Keith Raniere, 58, founder of the purported self-help company Nxivm, was found guilty of racketeering, sex trafficking and other crimes.
During six weeks of testimony, group members told the jury they were pressured to have sex with him, and were ceremonially branded near their bikini lines — only to realize later that their skin was marked with Raniere's initials. Witnesses maintain they were blackmailed into silence after being asked to turn damaging personal information over to their “masters.”
"The defendant tapped into a never-ending flow of women and money," prosecutor Moira Penza told jurors in closing arguments on Monday. "(He was) a crime boss with no limits and no checks on his power."
Raniere had pleaded not guilty to charges including racketeering, sex trafficking, sexual exploitation of a child and human trafficking. He did not testify in the case and his defense attorney did not call any witnesses, but his attorney has argued that his relationships with Nxivm followers were consensual.
“You may find him repulsive, disgusting and offensive. We don’t convict people in this country for being repulsive or offensive,” defense attorney Marc Agnifilo said. “Unpopular ideas aren’t criminal. Disgusting ideas aren’t criminal.”