Actress Allison Mack was sentenced to three years in prison for her involvement in the NXIVM sex cult case on Wednesday. The 38-year-old Smallville star was one of the highest-ranking member of Keith Raniere's cult group on charges that she manipulated and recruited women as sex slaves for the group's leader.
Mack, who is best known for playing the role of Chloe Sullivan on the Superman series, appeared in Brooklyn federal court on Wednesday. In addition to her imprisonment, Mack received a $20,000 fine, 1,000 hours of community service and is required to have three years of supervised release after serving her sentence.
Mack's Involvement in NXIVM
Raniere and his cabal of associates, including Seagram heiress Claire Bronfman, ran the Albany-based NXIVM cult that espoused itself as a revolutionary self-improvement organization that could help its followers become the best versions of themselves.
The organization quickly gained popularity around the globe with celebrities including Mack's 'Smallville' co-star Kristin Kreuk, Canadian actress Sarah Edmondson, 'Battlestar Galactica' alum and Mack's wife, Nicki Clyne, 'Dynasty' actress Catherine Oxenberg and 'Hawaii Five-0' star Grace Park among its followers.
However, what started as an organization for self-improvement became a vehicle for recruiting and grooming female sex slaves for Raniere after survivors started coming forward. Within the group was a secret organization known as "DOS" short for a Latin phrase that translates to "Master Over Slave Women" that was led by Raniere. The group comprised of "masters" like Mack, who recruited and commanded groups of "slaves."
Women were coerced into providing "collateral" material, including damaging information, rights to financial assets or sexually explicit photographs and videos, which were then used to blackmail them from leaving the society or telling others about its existence. Some women were branded, ordered to engage in sex acts with Raniere, put on starvation diets and physically isolated.
Mack Pleaded Guilty to Racketeering and Conspiracy Charges in 2019
Mack was arrested in 2018 along with Raniere, who was convicted of sex trafficking and racketeering charges and sentenced to 120 years in prison last year, as previously reported. In 2019, Mack pleaded guilty to racketeering and racketeering conspiracy charges and started co-operating with authorities against Raniere.
"When it comes to DOS, and the monstrous crimes [Raniere] committed in connection with that organization, you were an essential accomplice," the Judge Garaufis wrote in his sentencing memorandum condemning Mack's involvement in NXIVM. "You willingly enslaved, destabilized, and manipulated other women so that when they were at their most vulnerable, when they believed that they owed you total obedience and that anything less than that would cause them serious personal and financial harm, when you had taken from them their sense of agency to make their own choices, you gave them 'special assignments' to satisfy Mr. Raniere's sexual interests."
"Mr. Raniere could not have done that without you," Garaufis noted. "You did that together. The evidence presented at his trial demonstrated that you were not a begrudging or passive enabler, but rather that you were a willing and proactive ally."
Sentencing guidelines recommended a range of 14-17.5 years in prison for Mack. Prosecutors had asked US District Judge Nicholas Garaufis to give her below the recommended range because of "substantial assistance" she gave the government in the investigation and prosecution of others, they said in a court filing while Mack's attorneys sought probation or home confinement.
Mack Expresses 'Regret,' Apologizes to Victims in Court
Last week, Mack called her involvement with NXIVM "the biggest mistake and greatest regret of my life" and apologized to victims ahead of her sentencing hearing.
"I am sorry to those of you that I brought into NXIVM," she wrote in a letter filed with the court last week. "I am sorry I ever exposed you to the nefarious and emotionally abusive schemes of a twisted man."
Mack told the judge during the sentencing hearing on Wednesday that she "made choices [she] will forever regret" and that she was filled with "remorse and guilt." She also reiterated her apologies to the victims in court. "From the deepest part of my heart and soul, I am sorry."
