Keith Raniere

Keith Raniere
Raniere posing for a mugshot
Raniere's 2019 mugshot
Born
Keith Allen Raniere

(1960-08-26) August 26, 1960 (age 64)
Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Alma materRensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Known forFounder of NXIVM
Criminal statusIncarcerated
Conviction(s)
  • Sex trafficking[1]
  • Attempted sex trafficking
  • Sex trafficking conspiracy
  • Racketeering conspiracy
  • Forced labor conspiracy
  • Wire fraud conspiracy
  • Racketeering
Criminal penalty120 years' imprisonment; $1.75 million fine; $15,000 assessment pursuant to Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015; $3.5 million restitution to 21 victims pursuant to the Trafficking Victims Protection Act and Mandatory Victim Restitution Act
Details
Victims25 persons recognized by the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; 21 persons recognized by presiding judge
Date apprehended
March 26, 2018
Imprisoned atUnited States Penitentiary, Tucson

Keith Allen Raniere (/ræˈnjɛəri/; born August 26, 1960)[2] is an American cult leader who was convicted of a pattern of racketeering activity, including human trafficking, sex offenses and fraud. Raniere co-founded NXIVM, a purported self-help multi-level marketing company offering personal development seminars and headquartered in Albany, New York. Operating from 1998 to 2018, NXIVM had 700 members at its height, including celebrities and the wealthy.[3][4][5] Within NXIVM, Raniere was referred to as "Vanguard".[6]

Scholars in the fields of religious studies, law, and sociology describe NXIVM as a cult.[7][8][9][10] Mental health professionals and cult experts such as Rick Alan Ross, Diane Benscoter, and Steve Hassan have called Raniere a cult leader who manipulates and exerts coercive control over his followers.[11][12][13] Multiple women have said they were sexually abused by Raniere, including three who have reported being underage at the time of the abuse.[14]

In 2018, reports of abuse related to a secret society within NXIVM, known as "DOS" or "the Vow", led to the arrests of Raniere and five other NXIVM associates.[6][15][16] On June 19, 2019, a jury in the Eastern District of New York convicted Raniere of racketeering for a pattern of crimes, including the sexual exploitation of a child, sex trafficking of women and conspiracy to commit forced labor.[1][17] The court received more than 100 victim impact statements detailing the harm Raniere caused.[18][19] On October 27, 2020, Judge Nicholas Garaufis sentenced Raniere to 120 years' incarceration and a $1.75 million fine.[20][21]

  1. ^ a b "Jury Finds Nxivm Leader Keith Raniere Guilty of All Counts". Department of Justice. June 19, 2019.
  2. ^ Barcella, Laura (March 28, 2018). "NXIVM: What We Know About Alleged Sex Trafficking, Forced Labor". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on June 12, 2018. Retrieved April 20, 2018.
  3. ^ Odato, James M. (February 12, 2012). "NXIVM courts rich, powerful and influential". Times Union. Retrieved November 2, 2022.
  4. ^ Chavez, Nicole (May 24, 2019). "These are the people involved in the scandal around alleged sex cult inside Nxivm". CNN. Retrieved July 20, 2022.
  5. ^ Harnish, Amelia (June 30, 2018). ""At This Point We Are In Despair": One Woman's Quest To Bring Her Brother Home From NXIVM". Refinery29.
  6. ^ a b "Founder Of "Nxivm," a Purported Self-Help Organization, and Five Others Charged in Superseding Indictment with Racketeering Conspiracy". Department of Justice. July 24, 2018.
  7. ^ Palmer, Susan J. (2021). "NXIVM and #MeToo". Nova Religio. 24 (4): 104–112. doi:10.1525/nr.2021.24.4.104. ISSN 1541-8480. S2CID 236615977.
  8. ^ Boyle, Robin (2021). "Preventing Predatory Alienation by High-Control Groups: The Application of Human Trafficking Laws to Groups Popularly Known as Cults, and Proposed Changes to Laws Regarding Federal Immigration, State Child Marriage, and Undue Influence". International Journal of Coercion, Abuse and Manipulation. 1 (2). Rochester, NY. SSRN 3871858 – via SSRN.
  9. ^ Kent, Stephen A. (2021). "IJCAM – Introduction – Comparative Reflections on Scientology and NXIVM". ijcam.org. Retrieved November 2, 2022.
  10. ^ Raine, Susan (2021). "Narcissistic sexual predation: Keith Raniere's grooming practices in NXIVM". International Journal of Coercion, Abuse, and Manipulation. 1: 41–59. doi:10.54208/0002/003. hdl:20.500.14078/2857. S2CID 246921565 – via Research Online at MacEwan.
  11. ^ Naftulin, Julia (September 25, 2020). "The 3 main personality traits of cult leaders, according to a cult-recovery therapist". Insider. Archived from the original on March 16, 2024.
  12. ^ Stein, Alexandra (June 20, 2019). "Keith Raniere Nxivm trial: Why it's so hard to stop a cult". BBC. Archived from the original on June 20, 2019.
  13. ^ Schwartz, Drew (September 12, 2020). "Why So Many Celebrities Joined NXIVM, According to Cult Experts". Vice. Archived from the original on October 17, 2020.
  14. ^ Odato, James M.; Gish, Jennifer (February 11, 2012). "Secrets of NXIVM". Times Union. Archived from the original on September 30, 2020.
  15. ^ Correa, Carla (July 5, 2023). "A Timeline of the Nxivm Sex Cult Case". The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 10, 2023.
  16. ^ "Leader of NY Group Branded Women, Made Them Sex Slaves: Feds". Associated Press. March 26, 2018. Retrieved April 21, 2018 – via WNBC.
  17. ^ Moynihan, Colin (June 19, 2019). "Nxivm's Keith Raniere Convicted in Trial Exposing Sex Cult's Inner Workings". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 19, 2019.
  18. ^ Cangro, Jaclyn (October 28, 2020). ""I Survived": Keith Raniere's Victims Get Closure After Sentencing". Spectrum News. Archived from the original on February 8, 2023.
  19. ^ Berman, Sarah (October 27, 2020). "NXIVM Survivor India Oxenberg on Why She Didn't Believe She Was Brainwashed". Vice. Archived from the original on October 26, 2020.
  20. ^ Hong, Nicole; Piccoli, Sean (October 27, 2020). "Keith Raniere, Leader of Nxivm Sex Cult, Is Sentenced to 120 Years in Prison". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on October 27, 2020.
  21. ^ "NXIVM Leader Keith Raniere Sentenced to 120 Years in Prison for Racketeering and Sex Trafficking Offenses". Department of Justice. October 27, 2020. Retrieved July 2, 2021.