Cybercrime analysts for a convicted sex trafficker say evidence for some of the most shocking charges against him was tampered with and planted on drives that were supposed to be in FBI secure custody, according to court documents.
NXIVM sex cult Founder Keith Raniere, 64, is serving a 120-year sentence in a federal prison in Tuscon, Arizona. He recruited women and girls into a sex cult disguised as a self-help organization, prosecutors said. He had an “inner circle” of “slaves” and “masters.” Some women had Raniere's initials on their bodies. Prosecutors allege he kept a domestic helper in a room for nearly two years.
One survivor, India Oksenberg, told… Fox News True Crime Podcast She endured “dehumanizing” treatment, including “repeated harassment and rape” before she and her mother fled the cult.
The FBI declined to comment when contacted by Fox News Digital.
Self-help group NXIVM founder, Keith Raniere, sentenced to 120 years in prison for sex trafficking
Keith Raniere, the former leader of NXIVM, was convicted in 2019 on seven counts that included racketeering, racketeering conspiracy, wire fraud conspiracy, forced labor conspiracy, sex trafficking, sex trafficking conspiracy, and attempted sex trafficking. (YouTube)
In addition to assaulting the adult victims, federal prosecutors charged that Raniere was 45 and that the child victim, identified only as “Camila,” was 15 when he took photos of her and sexually assaulted her.
Raniere's lead attorney, Joseph Tully, told Fox News Digital that the evidence used to convict his client of the “most heinous” charges — child pornography and child exploitation — had been manipulated and planted by the FBI.
“If I can get a hearing, I can just show the world that this manipulation actually happened, and it happened while he was in FBI custody,” he said.
There are dozens of photographs on the memory card and hard drive that defense experts say had their timestamps altered, making it appear as if a young woman was under the age of consent at the time they were taken. Between April 2019 and June 2019, additional images allegedly appeared on the site FBI forensic reportaccording to court documents.
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Alan Dershowitza prominent constitutional lawyer, is not part of Raniere's team but consulted his attorney after learning of allegations of FBI wrongdoing.
He told Fox News Digital that if Raniere's experts are right, it would amount to “astounding government misconduct.” If these allegations prove true, it could impact other cases.
A NXIVM Executive Success Programs sign outside the office at 455 New Karner Road on April 26, 2018, in Albany, New York. Keith Raniere, founder of NXIVM, was arrested by the FBI in Mexico in March 2018. (Amy Locke/Getty Images)
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He said that the delay in filing charges related to a child tipped the scales in favor of the prosecution.
“They had a very, very, very weak alleged case against the defendant, very weak. He could have easily won the case, and then, at the last minute, they 'discovered' a photo of a nude female, which they claim was a minor,” he told Fox News Digital in an interview. “Now, as soon as anything involving a minor female is brought into evidence, the case is over.”
Another accused was taken almost immediately Plea dealHe said. Four other defendants eventually chose to plead as well.
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But defense experts, in a series of affidavits filed in federal court last month, now say the photos were taken when the woman was over the age of consent, and then doctored to make it appear they were taken earlier.
“Why don't we hold a hearing? This doesn't just include Mr. Raniere. It includes every American,” Dershowitz said. “When you have someone in prison as a result of tampering with government evidence, it's the Soviet Union. It's Iran. It's China. It's not the United States of America.”
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Claire Bronfman, heiress to Seagram's liquor empire, arrives for a hearing on charges related to the Albany-based NXIVM organization at US Federal Court in Brooklyn, New York, July 25, 2018. (Reuters/Brendan McDiarmid)
The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the defense experts' findings. The US Attorney's Office, which handled the case, declined to comment. The response is not due in court until January 27.
It's unclear why the FBI or federal prosecutors framed Raniere, but Tully, who wrote a 2018 book about corruption in the criminal justice system, said his client had very wealthy enemies and was unpopular.
“They wanted to arrest him,” he told Fox News Digital. “When a popular kid in school wants to make one of the poor kids with holes in his shoes the laughingstock of the school, they do it. And that kind of human behavior doesn't change when these kids grow up and get their law degree and want to become prosecutors.”
Newsweek first reported the accusations in late December, but Raniere has not received a hearing nearly a month later.
Actress Allison Mack arrives at the US Eastern District Court on May 4, 2018, following a bail hearing on the sex trafficking charges filed against her in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. The actress known for her role in “Smallville” has been charged with sex trafficking, along with alleged cult leader Keith Raniere. (Jamal Countess/Getty Images)
“And the government is desperate not to hold a hearing,” Dershowitz said. “They don’t want the public record to show that seven experts, including some who worked for the FBI, who they use to get convictions against people, are now saying this was tampered with evidence.”
Raniere's defense attorneys are demanding a new trial. In a lawsuit, they claimed that “the government intentionally used fabricated evidence to secure a conviction” based on the conclusions of seven of their experts.
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Raniere described himself as a health expert, and his show attracted prominent women into its orbit, including actress Allison Mack and Seagram heiress Claire Bronfman, both of whom were convicted on lesser charges. Critics have called NXIVM a cult-centered cult Sex trafficking And abuse.
The central allegation in the racketeering case against Raniere was that he had a sexual relationship with “Camila,” the alleged 15-year-old girl. He was sentenced 120 years in prison.
WATCH: NXIVM cult survivor recounts mental and physical abuse
Dr. Richard Kiper, a leading expert and former FBI agent who specializes in cybersecurity and digital evidence, wrote in a 59-page affidavit that while reviewing the case for the defense, he “discovered specific actions were taken to manually alter evidence.” and support the prosecution's allegations.
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“In my 20 years as an FBI agent, I have never observed or alleged that an FBI employee tampered with digital or other evidence,” he wrote. “But in this case, I strongly believe that the multiple and intentional alterations to the digital information I discovered constitute tampering with evidence.”
