Feds want to stop Raniere bid to retain NXIVM 'tech'

ALBANY – Jailed NXIVM leader Keith Raniere is trying to stop the federal government from seizing a Delaware corporation that legally owned the rights to the ideology of his cult-like self-improvement organization.

Raniere lawyer Paul DerOhannesian argued in court papers that the 59-year-old convicted sex trafficker is the "innocent owner" of a 10 percent stake in the First Principles corporation. Raniere faces a possible life sentence at his sentencing, which Senior U.S. District Judge Nicholas Garaufis rescheduled Friday for Jan. 17 at 11 am.

DerOhannesian, a Capital Region-based attorney, contends Raniere holds a greater stake in First Principles than that of former NXIVM executives Nancy Salzman, her daughter Lauren Salzman and actress Allison Mack. All three women, former Raniere loyalists and his past lovers, pleaded guilty to racketeering-related charges in U.S. District Court.

Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn, who have identified First Principles as the property of NXIVM president Nancy Salzman, moved to seize the corporation in July as part of their asset forfeiture effort.

Read more: https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Feds-want-to-stop-Raniere-bid-to-retain-NXIVM-14492983.php
(Albany Times Union)