What is NXIVM (pronounced nek-see-um)? NXIVM was started in 1998 in the upstate NY area by disgraced multi-level-marketer Keith Raniere and bills itself as an organization for personal development that trains people in "human empowerment". In March 2018, Raniere and five of his top inner-circle were indicted by Federal authorities on a variety of charges related to racketeering, conspiracy, money-laundering, sex offenses, human trafficking, and more. The five other women have all pleaded out around April, leaving Raniere as the only person at the jury trial that started on May 7th. Raniere and his top lieutenants have long, deep ties to many NY politicians including Clinton, Gillibrand, Cuomo, and others. The news media is barely reporting this story for obvious reasons. Previous NXIVM updates can be found on my homepage Here.
The trial will not resume until Wednesday this week, June 5th, to accommodate the post-Ramadan Eid al Fitr holiday. I don't know if this is a routine holiday in NYC, but there are several muslim jurors. Today's update will settle up testimonies through last Friday, when three witnesses were called. Over the weekend, some other juicy morsels became available for us to gnosh on until trial resumes.
Counsel for the defense, Marc Agnifilo, completed his cross-examination of witness and former Raniere slave, Dani. There was a very brief re-direct after defense finished. Agnifilo was pointing out pictures where Dani was with her family and smiling, implying that Dani was happy in NXIVM. We can't imagine the jury falling for it, after so many days of Dani describing years-long abuse ending with 'exile' in Mexico with no family, no documents and no money. Dani also confirmed that she has received no deal from authorities for her testimony - she's doing it for "justice" she says. Probably closure too in our opinion. The next witness called by the prosecution is a retired nurse who worked at the clinic where Dani, her sisters, and other Raniere slaves, were administered abortions of Keith's children. Dianne Lipson, court observer and correspondent, gives a detailed summary of the proceedings.
A couple more rulings from Judge Garaufis are now known. First, a 'Jane Doe X' witness for the prosecution will not be allowed to testify. Her name is Rhiannon. She claims when she was 12 in 1992, that Raniere (then 31) raped her approximately 60 times over the course of months. She reported this to police at the time. They wanted her to wear a wire. She was afraid and declined to press the matter further, so the cops dropped it as well. That is one of the earliest times Raniere was exposed to law enforcement that could have changed his course in life and prevented many other crimes. The judge is allowing prosecution to introduce evidence that Raniere used his 'first line slaves' to recruit, groom, and entrap sexual partners for Raniere going back decades. The judge is allowing evidence of Camilla, Dani's younger sister. That means the criminal acts of Raniere (photography, rape) against Cami when she was underage will be presented by the prosecution. In another possible coup by the prosecution, Karen Unterreiner is a cooperating witness. She goes back decades with Raniere and knew about both Rhiannon and Cami. If and when she testifies, will Rhiannon's name come up? Probably, but Rhiannon herself won't testify.
Raniere with inner circle. (L to R) Nancy Salzman, Keith Raniere, Karen Unterreiner, Lauren Salzman
Kathy Russell, the quiet NXIVM bookkeeper may not have been the demure, mousy, type person she projects. The third witness called Friday was Shiela Jelonek, she was Kathy's landlady and rented to her. Kathy rented from Shiela for about seven years before she was arrested. Kathy always paid one year in advance, in cash, in a paperbag, at a local Starbucks. She also used a false name (Kathy O'Shaunessy). At the end of the 2018 lease, the landlady couldn't get a hold of Kathy Russell/O'Shaunnessy, so went to the house. Still with no contact, the landlady came to the house with a video camera and recorded it, thinking she would need to evict Kathy. Kathy got in touch shortly after that (around the time of her arrest) and the landlady ended up not having to evict. The video tape, however, has been entered into evidence by the prosecution [Warning: mature language at link]. It turns out however, that the camera tripod in the bedroom, and the dirty words spelled out in magnets on the fridge, might not be Kathy. The landlady said she never or rarely saw Kathy there. Instead she did meet Daniela Padilla, one of Keith's inner circle slaves and NOT the "Dani" that has been testifying. Ms. Padilla was the one buying hundreds of dollars of bondage sex toys. So, was it Kathy Russell or Daniela Padilla living there? We'll just label them Freak 1 and Freak 2 until that's clarified.
Late last week and over the weekend, several other observers have been offering insights on Raniere in court and in jail. First out of the chute is a doctoral candidate-student in psychology who was in the jury pool but rejected. She gives us reflections of her experience in jury selection and the general mood of things in the group [Warning: Adult language at link]. Her descriptions make me very optimistic about the ultimate decision of the jury. Next up is a former NXIVM member and business associate of Raniere and the Bronfman sisters named Joe O'Hara. Clare and Sara gave him money for a land deal in California (that failed) and they sued him into bankrupt oblivion. Joe left the cult back around 2004 and pulls no punches insulting Raniere and NXIVM. It's a real feel-good story. That's two feel-goods in a row! We're feeling good!
Still not feeling good enough basking in the warm glow of schadenfreude? Let's have a look at how Keith Raniere, aka "Vanguard" is doing in jail. He's not doing well. His incarceration began last Spring after his extradition from Mexico. He's been held in the Metropolitan Detention Center in Manhattan. Frequently beat up, probably just because of his nature, he's spent a lot of time alone. Most of the time, he's in the sexual offender unit, or in isolation. No reports of black eyes yet during the trial though. He is not one to do well behind bars. And during the trial, with transport to and from courthouse and jail, it's not getting any better for him.
It’s a shame that Raniere isn’t enjoying his stay during the trial
Or is it?
Thx for the updates.
Not seeing anything new but a good tread for anyone wanting to get up to date on what is happening. Lots of images.
Dude, you’re on fire. I don’t post to you much, but have been following your NXIVM posts with great interest.
Thank you for the report, with many cheering pieces of info. Probably you’ve touched on this already, but do you know either in fact or theoretically, what kind of deals the cooperating arrestees get? I really hope they don’t get off with no prison time. They were guilty of horrible crimes.