DOJ’s View of NXIVM #5: Obstruction of Justice & Identity Theft Related to Tax Evasion 

Pam Cafritz, Raniere's partner of 30 years, who died of cancer in 2016.

More of the government’s view of NXIVM:

Obstruction of Justice

Keith Raniere obstructed justice by altering videotapes that were to be produced in discovery in a federal lawsuit involving Nxivm in New Jersey.

Operatives of NXIVM tried to lure Rick Ross on a cruise boat using a false identity. NXIVM agents illegally searched his property.

In 2003, Nxivm and affiliated entities filed suit against Stephanie Franco, a former Nxivm student, and Rick Ross, a cult
“deprogrammer” who testified for the government at Raniere’s trial.

The lawsuit alleged copyright infringement and centered on a claim that Franco had violated a non-disclosure agreement by providing Nxivm course materials to Ross, who published the course materials on his website.

In around 2008, Franco’s attorneys requested the production of certain videotapes in support of their claim that the Nxivm curriculum contained false statements and violated certain state consumer protection laws.

Mark Vicente and Keith Raniere

In June 2008, Raniere tasked Mark Vicente (who testified for the government at trial), among others, to alter videotapes and to remove certain segments from them without having the videotapes appear altered. Vicente was provided with videotapes from which he was instructed to remove content, including segments in which Nancy Salzman made unsubstantiated health claims about Nxivm’s curriculum.

These altered videotapes were then produced in discovery by Nxivm’s attorneys with the false claim that they were
provided in “unedited fashion.”

Nancy Salzman, AKA the Prefect made certain claims about NXIVM that some thought might best be omitted from discovery.

Identity Theft Related to Tax Evasion

Between approximately November 2016 and March 2018, Raniere and Bronfman conspired to commit identity theft in connection with Raniere’s continued use of a credit card account number and bank account number belonging to Pamela Cafritz, knowing Cafritz was deceased. This scheme was part of a long-standing practice of deliberately keeping money and assets out of Raniere’s name. (explaining that Raniere expressed desire to be “bankruptcy remote”).

Bronfman facilitated the scheme by arranging for regular payment of Cafritz’s credit card bills after she died on November 7, 2016.

Keith Raniere with Pamela Cafritz.
MK10ART’s Pam Cafritz

Among the charges on Cafritz’s credit card were charges to Amazon Marketplace, Restoration Hardware, a sock store in Brooklyn, Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman and Saks Direct. In total, approximately $135,000 was charged to Cafritz’s credit card from November 7, 2016, the date of her death, to February 8, 2018.

In addition, disbursements were made from Cafritz’s Key Bank account after she died. Approximately $320,305 in checks and $736,856 total disbursements were drawn from Cafritz’s account, which included payments to Kathy Russell.

Lauren Salzman, Pam Cafritz, Nancy Salzman and Keith Raniere at Vanguard Week. When Pam dies she left Raniere $8 million.

 

See other parts in this series:

DOJ’s View of NXIVM #1: Overview

DOJ’s View of NXIVM, #2: Sexual Exploitation of the Child Camila

DOJ’s View of NXIVM #3: Trafficking of Daniela for Labor and Services and Alien Smuggling

DOJ’s View of NXIVM #4: Identity Theft and Unlawful Surveillance – Family Spying on Family

DOJ’s View of NXIVM #5: Obstruction of Justice & Identity Theft Related to Tax Evasion 

DOJ’s View of NXIVM #6: The Secret Organization Known as DOS

DOJ’s View of NXIVM #7: Sex Trafficked Slave – Nicole

DOJ’s View of NXIVM #8: Jay, Sylvie and Actions After DOS Was Disclosed

About the author

Frank Parlato

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[…] DOJ’s View of NXIVM #5: Obstruction of Justice & Identity Theft Related to Tax Evasion  […]

carly s
carly s
1 year ago

Ask Nancy’s sister where the money went.

Anonymous
Anonymous
1 year ago
Reply to  carly s

You can’t anonymously mention….

…..A tidbit please.

Nice Guy
Nice Guy
1 year ago
Reply to  carly s

Is Nancy close to her sister? Nancy doesn’t strike me as the sisterly type.

About the Author

Frank Parlato is an investigative journalist.

His work has been cited in hundreds of news outlets, like The New York Times, The Daily Mail, VICE News, CBS News, Fox News, New York Post, New York Daily News, Oxygen, Rolling Stone, People Magazine, The Sun, The Times of London, CBS Inside Edition, among many others in all five continents.

His work to expose and take down NXIVM is featured in books like “Captive” by Catherine Oxenberg, “Scarred” by Sarah Edmonson, “The Program” by Toni Natalie, and “NXIVM. La Secta Que Sedujo al Poder en México” by Juan Alberto Vasquez.

Parlato has been prominently featured on HBO’s docuseries “The Vow” and was the lead investigator and coordinating producer for Investigation Discovery’s “The Lost Women of NXIVM.” Parlato was also credited in the Starz docuseries "Seduced" for saving 'slave' women from being branded and escaping the sex-slave cult known as DOS.

Additionally, Parlato’s coverage of the group OneTaste, starting in 2018, helped spark an FBI investigation, which led to indictments of two of its leaders in 2023.

Parlato appeared on the Nancy Grace Show, Beyond the Headlines with Gretchen Carlson, Dr. Oz, American Greed, Dateline NBC, and NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt, where Parlato conducted the first-ever interview with Keith Raniere after his arrest. This was ironic, as many credit Parlato as one of the primary architects of his arrest and the cratering of the cult he founded.

Parlato is a consulting producer and appears in TNT's The Heiress and the Sex Cult, which premiered on May 22, 2022. Most recently, he consulted and appeared on Tubi's "Branded and Brainwashed: Inside NXIVM," which aired January, 2023.

IMDb — Frank Parlato

Contact Frank with tips or for help.
Phone / Text: (305) 783-7083
Email: frankreport76@gmail.com

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