Allison Mack, best known for her role as Chloe Sullivan in the CW series ‘Smallville,’ gets sentenced to three years in prison for her involvement in the NXIVM sex-slave cult.
What We Know:
- Mack, 38, was arrested in 2018 on charges of sex trafficking, sex trafficking conspiracy, and forced labor conspiracy. In 2012, she became fully involved in NXIVM (pronounced NEX-ium), a “self-help” group that became a pyramid scheme and secret sex society. The group was founded by Keith Raniere, 60, in 1998, along with Nancy Salzman, who was a nurse and hypnotist. They would recruit mostly celebrities and wealthy men and women in various industries.
- Some notable members of NXIVM are Clare and Sara Bronfman, daughters of Seagram’s former chairman, the late Edgar Bronfman Sr. Edgar was also a part of the group but called it a cult when he noticed how much money Clare and Sara were putting into it. India Oxenberg, daughter of “Dynasty” actress Catherine Oxenberg, joined after she dropped out of college. Salzman’s daughter Laura was also heavily involved in the cult.
- Close to 18,000 people joined NXIVM from 1998 to 2018, with some becoming long-term members. Raniere would force his followers to call him “Vanguard” and branded the ladies on their pelvises with his initials. He would pressure them into having sex with him and put them on near-starvation diets to maintain his preferred body type on a woman. According to the New York Times, one of Raniere’s abuse victims was 15-years-old.
- In 2017, many members reached out to the New York State Police to look into the illegal works of The Vow or D.O.S– an acronym for “Lord/Master of the Obedient Female Companions.” This was an empowerment group with a master who had slaves, and those slaves had slaves. If a slave spoke on the group’s doings, then “collateral” information was released about them. The New York Times released a piece on NIXIVM and their branding process, which prompted a criminal investigation into the cult.
- Raniere was arrested in March 2018 for sex trafficking and was sentenced to 120 years in prison; the judge also required him to pay a $1.75 million fine. Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis (NY) took into account the testimonies of 15 witnesses, who spoke about how Raniere traumatized, brainwashed, and abused them.
- Mack, Salzman, and Clare were all charged due to their connection to NIXIVM. Last year, Mack, a high-ranking NIXIVM member, pleaded guilty to racketeering and racketeering conspiracy charges. Salzman pleaded guilty to identity theft and changing records to help sway the outcome of the case. Clare pleaded guilty to two charges of immigration fraud and identity theft and has been sentenced to 7 years in prison.
- On Monday, Mack released a letter expressing her remorse for getting involved in NIXIVM. She stated that she believed in Raniere and his teachings and that she was completely loyal to him, and being so was the biggest mistake of her life. Mack also wrote that she was sorry she exposed other individuals “to the nefarious and emotionally abusive schemes of a twisted man.”
- Mack began working with the government a week before pleading guilty on all charges and has been cooperative since. She gave “critical” evidence during the Raniere case- a recording of her and Raniere talking about the branding ceremonies- that helped seal Raniere’s fate. Since then, she did some work as a caterer, received her associate’s degree, and enrolled at the University of California- Berkely for her bachelor’s degree.
- Jessica Joan, an actress who joined NIXIVM in 2016, called Mack and Raniere “the most evil monsters I ever met.” She believes that Mack enjoyed causing harm to others and at times there were things Mack did that Raniere didn’t necessarily tell her to do. Joan also claims that Mack made her take nude photos of herself for Raniere and made her believe that having sex with him would cause all of her sexual abuse trauma to go away. Another woman, who only went by Nicole, considered her relationship with Mack “an abusive one.”
In court, Garaufis explained how Mack used her celebrity status to coerce people to join the cult, making her an “essential accomplice” to Raniere. Mack will remain under home confinement until September when she will be transferred to a federal facility to began her sentencing. Salzman will be sentenced on July 28th.
