Mr Maxwell said that his sister had been scapegoated for Epstein’s crimes and that her close friendship with the Duke of York had made her an obvious target for law enforcement after Epstein was found dead in his cell.

“I do understand that Andrew, because of who he is, shines a megawatt of light upon the whole affair. And because there cannot be a law for the knobs and a law for the poor, they have to investigate,” he said.

He said that the Duke was never going to testify on Maxwell’s behalf because he “would have opened himself up to cross-examination”, adding: “And we know from his performance with [Emily] Mailtlis [on Newsnight] that he’s not quick on his feet.”

Mr Maxwell said that his sister was “unfit to testify” herself because of the “regime” she was subjected to while on remand in a detention centre in Brooklyn that included being woken up every 15 minutes while on suicide watch and being held “in shackles” prior to each court appearance.

He said she could not “participate meaningfully” in her own defence, giving her grounds for appeal.

Asked if he feared she would now die behind bars, Mr Maxwell said: “I think she is going to get out of jail. I think there will be a powerful appeal mounted and I think she will be vindicated. We have to wait for the sentence and I am not holding my breath.”