'There's a difference between being branded and getting a brand. Scarification is an art': Five NXIVM members defend leader Keith Raniere on live TV and say he was wrongfully convicted of turning followers into sex slaves
Five members of the alleged NXIVM sex cult have said they believe their former leader Keith Raniere was wrongly convicted and deny that their self-improvement group was cult-like.
Raniere, the former leader of NXIVM who is due to be sentenced next month, was convicted last year on charges he turned some of his followers into sex slaves.
In an interview with CBS News that aired on Tuesday, five members - two women and three men - spoke out in Raniere's defense.
They denied that NXIVM was a cult despite some former members publicly claiming it was.
Raniere is awaiting sentencing on charges including sex trafficking of children, conspiracy and conspiracy to commit forced labor.
Five members of the alleged NXIVM sex cult have said they believe their former leader Keith Raniere was wrongly convicted and deny that their self-improvement group was cult-like. The two women who spoke out in Raniere's defense, Nicki Clyne (far right) and Michele Hatchette (third from right), refused to say if they were branded with his initials
Keith Raniere, the former leader of an alleged cult known as #Nxivm, is set to be sentenced next month on charges that include sex trafficking.@NikkiBattiste spoke exclusively with former members of Nxivm & Raniere's supporters, who claim he should not have been convicted. pic.twitter.com/sFxigHL6BN
— CBS This Morning (@CBSThisMorning) September 29, 2020
Keith Raniere, the former leader of an alleged cult known as #Nxivm, is set to be sentenced next month on charges that include sex trafficking.@NikkiBattiste spoke exclusively with former members of Nxivm & Raniere's supporters, who claim he should not have been convicted. pic.twitter.com/sFxigHL6BN
He started NXIVM in the 1990s in upstate New York as a self-improvement group that expanded across the country.
Prosecutors allege that Raniere started a secret branch, known as the DOS, in about 2015 that was just for women.
Prosecutors say the secret society was comprised of brainwashed female 'slaves' who were branded with his initials and forced to have sex with him.
His adherents included Smallville actress Allison Mack and Seagram's liquor fortune heiress Clare Bronfman.
Both women have pleaded guilty to assisting the conspiracy and are awaiting sentencing.
The two women who spoke out in Raniere's defense on Tuesday are former Battlestar Galactica actress Nicki Clyne, who is also married to Mack, and Michele Hatchette.
Both said they were members of DOS - the alleged sex cult branch.
Raniere, the former leader of NXIVM who is due to be sentenced next month, was convicted last year on charges he turned some of his followers into sex slaves
Nicki Clyne is married to Smallville actress Allison Mack - who is one of Raniere's adherents. Mack is awaiting sentencing for her role
They refused to say whether they were branded with Raniere's initials or whether they had had sex with the former leader.
A former member of the group had claimed Clyne acted as a recruiter for Raniere but she was never charged with any crimes.
'We're not denying that certain things took place. There is evidence that certain things happened. How they happened, why they happened and why certain people chose them is a whole another conversation,' Clyne said.
'It's very unfortunate the way the word NXIVM has been applied and is now synonymous with the term sex cult. I don't even know how to define what that is.'
Speaking of the branding, Hatchette said: 'I think there's a different between being branded and getting a brand. Scarification is an art...'
When asked whether she had sex with Raniere, Hatchette said: 'We want to talk about DOS... I just want to step back a little. If I went up to you and asked how many people you had sex with, it's none of my business.
'And we've been in a position where our personal lives have been made public without our permission.'
Seagram's liquor fortune heiress Clare Bronfman, who is also one of Raniere's adherents, is due to be sentenced on Wednesday
The five members said the continue to stand by NXIVM and Raniere.
They believe Raniere was convicted based on a trial by media and have suggested there was prosecutorial misconduct involved in his case.
'When people say, "Well, why would you believe in someone if they were convicted?" Well, it's because that system might not be working anymore,' Eduardo Asunsolo said.
Asunsolo said he believes the former leader is innocent.
'Even if you do believe someone is guilty, then you can still stand by them because you love them, because you're a friend of theirs,' he said.
In a submission to the court earlier this month, Raniere's lawyers said he had no remorse and stands by his innocence.
He has accused the government of misconduct and says he deserves a new trial.
Bronfman is scheduled to be sentenced on Wednesday. Prosecutors are demanding she serve five years in prison.
Mack is still awaiting sentencing and Raniere's sentencing is scheduled for October 27.