Keith Raniere’s defense team had suggested that a 15-year prison sentence would be appropriate. (File)
New York:
A self-help guru convicted of running a sectarian sex slave organization bearing his initials was sentenced to 120 years in prison by a New York judge on Tuesday.
Keith Raniere, 60, effective life sentence comes after being convicted of coercing women into having sex with him as a charismatic leader of Nxivm, a life coaching group that has attracted a coterie of the rich and famous.
Followers signed up for $ 5,000, five-day self-help classes, but some were subsequently financially and sexually exploited and forced into restrictive diets, such as Raniere – known as “Vanguard” – a exercised control, according to his six-week trial. .
He created a faction within the group called DOS, a pyramid structure in which women were “slaves” and “Grandmaster” Raniere sat at the top.
The “slaves” were forced to have sex with Raniere, hand over compromising personal information and photos – and some women were labeled as cattle while other members held them down.
Raniere was convicted in June 2019 of seven counts against him, including racketeering, sex trafficking, extortion, criminal conspiracy and sexual exploitation of a 15-year-old girl.
“I was a child. (It) stole my youth from me, ”the woman said during an impact statement at the sentencing hearing.
A total of 15 people – including 13 women – approached Brooklyn court on Tuesday while more than 90 victims wrote letters to Judge Nicholas Garaufis.
Nxivm – pronounced Nexium – proved to be a huge draw with its promise of self-improvement courses after Raniere founded the organization in New York State in 1998.
But Raniere, who was arrested in Mexico in 2018, swapped personal development training classes for sexual sessions as the leader of a subgroup of up to 20 women – the youngest of whom was the 15-year-old. .
Heiress
The dramatic story has been the subject of two screen adaptations: HBO’s recently released documentary “The Vow” and “Escaping the Nxivm Cult,” a 2019 Lisa Robinson film focused on the testimony of a mother working to save her daughter from the organization. .
Addressing the court on Tuesday, Raniere said he was “deeply sorry” for the “pain and anger” his victims had expressed but maintained his innocence.
“I have no remorse over the accusations. It is not fair,” he added.
Five other people have been charged in this case and all have pleaded guilty.
German-born American actress Allison Mack – known for her role in “Smallville” – admitted two counts of racketeering in April 2019.
Heir to the Canadian Seagram beverage empire, Clare Bronfman, was convicted last month after also pleading guilty.
The 41-year-old has been accused of using more than $ 100 million of her estimated net worth of $ 2.6 billion to fund the group and has been sentenced to more than six years in prison.
Following Raniere’s conviction, New York Attorney Richard Donoghue said the proceedings “revealed that Raniere, who presented himself as a scholar and genius, was in fact a master manipulator, a crook and the crime boss of ‘a sectarian organization. “
Prosecutors had called for life imprisonment, accusing Raniere of “total denial of guilt.”
Citing post-conviction calls and emails, the prosecution said Raniere had touted his organization as a “good” thing, wondering “who will carry this torch of light on?”
Raniere’s defense team – which unsuccessfully asked the jury to focus on whether his actions were legal, even if they found them immoral – had suggested that a 15-year prison sentence would be appropriate.
(Except for the title, this story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is posted from a syndicated feed.)
