Clare Bronfman sentenced to almost 7 years in prison
for offences in NXIVM cult
Bronfman will forfeit $6M of her fortune, according to plea agreement
But what about Sara?
The Associated Press
Clare Bronfman arrives at federal court Wednesday in New York City. Bronfman gave millions to the disgraced self-improvement group NXIVM, led by Keith Raneire. (John Minchillo/The Associated Press)
Clare Bronfman, a wealthy benefactor of Keith Raniere and the American daughter of the late Edgar Bronfman, has been sentenced to almost seven years for her role in the NXIVM case.
The 41-year-old was born into a wealthy Canadian-American family whose wealth stems from the Seagram empire that began when Bronfman's grandfather, Samuel, set up the Canadian whisky distiller in Canada just across the U.S. border during prohibition.
Bronfman admitted in a guilty plea last year that she harboured someone who was living in the U.S. illegally for unpaid "labour and services" and that she committed credit card fraud on behalf of Raniere, leader of the group called NXIVM.
As part of a plea agreement, Bronfman agreed to forfeit $6 million US from a fortune prosecutors have said is worth $200 million.
On Wednesday, Bronfman was taken into custody to begin her 81-month sentence immediately after her appearance in Brooklyn court.
Bronfman bankrolled Raniere
At trial, prosecutors told jurors the 60-year-old Raniere's organization, NXIVM — pronounced NEHK-see-uhm — operated like a cult whose members called him "Vanguard."
To honour him, prosecutors said the group formed a secret sorority comprised of brainwashed female "slaves" who were branded with his initials and forced to have sex with him.
But in court papers, prosecutors argued she deserved a serious punishment since, "There can be little doubt that Raniere would not have been able to commit the crimes with which he was convicted were it not for powerful allies like Bronfman."
The defendant had long been affiliated with NXIVM, giving away tens of million of dollars of her fortune to bankroll Raniere and his program of intense self-improvement classes. She also paid for lawyers to defend the group against a lawsuit brought by its critics.
Wikipedia reports it was $150m.
Along with Bronfman, Raniere's teachings won him the devotion of Hollywood actresses like Allison Mack of TV's Smallville. Mack also has pleaded guilty (2nd story on link) and is awaiting sentencing.
I am anxious to hear what happens to Sara Bronfman, Clare's older, but prettier sister. She was also involved with the cult. There is this astonishing story in Wikipedia about Sara.
Clare and Sara were credited with being able to bring the Dalai Lama to Albany to participate in the WEFC's inaugural event on May 6, 2009.
Eight years later, it would be revealed Clare's sister Sara had a 2009 sexual relationship with Lama Tenzin Dhonden, the Dalai Lama's gatekeeper who arranged the appearance, who as a monk had taken a vow of celibacy. Amid accusations of corruption, Dhonden was replaced.
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Jailed Hollywood producer Weinstein charged with
SIX new sexual assault counts in LA
FILE PHOTO. © Reuters / Eduardo Munoz
Disgraced producer Harvey Weinstein, currently jailed for 23 years in New York over multiple sex crimes, has been slapped with six new counts of sexual assault by Los Angeles prosecutors, who are seeking his extradition.
The charges were announced by Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey on Friday.
“I am thankful to the first women who reported these crimes and whose courage have given strength to others to come forward,” Lacey said. “The willingness of these latest victims to testify against a powerful man gives us the additional evidence we need to build a compelling criminal case.”
The LA charges against Weinstein were first brought in January. On Friday, Weinstein was hit with three new felony counts each of forcible rape and forcible oral copulation, bringing the total number of counts to 11.
It’s the second time the LA charges have been expanded and they now include alleged crimes spanning from 2004 to 2013, and concern five victims. The disgraced 68-year-old producer was sentenced by a New York court to 23 years in jail this March. He was found guilty of sexually assaulting his former assistant Mimi Haleyi in 2006, as well as of raping aspiring actress Jessica Mann in 2013.
More than 100 women, including Hollywood stars such as Uma Thurman and Salma Hayek, have accused Weinstein of sexual misconduct. Many of the alleged incidents date back decades.
The Weinstein scandal has been one of the main drivers behind the #MeToo movement which kicked off back in 2017 and focused on exposing the sexual abuse and harassment of women.
Man behind NHL lion mascot accused of sexual misconduct is fired amid lawsuit for more than $1MN in damages
© Instagram / baileylakings
NHL's Los Angeles Kings have dismissed a long-serving employee who played Bailey, their lion mascot at the center of allegations of sexual misconduct including making lewd comments and thrusting his hips in a woman's face.
Tim Smith, who was suspended by the Kings last month after he was reportedly accused of waving his crotch in a woman's face in the mascot locker room and leering at her breasts and behind, has now been axed by the Western Conference team.
The Kings terminated Smith's contract following an investigation into his conduct as part of their "Ice Crew" group of in-game performers, who have regularly entertained crowds of more than 18,000 people at hockey games at the Staples Center.
Smith, the Kings and owners AEG are thought to be facing a lawsuit from a woman, using the alias Jane Doe to protect her identity, for more than $1 million in damages.
He is said to have had his colleague fired after she informed him that his alleged advances were unwanted, then continued harassing her in the locker room when she was reinstated, including a crotch thrust.
He had previously been accused of sexual misconduct in a separate lawsuit filed in 2017, alleging that he groped a man's buttocks in an elevator at the center.
Bailey's normally-prolific Twitter and Instagram accounts, which have a combined following of more than 124,000, have both fallen silent since mid-August.
