NEW YORK—The founder and leader behind the now-defunct organization NXIVM was also behind a branding ceremony that members of an internal secret society were forced to participate in, an audio recording played during the ongoing trial on May 22 revealed.
Keith Raniere, 58, has been charged for an array of crimes including sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy. He styled himself as the “grandmaster” of a secret society within NXIVM called “DOS,” while its members, all women, were his sexual “slaves.” The pyramid schemes the organization utilized were also Raniere’s creation. NXIVM presented itself as a company offering self-help classes.
