Clare Bronfman, a NXIVM executive board member and Seagram's liquor heiress, was sentenced to 81 months in prison on September 30, on charges of concealing immigrants and ID fraud. By that standard, HBO's The Vow should be a better story than Starz's four-part special Seduced. [100] The indictment alleged that at least one woman was coerced into sex with Raniere, who forced DOS members to undergo the branding ritual alleged by Edmondson and others. For her role in NXIVM, Mack was sentenced to three years behind bars, issued a $20,000 fine and 1,000 hours of community service. ", "The Only (Alleged) Sex-Slave Cult Story You Need to Understand: Kirsten Gillibrand's Weakness as a 2020 Candidate", "Associate pleads guilty in 'sex cult' case", "How a Strange, Secretive, Cult-like Company Is Waging Legal War Against Journalists", "Bronfman, Russell plead guilty in NXIVM case", "Members of alleged sex cult NXIVM appear in federal court", "Heiress among four arrested in 'sex cult', "Nxivm 'Sex Cult' Was Also a Huge Pyramid Scheme, Lawsuit Says", "Elon Musk's Crusade for Media Accountability Lasted Three Whole Days Before He Recommended a News Site Affiliated With a Suspected Sex Cult", "Elon Musk's Idea of 'Excellent' Journalism Comes From an Alleged Sex Cult", "The Knife of Aristotle Isn't Just a Fake 'Fake News' Site It's a Cult", "Elon Musk Bashed Media With Article From The Cult Accused Of Sex Trafficking", "Sex & Propaganda: How An Alleged Cult Tried To Play The Media Against Itself", "Part 1 The Slave Women of DOS Revealed", "The Founder of "Nxivm', a Purported Self-Help Organization Based in Albany, N.Y., Arrested for Sex Trafficking and Forced Labor Conspiracy", "Former NXIVM member says she was invited into a secret sorority, then branded", "NXIVM: What We Know About Alleged Sex Trafficking, Forced Labor", "Vancouver woman says scars from ritual 'branding' fuel her fight against 'cultish' group", "Quines son los mexicanos involucrados con la secta NXIVM? "[213] Some members of NXIVM's inner circle were reportedly taught that, in past lives, they were high-ranking Nazis. [52] According to Vanity Fair, NXIVM leadership, who had spoken to Forbes, had expected a positive story. [255] In 2016, Porter was present at a NXIVM retreat ("V-Week") where 300 to 400 individuals were struck by an unidentified disease; Porter failed to report the outbreak, in violation of his duties as a licensed medical doctor. A federal appeals court Friday upheld the convictions and sentences for NXIVM sex cult leader Keith Raniere and his co-conspirator, Seagram's liquor heiress Clare Bronfman. On April 8, 2019, Mack pleaded guilty to racketeering and racketeering conspiracy. Wrote Littlefield: "This matter smacks of a jilted fellow's attempt at revenge or retaliation against his former girlfriend, with many attempts at tripping her up along the way. comment. How NXIVM, a so-called self-help company, crumbled after former members exposed it as a cult that abused sex slaves. [285] At Raniere's trial, a witness testified that India had spent a year on a 500-calorie-per-day diet. Keith Raniere started Nxivm outside Albany, N.Y., in the 1990s. [212] People who irrevocably turned against Raniere were said to have undergone "The Fall" and were labeled, in the words of a former member, as "Luciferians, lost people for whom bad feels good, and good feels bad. [232], Several subjects complained to the New York State Board of the Office of Professional Medical Conduct about the experiments. And yet, I could say this particular existential marker has been going on for 3 years: Help bring about Justice (check) Lose MANY cherished people I care about Turn my life upside down Regain my soul But, there are gifts to these challenges and I am SO grateful. were subjected to punishments, including being whipped with a leather strap or being asked to stand barefoot in the snow. She also wrote a memoir. After concluding that NXIVM members were being defrauded by Raniere, Parlato began blogging about the group on his sites ArtVoice, The Niagara Falls Reporter, and The Frank Report.[295][270]. NXIVM operated purported self-help programs based in Albany, New York, which attracted millionaires and Hollywood stars including Oxenberg, who said she attended her first meeting with her. He was sentenced to life in prison. (for wordpress.com hosted blogs and archive.org item <description> tags) . "[124][125][126], On April 19, 2019, Bronfman pleaded guilty to charges of harboring an alien and identity fraud; bookkeeper Kathy Russell pleaded guilty to visa fraud. Nancy Salzman must report to prison by Jan. 19 and also pay a $150,000 fine, U.S. District Judge Nicholas Garaufis said. He then asked her questions about her sexual history while another person performed oral sex on her, she said. "[173], A November 30, 2022 filing by attorneys for Lions Gate Entertainment states that "the Parties have settled the above-captioned action in all respects. [217][bettersourceneeded], NXIVM has been associated with several related organizations. drawing from innovations from courses in emotional intelligence (NXIVM), using only mind over body, and sheer will. Though not called to testify against Keith Raniere, prosecutors said that Mack, "was available to testify at Ranieres trial if requested to do so. A mandala tattoo now covers the brand forced on her. Bronfman may only appeal the sentence, as she has forfeited the right to appeal her conviction as part of her plea. [Read our coverage of Keith Ranieres sentencing.]