New Delhi, Feb. 10 -- Ghislaine Maxwell, the convicted associate of the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, refused to answer questions posed by the US House Oversight Committee on Monday (local time), according to media reports.

Maxwell appeared before the committee virtually for a closed-door deposition from the Texas prison, where she is serving a 20-year sentence for her role in Epstein's sexual abuse of minor girls and on charges of sex trafficking. She invoked the Fifth Amendment of the US Constitution and remained silent throughout.

The Fifth Amendment of the US Constitution protects people's right to remain silent and refuse to answer questions that may incriminate them. Before her appearance before the Committee, Maxwell's legal...