EXCLUSIVE: Ghislaine Maxwell 'barricaded' herself in the prison conference room by blocking the door with a cart of legal documents, creating a security threat, prosecutors claim

• Prosecutors have claimed that Ghislaine Maxwell tried to 'barricade' herself in the video conference room in prison with a cart of legal documents 
• They claim that Maxwell created a 'security threat' by blocking the door and preventing guards from accessing the room 
• But Maxwell's lawyer Bobbi Sternheim said Maxwell 'never' tried to block her door with the cart and stop the guards getting in
• Sternheim said prosecutors 'cannot resist the opportunity to gratuitously cast Maxwell in a negative light while it defends the [prison] at all costs'
• The row is the latest dispute over Maxwell's conditions in the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Brooklyn, New York
• The British socialite has been there since last July when she was arrested for allegedly recruiting children for late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein to abuse

Ghislaine Maxwell tried to 'barricade' herself in the video conference room in prison with a cart of legal documents, prosecutors have claimed.

Jeffrey Epstein's alleged madam created a 'security threat' by blocking the door and preventing guards from accessing the room.

Maxwell was banned from bringing the cart in and was forced to carry materials from her cell to the conference room.

The row is the latest dispute over Maxwell's conditions in the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Brooklyn, New York.

The British socialite has been there since last July when she was arrested for allegedly recruiting children for Epstein to abuse.

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Prosecutors have claimed that Ghislaine Maxwell tried to 'barricade' herself in the video conference room in prison with a cart of legal documents 

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They claim that Maxwell created a 'security threat' by blocking the door and preventing guards from accessing the room at the Metropolitan Detention Center, (MDC) in Brooklyn

There have been disputes about her cell not being clean, allegations she doesn't flush her toilet and Maxwell filed a picture of herself with a black eye to suggest she had been beaten up. 

In a letter to federal court in New York, prosecutors said that Maxwell had been able in the past to bring a 'cart full of legal materials' into the video conference room, or VTC.

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The British socialite has been there since last July when she was arrested for allegedly recruiting children for late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein to abuse 

They wrote: 'However, the defendant used that cart to barricade the door to the VTC room, thereby preventing MDC staff from being able to access the room.

'Because of the security threat posed by the use of the cart to barricade the door to the VTC room, the defendant is no longer permitted to bring the cart into the room.

'Instead, the defendant may bring whatever materials she can carry into the room, and if she needs other materials during a particular meeting with counsel, she may leave the VTC room, retrieve those materials by hand, and then return to her meeting with counsel'.

The letter was in response to complaints from Maxwell's lawyers that her access to video conferences had been disrupted.

Her attorneys claimed that her screen went 'in and out, and her screen often turned green and became blurry'.

During one call somebody other than Maxwell appeared on the screen, suggesting it was insecure.

In response prosecutors said that after the incident the MDC switched to another form of video conferencing which was more secure.

Maxwell lawyer Bobbi Sternheim said Maxwell 'never' tried to block her door with the cart and stop the guards getting in.

She wrote in a letter that prosecutors 'cannot resist the opportunity to gratuitously cast Ghislaine Maxwell in a negative light while it defends the Metropolitan Detention Center at all costs'. 

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In a letter to federal court in New York, prosecutors said that Maxwell had been able in the past to bring a 'cart full of legal materials' into the video conference room, or VTC. They wrote: 'However, the defendant used that cart to barricade the door to the VTC room, thereby preventing MDC staff from being able to access the room'

In a ruling Judge Alison Nathan said that after hearing from both sides she 'remains confident that Ms. Maxwell is fully able to communicate with her defense counsel and to prepare for trial'.

Ever since Maxwell was put in the MDC her lawyers have griped about almost every aspect of her confinement.

They complained that she is being woken up every 15 minutes for searches and is forced to sleep with the lights on in her cell.

Prosecutors said in their letter that the checks have to be done so regularly to ensure Maxwell's safety.

Maxwell's lawyers filed a picture of her with a black eye which they said had no explanation even though she was under 24/7 camera surveillance.

They claimed it could be 'related to the need for Ms. Maxwell to shield her eyes from the lights projected into her cell throughout the night'

Maxwell's lawyers asked for an eye mask but were denied by Judge Nathan because eye masks are considered contraband items in the MDC.

Another letter by prosecutors ticked off Maxwell for failing to flush her toilet after using it.

Staff at the MDC said that Maxwell 'frequently did not flush her toilet after using it, which caused the cell to smell', prosecutors said.

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Maxwell's lawyer Bobbi Sternheim said Maxwell 'never' tried to block her door with the cart and stop the guards getting in. Sternheim said prosecutors 'cannot resist the opportunity to gratuitously cast Maxwell in a negative light while it defends the [prison] at all costs'

Maxwell let her cell become 'very dirty' and guards told her to clean it and the toilet because it was insanitary, it was claimed, an allegation Maxwell disputed.

Attorneys for Maxwell have also complained that the food she is given melts into the packaging when it is put in the microwave or stays frozen in the middle.

Another problem has been that the water is 'odorous and non-palatable' and so 'clouded with heavy particulates' that it went brown.

Sternheim said in one filing that Maxwell was 'withering to a shell of her former self' and losing weight because of the harsh treatment including being 'physically abused' by the guards during a pat down search.

Judge Nathan has almost always universally dismissed Maxwell's claims and said she is satisfied that she is being treated like other inmates.

Maxwell, 59, denies all charges and is due to go on trial in November.