Seagram Heiress Clare Bronfman Pleads Guilty in NXIVM Case

All but the group's leader have since pleaded guilty

Clare Bronfman (C), leaves Federal court in the Brooklyn borough of New York, on April 19, 2019. Mary Altaffer/AP Photo

Seagram liquor heiress Clare Bronfman—a top-ranking member of the purported self-help organization NXIVM—has pleaded guilty to harboring an illegal alien for unpaid labor and enabling credit card fraud, following in the footsteps of her former colleagues.

Bronfman, a member of NXIVM’s executive board, entered her plea on the two criminal counts before District Judge Nicholas Garaufis on April 19. An accountant for the group, Kathy Russell, pleaded guilty on the same day to a fraud charge. The high-profile case first gained infamy last year due to egregious sex-trafficking charges involving sex slaves.

Of the six people named in a superseding indictment last year, all but the group’s leader, Keith Raniere, have since pleaded guilty to an array of charges including forced labor, sex trafficking, and extortion. Raniere will now face a jury by himself.

In her plea, Bronfman admitted to harboring a woman brought to the United States on a fake work visa so she could use the woman’s labor for her own and the group’s benefit. Bronfman also said she committed fraud on behalf of Raniere by using a deceased woman’s credit card.

Bronfman, 40, is the daughter of late billionaire philanthropist and former Seagram chairman Edgar Bronfman Sr. The heiress told the judge that she joined NXIVM with good intentions, but ended up dishonoring her family.

The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, in the Brooklyn borough of New York City on Feb. 7, 2019. Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Legal Council representing Keith Raniere and the group NXIVM Mark Agnifilo and Paul DerOhannesian outside the United States Eastern District Court in Brooklyn, New York City, on May 4, 2018. Jemal Countess/Getty Images

“I wanted to do good in the world and help people,” she said in court. “However, I have made mistakes.”

As part of her plea, Bronfman agreed to forfeit $6 million and not to appeal any prison sentence of 27 months or less. She said she was “truly remorseful.”

Bronfman’s lawyer, Mark Geragos, said after the hearing that his client did not have an agreement to cooperate with prosecutors.