. [71] In 2017, Lama Tenzin Dhonden, the self-styled "Personal Emissary for Peace for the Dalai Lama" who had arranged the appearance, was suspended from his position amid corruption charges; the investigation also revealed a personal relationship between Dhonden and Sara Bronfman, which began in 2009. ", "The Program: Inside the Mind of Keith Raniere and the Rise and Fall of NXIVM", "Did Isaac Asimov Inspire Keith Raniere to be 'the Mule'? Nxivm trial evidence On Wednesday, Salzman apologized for keeping a woman named Daniela captive in a room from 2010 to 2012 at Raniere's request and threatening to deport her to Mexico. : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive Perma.cc archive of https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/30/magazine/sex-cult-empowerment-nxivm-keith-raniere.html created on 2022-02-08 00:27:24.556199+00:00. [145] Attorneys for Raniere submitted letters from 56 supporters requesting leniency for Raniere. [52] In 2006, Forbes published an article about the Bronfman sisters, stating that they had taken out a line of credit to loan NXIVM $2million, repayable through personal training sessions and phone consultations with Salzman. Prosecutors revealed a decades-long pattern of grooming, sexual abuse of girls and women, physical and psychological punishments against dissenters, and hacking and vexatious litigation against enemies. [42][43][44] Raniere claimed that its "main emphasis is to have people experience more joy in their lives". [215][216] Classes were divided into modules. [51], In 2008, the Bronfman sisters allegedly pressured Stephen Herbits, a confidant of their father, to ask Albany County District Attorney David Soares, New York Governor Eliot Spitzer, and New Jersey Attorney General Anne Milgram to begin criminal investigations into NXIVM's critics. In NXIVM Corp. v. Ross Institute, NXIVM sued to try to block further publications. The mayor has declined to inform the council about the legal costs expended and to be expended for outside lawyers during an estimated seven years of legal proceedings. Another module, "Dracula and his ghouls", reportedly discussed psychopaths and their followers. [249][250][251], Nicki Clyne is a Canadian actress known for her role on the series Battlestar Galactica. NXIVM co-founder and "Prefect" Nancy Salzman takes center stage in the second episode of the new season of HBO's "The Vow." We hear from her for the first time since the NXIVM organization fell. NXIVM reportedly kept dossiers on Soares, Spitzer, political consultants Roger Stone and Steve Pigeon, U.S. She was featured in many video tutorials used in NXIVM courses, and lead Jness, a women's group that was the gateway into the secret sorority DOS for some members. In October, Raniere was sentenced to 120 years in prison for sex trafficking of children, conspiracy, and conspiracy to commit forced labor. [42][270], Barbara Bouchey was a client of Nancy Salzman, having been referred to her in 1988. Celebratory in the sense that I am here, I am alive. She was sentenced to three years in prison on June 30. [120], Later in March 2019, Lauren Salzman pleaded guilty to racketeering and racketeering conspiracy; she later testified against Raniere and received leniency. [10][11] At its height, NXIVM had 700 active members. Here's where she is today. [29][99] He was arrested in Mexico and held in custody in New York after appearing in federal court in Fort Worth, Texas. That happened when his wife Bonnie Piesse told Vicente she felt something was off about Raniere and was leaving the organization herself in 2017. Yet this cannot be done without first raising human awareness, fostering an ethical humanitarianism, and celebrating what it truly means to be human - and this is our mission. Vicente, her husband, asked her to give her career another chance after taking NXIVM self-help courses. He falsely told followers that he was a scientist and that he had created a unique self-help method that would help anyone achieve their personal and professionals aspirations. The Lost Women of Nxivm Pro-NXIVM Website, 'Let's Not Be Frank'; Nancy Pays $150K and Other NXIVM News March 14, 2022 Damon Brink starts new website that is decidedly not the Frank Report. So here I am at 55. [152], Ahead of his sentencing, prosecutors submitted a number of Raniere's communications and disciplinary issues in prison as evidence of remorselessness and that he continues to control his followers. [236][237][238], Clare Bronfman, daughter of billionaire Seagrams chairman Edgar Bronfman Sr., was introduced to NXIVM by her sister Sara. [51] Mack was further alleged to be DOS's second-in-command after Raniere. The company is listed as a "public relations" firm by the website of the City of Irvine (where it holds a business license). [61][62][63], In October 2003, Forbes published a critical article on NXIVM and Raniere. [39][40], Before founding NXIVM, Raniere created Consumers Buyline, a business venture that the New York Attorney General accused of having been a pyramid scheme; Raniere signed a consent order in 1996 in which he denied any wrongdoing but agreed to pay a $40,000 fine and to be permanently banned from "promoting, offering or granting participation in a chain distribution scheme". NXIVM is a secretive self-help organization based in Albany that was founded by Keith Raniere and Nancy Salzman. [214], Pam Cafritz,[244][245] daughter of Washington, D.C., socialites Buffy and William Cafritz. This is the story about NXIVM and the disappearance of Kristin Snyder. [226][227], Edgar Boone, the scion of a wealthy family, introduced NXIVM to numerous affluent Mexicans, becoming head of NXIVM-Mexico and rising to third in the NXIVM organization. In March 2018, FBI tracked Raniere down to a $10,000-a-week villa in a gated community near Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, where he was staying with several womenincluding Mackwho ran after the .