A Mexican woman named Daniela was locked away in a room for two years by Keith Raniere , the leader of the sex cult NXIVM after she gained weight and showed interest in another man.
Lauren Salzman, Raniere's accomplice
, was in charge of watching over Daniela. On Tuesday and Wednesday, Salzman revealed the details of the Mexican woman 's captivity during the trial against Raniere .
According to the prosecutors , the victim and her family moved to the United States from Mexico in 2005 to join the “self-help” courses taught by NXIVM in New York .
Her parents and the two sisters agreed to join the cult and according to Salzman, they also agreed with the “ punishment ” against Daniela because “they didn't know what to do with her.”
The Mexican woman was warned that if she left the room or contacted her family, she would be sent back to Mexico and lose her family, said Salzman.
In the end, the victim decided to go back to Mexico and never see her family again.
It was also reported that one of the victim's sister had a child with Raniere .
The news about NXIVM and its leader caused a stir in Mexico after it was revealed that the cult leader was linked to with Emiliano Salinas Occelli , the son of Carlos Salinas de Gortari , a former Mexican President.
Emiliano Salinas
later denied being involved with the group DOS , a criminal organization led by Keith Ranier e:
“During the time of my commercial association with NXIVM , I never participated or was involved in any way with DOS , and as it has been revealed during the coverage of the case, their members always denied the existence of the practices that are now known about the group,” said the businessman .
The businessman explained that in early 2018 an acquittance that was part of DOS told him her experience and he decided to quit and distanced himself from NXIVM .
NXIVM
was allegedly a personal and professional development company and offered seminars through its " Executive Success Programs ."
Keith Raniere
is accused of sex trafficking of both minors and adults, possession of child pornography, sexual exploitation of a minor, blackmailing, conspiracy, identity theft, extortion, forced labor, money laundering , and wire fraud .
