Kathy Russell takes plea deal – faces six to 12 months

04/19/2019 | Frank Parlato

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By Village Diane

Kathy Russell pleaded guilty today to one count of Visa Fraud.

Apparently she made one of more false statements regarding a Visa application for a Rainbow Cultural Garden nanny.

The government said she presented documents with false statements regarding a job description and salary on a Visa application.

Kathy faces a maximum of 10 years. However, the judge said her likely sentence is going to be six to 12 months. He said, she can only appeal if she is sentenced to 18 months or more.

She was wearing a dark gray suit.

Restitution and forfeiture for the nearly destitute former bookkeeper for Nxivm will be determined by the court.

In her allocution, she said she knowingly presented documents that contained fraudulent information in support of a Visa application for an foreign national.

“I’m very sorry for the trouble I have caused,” Kahty told the judge, her voice breaking. “I compromised my own principles.”

She said it contained false descriptions, false statements of a job description and a phony salary.

She mentioned Nxivm and Rainbow Cultural Gardens and said that an alien was promised a management position but ended up in Rainbow Cultural Gardens and was not getting the salary put on the application.

Kathy said she knew what she did was wrong and that she compromised her own principles. She was crying when she said that.

I did not hear her mention Keith Raniere.

She will be sentenced on July 31.

Afterward, her lawyer made a statement that Kathy Russell was “happy and relieved to get this painful chapter behind her. And she wants to be going forward to rebuild her life.”

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Kathy pleaded guilty to a single count of visa fraud. In 2014, she made false statements in a document to the United States Consulate in Mexico to help Loreta Garza Davila obtain a visa. Loreta, a DOS slave headed Rainbow Cultural Garden and was with Raniere in Mexico when he was arrested on MArch 26, 2018.

Photo Tom Gargiulo: KAthy Russell leaves court after pleading guilty to one count of Visa fraud.

Tanya Hajjar (m) and Moira Kim Penza (r) - Photo by Tom Gargiulo

Moira Penza [r] leaves court after a days’ work. Clare the absolute director of Nxivm faces 21-27 months. Kathy Russell – on the lowest rung of Nxivm faces 6-12 months. Photo by Tom Gargiulo.

More photos of Kathy leaving: Photos by Village Dianne:

russell 23

russell 5

russell 3

kathy russell 1 Kathy Russell heads to court.

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Comments (18)

AnonymousApril 19, 2019
Why was their no sentencing guideline range mentioned at Lauren and Allison’s hearings? Also why is theirs later? I would think since they plead guilty earlier, they would have an earlier sentencing?
- Scott JohnsonApril 19, 2019
  It could be their cooperation agreements will give the Feds more time to pump them for information.
  - shadowstate1958April 20, 2019
    The case will stop with Raniere and there will be no more indictments.
    
    And NXIVM will be allowed to survive with a new name and new management.
  - BetoApril 20, 2019
    Excellent point. Too bad it will fly over most of the sheep's heads here.
    - krclavigerApril 20, 2019
      According to Mark Geragos, Clare did not sugn a Cooperation Agreement.
      - Scott JohnsonApril 20, 2019
        I wasn't talking about Bronfman, I was talking about those who are being sentenced September 11th.
- HeidiApril 20, 2019
  Good rhetorical questions. Are you suggesting it’s bc the guidelines on Lauren and Allison's 40-year potential sentences if spoken aloud would have alerted the media or less knowledgeable, keen observers — not blinded by the sex angle entirely — to the paltryness of the guidelines on Clare’s accepted no-RICO charges plea deal vs. theirs?
  
  Do you also suspect, as I do, that Clare is fixed to be sentenced first to avoid the same glaring comparison and reports or observations as to the discrepancy in the deals?
  - Frank ParlatoApril 20, 2019
    Important point about Clare being sentenced ahead of Lauren, Allison and even Kathy.
    - Scott JohnsonApril 20, 2019
      She also plead to lesser crimes.
      - HeidiApril 21, 2019
        We’ll discuss when we talk about more important matters later, Frank, but please be advised and inform whomever else is editing at FR not to allow Scott Johnson aka “Bangkok” to stalk and harass me and your readers by placing comments before and after mine that deliberately alter the meaning of the content.
        
        Scott Johnson is a known, repeat offender in this and other online harassment techniques. He has been banned from websites, including Twitter, successfully sued, fined and is under court orders to cease these type activities on other distributors’ “Amway” and personal websites.
        
        In fact, Scott’s falsely alleged, self-proclaimed Amway “victory” is a perversion of a court verdict protecting other Amway distributors — his former “competitors” — from Scott Johnson.
        
        Johnson was an Amway distributor himself for over 6 years — not a “spy” against Amway for those years — as Scott has falsely claimed when confronted here on FR.
        
        The verdict protected his Amway competitors from SCOTT’s, not Amway’s, malicious, illegal activities including slander and placing false orders from their websites under alias’, etc.
        
        Amway was only fined BECAUSE OF Scott Johnson’s activities as one of their distributors to thwart other distributors — that he blamed on Amway.
        
        Scott Johnson had nothing to do with a separate class action suit won against Amway which Scott Johnson attempts to take credit for by confusing it with the suit his fellow Amway distributors had no choice but to bring against him to stop him from ruining their distributor businesses through deception. (He may have received a tiny portion of the pay out to hundreds of distributors.)
JacksoulApril 20, 2019
Wow this one just seems like a waste of good tax payer money. Seems like Kathy russel just got caught up in the net while the feds were fishing… why not just get her some good counseling and let this one go??
- Scott JohnsonApril 20, 2019
  Because she committed crimes. More crimes than she plead guilty to.
  - JacksoulApril 22, 2019
    What crimes did russel commit?
ionwhitepoetryApril 20, 2019
Clare is only getting 27 months max. This is depressing.
- Scott JohnsonApril 20, 2019
  That's the top end of the sentencing guidelines. If enough people with personal experiences with Bronfman stand up on two legs, for a change, write the judge a letter and show up at the sentencing hearing, it could be more. But if you're determined to be defeated, then you probably already are.
HeidiApril 20, 2019
Fab story and pics, Diane. Kathy looks good. Pray she walks straight into a NYC publishing house with a manuscript draft — there are dozens of stories worth telling in this — instead of turning back to a criminal life of illusion and sacrifice to a lie.

[That’s the scary part about these short sentences with Clare’s justice buy-out setting the bar so low. There are hundreds of Kathy Russell’s — some still hovering around Clifton Park — who won’t be so dissuaded from serving a Nancy Salzman or Clare Bronfman or KAR’s criminal interests if the rap for doing so beats bouncing a check for an essential you can’t afford in a minimum wage job w/o benefits, anyway. Soon, they may not even need brainwashing to lose their consciences. Hello corruption, bye, bye Miss American Pie.]
- Scott JohnsonApril 20, 2019
  “Kathy looks good.” What a dopey comment. How's your party going? LOL
SnorlaxApril 20, 2019
Kathy will do the max and Claire will walk. Sounds typical.

Kathy Russell takes plea deal – faces six to 12 months

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