Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
NXIVM head Keith Raniere sentenced to 120 years in prison
Source: Associated Press
NXIVM head Keith Raniere sentenced to 120 years in prison
By LARRY NEUMEISTER and TOM HAYS
October 27, 2020
NEW YORK (AP) — Disgraced self-improvement guru Keith Raniere, whose NXIVM followers included millionaires and Hollywood actors, was sentenced to 120 years on Tuesday for turning some adherents into sex slaves branded with his initials.
U.S. District Judge Nicholas Garaufis handed down the sentence in federal court in Brooklyn after a lengthy hearing featuring statements by victims of a sex-trafficking conspiracy that resulted in Raniere’s conviction last year.
Prosecutors had sought life in prison while defense lawyers said he should face 15 years behind bars.
Raniere, 60, had shown no remorse, with his lawyers telling the judge before the sentencing that their client wasn’t sorry “for his conduct or his choices.”
The sentencing culminated several years of revelations about Raniere’s program, NXIVM, which charged thousands of dollars for invitation-only self improvement courses at its headquarters near Albany, New York, along with branches in Mexico and Canada. Adherents included millionaires and Hollywood actresses willing to endure humiliation and pledge obedience to the defendant as part of his teachings.
-snip-
By LARRY NEUMEISTER and TOM HAYS
October 27, 2020
NEW YORK (AP) — Disgraced self-improvement guru Keith Raniere, whose NXIVM followers included millionaires and Hollywood actors, was sentenced to 120 years on Tuesday for turning some adherents into sex slaves branded with his initials.
U.S. District Judge Nicholas Garaufis handed down the sentence in federal court in Brooklyn after a lengthy hearing featuring statements by victims of a sex-trafficking conspiracy that resulted in Raniere’s conviction last year.
Prosecutors had sought life in prison while defense lawyers said he should face 15 years behind bars.
Raniere, 60, had shown no remorse, with his lawyers telling the judge before the sentencing that their client wasn’t sorry “for his conduct or his choices.”
The sentencing culminated several years of revelations about Raniere’s program, NXIVM, which charged thousands of dollars for invitation-only self improvement courses at its headquarters near Albany, New York, along with branches in Mexico and Canada. Adherents included millionaires and Hollywood actresses willing to endure humiliation and pledge obedience to the defendant as part of his teachings.
-snip-
Read more: https://apnews.com/article/us-news-new-york-keith-raniere-brooklyn-sentencing-bfb00a8c6660b35e169b60d9a0b275ff
FILE - In this Tuesday, May 7, 2019, file courtroom drawing, defendant Keith Raniere, center, leader of the secretive group NXIVM, is seated between his attorneys Paul DerOhannesian, left, and Marc Agnifilo during the first day of his sex trafficking trial. Raniere, a self-improvement guru whose organization NXIVM attracted millionaires and actresses among its adherents, faces sentencing Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2020, on convictions that he turned some female followers into sex slaves branded with his initials. (Elizabeth Williams via AP, File)
1 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
= new reply since forum marked as read
