Leader of sex cult to pay $3.5M in restitution

Keith Raniere, the NXIVM sadistic sex-cult leader who preyed on naive women, has been ordered to pay his victims almost US$3.5 million in restitution.

Raniere, who is currently serving 120 years behind bars, appeared in court by video from the federal prison in Tucson, Ariz., with a grin on his face behind a white face mask, and was doodling as the judge handed down the fines. But he appeared far from happy as the millions started piling up.

The largest amount — US$508,000 — was reserved for a victim identified as Camila, who previously accused Raniere of raping her in 2015, when she was a 15-year-old virgin.

He also had sex with her two sisters, and all three became pregnant. Raniere forced them to get abortions.

The judge said more than 100 victims of Raniere's had submitted claims seeking about US$133 million, CNN reported, but he narrowed the scope of the restitution payments to 17 victims for a total of about $3.46 million, which he ordered Raniere to pay immediately.

Raniere spoke briefly when he was told his victims wanted back the nude photos and videotapes he collected.

“I never handled the collateral,” Raniere said. “I know nothing about it. I don't have it. I don't know who the victims are. I don't know what they're asking.”

Raniere, who turned brainwashed women into sex slaves he branded like cattle and forced to sleep with him, had already been ordered to pay a US$1.75 million fine at his sentencing in October 2020.

The judge also ordered that victims who were branded receive about US$2,500 for costs associated with removing their brands, and ordered many of the victims to receive restitution payments to cover the costs of past and future mental health services, saying Raniere was a “predominant inflictor of psychological torture.”

As well, Smallville TV show actress Allison Mack, 38, was sentenced to three years in prison for her role in recruiting women to NXIVM. She is expected to begin serving her sentence for racketeering and conspiracy on Sept. 29.

Before being sentenced, Mack tearfully apologized to her victims and her family, saying her actions while in the group were “abusive, abhorrent and illegal.” She said she had completely renounced Raniere, and helped prosecutors convict him by handing over audio and emails.

“Coming out from under this delusion has been the most difficult experience of my life,” she said.

Mack recently said she has experienced “overwhelming shame” and called her time as part of the NXIVM cult “the biggest mistake and greatest regret of my life.”