A panel of judges denied appeals from the convicted founder of the former Capital Region-based NXIVM cult Monday in federal court.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit rejected multiple appeals from Keith Raniere.
Known as “Vanguard” among his followers, Raniere is serving a 120-year sentence in an Arizona federal prison for his conviction on a slew of charges, including racketeering, wire-fraud conspiracy, sex trafficking conspiracy and sex trafficking.
Raniere had appealed on numerous grounds for a new trail, claiming the court abused its discretion on post-conviction discovery, and called for the recusal of senior U.S. District Court Judge Nicholas Garaufis from the case.
In all of them, the court said Raniere’s arguments had “no merit.”
The federal case against Raniere focused on his time as leader of NXIVM and the organization’s secret, all-women’s sorority DOS, short for the Latin phrase Dominus Obsequious Sororium. Billed as a women’s empowerment group, it was run as a pyramid structure made of masters and slaves. Raniere was dubbed “grandmaster.”
