Co-founder of sex cult Nxivm sentenced to 42 months in prison

The former president and co-founder of the sex cult Nxivm was sentenced to 42 months in prison on Wednesday for her involvement in the group, according to the Justice Department.

Prosecutors said that Nancy Salzman, who was known as “Prefect” to members, “agreed to unlawfully surveil … perceived enemies [of Nxivm] in an attempt to gain advantage over them and stop them from criticizing the company.”

Prosecutors also said she unlawfully doctored videotapes that were requested as evidence for a New Jersey federal lawsuit.

In 2019, she pleaded guilty to a conspiracy charge, according to NBC News.

The sex cult Nxivm, which was initially branded as a self-help organization in the 1990s, soon became infamous for allegations of sexual abuse, according to The New York Times. Prosecutors alleged that women were being forced to perform sex and being branded, according to The Associated Press.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the ​​Eastern District of New York said in a statement on Wednesday that Salzman had also been ordered to pay a fine of $150,000 and had to forfeit several assets, including properties, a Steinway grand piano and over $500,000 in cash.

“In her misguided loyalty and blind allegiance to Keith Raniere, the defendant engaged in a racketeering conspiracy designed to intimidate Nxivm’s detractors and that inflicted harm on Nxivm’s members,” Acting U.S. Attorney Kasulis said in a statement.

“Today’s sentence holds the defendant accountable for her crimes and we hope that it brings some measure of closure to the vulnerable women who were victimized and abused,” Kasulis added.

In a statement to the court on Wednesday, Salzman said, “I apologize to everyone I hurt, intentionally and not,” according to The Times.  “I don’t know that I can ever forgive myself.”

Salzman claimed that she overlooked any wrongdoing and started rationalizing her actions because she was under the influence of Raniere, a co-founder of the group.

Prior to the ruling, Salzman’s lawyers said that she had assumed “responsibility for enabling the horrific crimes Raniere committed, even where she lacked any knowledge of their commission or nature,” according to the newspaper. They had asked for a home confinement sentencing of two years.

They also said that incarceration would hinder her ability to take are of her mother, who had poor health.

The Hill has reached out to Salzman’s lawyers for comment.