camp Bryan connected Aug. 1, successful Bryan, Texas.Brandon Bell / Getty Images

Maxwell’s clip astatine FPC Bryan, an all-women’s minimum-security facility, has travel nether scrutiny since her transportation location successful early August from a low-security situation successful Tallahassee, Florida. Her narration pinch nan precocious convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein has go a focal constituent arsenic Democrats and immoderate Republicans renew their push to compel nan Justice Department to make each investigative files surrounding Epstein’s lawsuit public.

Turnage said she was not driven by nationalist outrage surrounding Epstein, Maxwell aliases immoderate different nationalist figures, but acted because she felt “failed by nan institution” erstwhile colleagues and others person spoken retired astir alleged activity misconduct and retaliation.

Noella Turnage.Courtesy Noella Turnage

She said nan national Bureau of Prisons fired her connected Nov. 10. The determination came a time aft nan apical Democrat connected nan committee, Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland, wrote a letter to President Donald Trump saying they had received accusation from a “whistleblower” indicating Maxwell was moving connected filing a “commutation application” and receiving typical curen not typically afforded to inmates astatine Bryan. The accusation obtained by nan House Judiciary Committee included email correspondence that Maxwell sent during her first fewer months astatine nan situation camp.

Leah Saffian, an lawyer for Maxwell, said Friday that labor astatine FPC Bryan mislaid their jobs successful ray of Maxwell’s emails being shared.

There person been labor “terminated for improper, unauthorized entree to nan email strategy utilized by nan Federal Bureau of Prisons to let inmates to pass pinch nan extracurricular world,” Saffian said successful a statement.

NBC News antecedently reviewed Maxwell’s emails which indicated she was “happier” pinch her move to a installation that was cleaner and wherever unit were friendly.

Maxwell’s emails besides suggested she had nonstop entree to Bryan’s warden, Tanisha Hall, for help, including arranging visits and communicating pinch her lawyers — actions that are highly unusual, different attorneys pinch clients astatine nan situation say.

The BOP and Hall did not respond to requests for remark astir labor terminated successful relationship pinch Maxwell.

Turnage said she was successful interaction pinch nan House Judiciary Committee aft Raskin wrote a missive to Hall connected Oct. 30 asking astir Maxwell’s perceived “VIP treatment.”

In that letter, Raskin said he was alarmed by news reports that nan situation was giving typical accommodations to Maxwell’s visitors and different alleged perks, specified arsenic meals sent to her dormitory room, late-night workouts and nan expertise to ablution aft different inmates were already successful furniture for nan night.

His enquiry besides raised different accusations made by inmates that they person been threatened pinch retaliation if they speak astir Maxwell to nan media. At slightest 2 inmates person been transferred retired of Bryan aft doing so, according to media reports that reviewed BOP records. NBC News has not confirmed nan logic for nan transfers.

Turnage and different erstwhile Bryan employee, Ashley Anderson, said they said pinch House Democratic committee unit astir allegations that BOP argumentation has been many times violated and retaliation exists against those who study wrongdoing.

Ashley Anderson.Ashley Anderson

Anderson, who had been a elder master serviceman astatine Bryan for a decade earlier she was terminated successful August, said that she has tried to speak retired successful support of inmates who’ve reported alleged maltreatment but that location stay “flaws successful a strategy that often lacks transparency, accountability, and fairness.”

Saffian has called nan merchandise of Maxwell’s emails “improper” and denied that a pardon exertion had been made to nan Trump administration. She besides said she would beryllium filing a habeas petition pinch nan Southern District of New York to situation Maxwell’s 20-year situation condemnation for recruiting minors to beryllium sexually abused by Epstein.

Epstein died by termination successful a New York City jailhouse successful 2019 arsenic he awaited proceedings connected activity trafficking charges.

Maxwell’s transportation to FPC Bryan successful early August came days aft she met pinch Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche successful July. At that meeting, Maxwell told Blanche she ne'er witnessed immoderate inappropriate behaviour by Trump aliases immoderate different salient figures associated pinch Epstein’s orbit, according to a transcript. Trump, whose sanction appeared successful nan unsealed records arsenic a friend of Epstein’s earlier they had a falling out, has not been accused by authorities of immoderate wrongdoing.

Trump initially supported nan merchandise of documents related to Epstein earlier sparring pinch Democrats and immoderate members of his ain party, saying not each files should beryllium made public.

Last week, thousands of emails from nan Epstein property were released by nan House Oversight Committee, including many that referenced Trump. On Sunday, Trump unexpectedly changed his stance connected nan issue, penning connected his Truth Social relationship that House Republicans should ballot to merchandise nan Epstein files “because we person thing to hide.”

Turnage and Anderson said successful a further connection that speaking to members of Congress astir their clip astatine Bryan was not astir swaying nan governmental narratives successful nan larger Epstein saga.

“This was astir truth, and thing else,” they said. “It was astir telling nan truth astir really some unit and inmates were treated.”