A self-help guru and a leader of sex cult found guilty

Npnews24 Online, New York: Keith Raniere (58) convicted after a six week trial in Brooklyn, New York. He allegedly oversaw a ‘slave and master’ system in his group, called Nxivm (pronounced Nexium).

During his trial, the court heard how female recruits in the group were branded with his initials and coerced into having sex with Raniere.

Raniere was arrested by the FBI in Mexico last year. Raniere forced his “slaves” to give him nude photos of themselves and other compromising materials, telling them they would be made public if they disobeyed him, he ran a secret society within Nxivm called DOS, the court heard. His defense team said the alleged sexual relationships were consensual.

As the “grandmaster” of DOS, he was a “predator” who exploited and blackmailed women, including a 15-year-old girl, prosecutors alleged.

Every August, Nxivm members – called “Nixians” – would dole out $2,000 (£1,575) or more to gather in Silver Bay, New York to celebrate Raniere’s birthday week, according to court documents

Another former member of the alleged sex cult, identified by prosecutors as Daniela, testified she was “groomed” for weeks before she turned 18 for Raniere to take her virginity.

In her closing arguments, prosecutor Moira Penza said Raniere was a “crime boss with no limits” who “tapped into a never-ending flow of women and money”.

Five female members of Nxivm – including a liquor heiress and an actress – have pleaded guilty to a series of charges for their involvement.

The most high profile of these was the former Smallville star, ‘Allison Mack’.

In April she pleaded guilty to racketeering and racketeering conspiracy charges, despite previously denying the accusations. Mack admitted to recruiting women by telling them they were joining a female mentorship group.

She is now scheduled to be sentenced in September and will face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison for each of the two charges.