Accused NXIVM sex cult leader Keith Raniere has been found guilty of sex trafficking
The accused leader of sex cult NXIVM Keith Raniere has been found guilty of all charges against him.
Raniere, 58, was convicted of all counts, including racketeering, sex trafficking and child pornography by a jury after a six-week trial in Brooklyn, New York.
Back in April this year, Smallville actress Allison Mack pleaded guilty to racketeering and racketeering conspiracy charges in relation to the suspected sex cult disguised as a women's self-help group.
NXIVM first hit the headlines in 2017 when former members alleged it was a cult which coerced women into having sex with founder Raniere.
In a New York Times exposé, former recruit Sarah Edmondson claimed she and fellow followers were branded with the founder's initials and required to provide nude photos or other potentially damaging information about themselves as 'collateral' for a secret women's sect within NXIVM called DOS.
Edmondson alleges that female members were expected to have sex with Raniere and were were urged to follow near-starvation diets to adhere to the size and physicality Raniere reportedly found 'appealing'.
She details the same allegations in CBC documentarian Josh Bloch's podcast Uncover: Escaping NXIVM.
It's alleged that Mack was one of Raniere's top female deputies and recruited women into the group.
In court back in April 9, Mack said that under Raniere's command, she obtained compromising information and images of two unidentified women – known as 'collateral' within the group – which she threatened to make public if they didn't perform "so-called acts of love" (via The Guardian).
What is NXIVM?
NXIVM began in 1998, describing itself as "a company whose mission is to raise human awareness, foster an ethical humanitarian civilization, and celebrate what it means to be human". Based in Albany, it also advocated itself as "a community guided by humanitarian principles that seek to empower people".
Since 2017, it has been the subject of damning allegations, such as the coercion of its members into sexual slavery.
The website announced that it was suspending all NXIVM/ESP enrollment, curriculum and events in the wake of the allegations and charges being brought against former members.
"While we are disappointed by the interruption of our operations, we believe it is warranted by the extraordinary circumstances facing the company at this time. We continue to believe in the value and importance of our work and look forward to resuming our efforts when these allegations are resolved," a message on the site reads.
Its tagline reads "working to build a better world", but leader Raniere is accused of overseeing a "slave and master" system within the group.
The BBC reports that prosecutors allege the group mirrors a pyramid scheme, in which members paid thousands of dollars for courses to rise within its ranks.
How did Allison Mack get involved?
Mack joined the Vancouver chapter of NXIVM Vancouver along with her Smallville co-star Kristin Kreuk around 2006 (via The Hollywood Reporter).
"She was so hungry for something bigger, some kind of sign [that would show] the purpose and meaning of life," actress Christine Lakin told THR.
The publication reports that businesswoman and senior NXIVM executive Barbara Bouchey - who left the group in 2009 - had been pushing NXIVM into Vancouver's film and TV community.
"It was really Bouchey that put her under her spell," Mack's former roommate said. "I heard three years of how wonderful Barbara Bouchey was and how she was so great with business.
"Allison had such a desire to be a strong businesswoman and have a mentor."
The 36-year-old actress has been accused of recruiting women into the group under the false pretences that it was a female mentorship group which championed female empowerment - when in fact recruits were allegedly coerced into having sex with the group's supposed spiritual leader Keith Raniere.
It's also alleged that the group introduced the barbaric practice of branding, which Mack first created. In June 2017, investigative reporter Frank Parlato reported that Mack's initials were branded on women's pubic regions.
What are the charges against Allison Mack?
On April 9, Mack pleaded guilty to racketeering (coercion crimes) and racketeering conspiracy charges related to suspected sex cult.
"I believed Keith Raniere's intentions were to help people", Mack said in court on 8 April (via BBC). "I was wrong."
Mack admitted to recruiting women by telling them they were joining a female mentorship group in a statement, and added: "I must take full responsibility for my conduct."
She had previously pleaded not guilty in April 2018 to charges including sex trafficking, conspiracy to commit sex trafficking and forced labour. She is scheduled to be sentenced in September and will face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for each of the two charges.
Co-founder of the group, Nancy Salzman, 65, has also pleaded guilty to charges of racketeering. She is due to be sentenced in July.
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