The official page for the lion on the team's website, which used to offer details of a variety of promotional and meet-and-greet opportunities alongside a form naming Smith as the key contact, now only shows a banner of the mascot above a blank page.
A popular character and figurehead of the Kings' community work, Bailey had taken fans on rides across the ice, appeared in the colors of the LA Lakers while offering exuberant support to the NBA team and made trips in costume to the Grand Canyon National Park.
Smith was listed as the team's senior manager of game presentation and events, having worked for the team since 2007, according to his LinkedIn profile.
His CV on the networking site said that he had held previous roles at sports teams including American Hockey League outfit the Chicago Wolves and now-defunct American football team the Indiana Firebirds.
A statement from the Kings said: "We are not in a position to provide further details or comments on this matter due to pending litigation."
Ex-WWE champion Alberto Del Rio facing kidnapping, sexual assault charges
9 Oct 2020 18:29
Professional wrestler and occasional mixed martial artist Alberto Del Rio, who is sometimes known as Alberto El Patron, has been indicted on charges stemming from an alleged kidnapping and sexual assault earlier this year.
Per the arrest report issued by the Bexar County District Attorney's office in Texas, she denied Del Rio's accusations of being unfaithful but the wrestler retaliated by slapping her in the head and forced the woman to dance for him.
The complaint also details how Del Rio - who is 6ft 4in and 240lbs - tied her hands, put a sock in her mouth and proceeded to sexually assault her for several hours, using several objects in the process of doing so.
She also stated that Del Rio told her to stop crying and that he would "drop [her son] off in the middle of the road somewhere" if she didn't comply.
The accuser also told police that Del Rio destroyed her phone and laptop and attempted to burn her passport. She states that the attack began at 10pm on May 3 and continued until 2.30pm the following day.
It is understood that Del Rio is being arraigned on Friday with a trial date not yet set. If convicted solely of the aggravated kidnapping charge, he could be facing five years to life in prison, while the sexual assault charges carry a term of between two and twenty years.
Del Rio was a member of the WWE roster between 2009 and 2016 where he won the WWE Championship as well as the 2011 Royal Rumble. He has also compiled a 9-6 record in mixed martial arts dating back to 2001. He was last seen in the cage losing to Tito Ortiz last December.
One has to wonder if losing his last match had any causal effect on his behaviour?
Blue Peter presenter John Leslie ‘grabbed woman’s breasts before walking off laughing at celeb party in West End’
Abe Hawken, The Sun
12 Oct 2020, 14:55
FORMER Blue Peter presenter John Leslie grabbed a woman's breasts before walking off laughing at a celebrity Christmas party in the West End, a court heard today.
The 55-year-old former star denied sexually assaulting the woman 12 years ago.
John Leslie has today arrived at Southwark Crown Court Credit: Ben Graville
The alleged non-consensual touching is said to have taken place in London's West End on December 5, 2008.
But jurors were told that the alleged victim only decided to speak to the police after the Me Too movement began in 2017.
Leslie, who appeared at Southwark Crown Court today under his birth name of John Stott, presented several popular TV shows including This Morning and Wheel of Fortune.
'WALKED OFF LAUGHING'
Jocelyn Ledward, prosecuting, said: "Back in 2008, the defendant Mr Stott attended a party in a nightclub in London.
John Leslie appearing as a guest on This Morning in 2018
Credit: Rex Features
"The young woman was stunned, shocked and spoke to people about the incident at the time."
She added: "The Christmas party was taking place in Greek Street, Soho. [The woman] was present.
"A male she recognised as John Leslie, made his way to the bar, and introduced herself. She shook his hand and explained who she was.
Without saying anything, he grabbed both of her breasts with both of his hands, laughed again and walked off as he did so."
"This went on by her estimation for about three seconds. This is clearly no accidental touching, but a deliberate sexual assault. He knew that no one was going to challenge him."
Leslie dated Catherine Zeta Jones in the early 1990s
Credit: PA:Press Association
The prosecutor said the alleged victim spoke to people she knew at the time, but only came forward and spoke to police after reading about other experiences in the Me Too movement.
Ms Ledward said: "In recent years, other victims of sexual assault by high profile names have come forward as part of the #MeToo movement.
WEST END PARTY
"She began to feel more angry about what she had experienced and decided to speak to the police.
"In March 2018, Mr Stott voluntary attended a police interview. He chose not to have a solicitor and answered no comment to every question. He only said, 'I've not assaulted anyone ever'."
Leslie wore a checked grey three-piece suit, a blue shirt with a navy tie and carried a large bottle of sparkling water. He was supported in court by his father, Les Stott.
The trial continues.
Lord Janner child sexual abuse inquiry begins
Inquiry to examine whether late MP received deferential treatment
from police, CPS, council and Labour party
Owen Bowcott
The Guardian
Mon 12 Oct 2020 06.00 BST
At the time of his death in December 2015, Lord Janner was facing 22 charges of child sexual abuse, which he denied. Photograph: Neil Hall/Reuters
Three weeks of partially closed hearings into the way police, prosecutors, local government and the Labour party dealt with child sexual abuse allegations involving the late Lord Janner will start on Monday.
In order to protect the identities of those who allege they were assaulted by the former Leicester West MP, most of the evidence sessions will not be live-streamed to the public.
The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) is already carrying out all of its work remotely because of the coronavirus pandemic. Short summaries of the hearings will be published.
Some journalists are being allowed to watch proceedings, but anonymity requirements preventing identification of complainants will restrict what can be reported.
Greville Janner QC represented Leicester West for Labour between 1970 and 1997. He was later given a peerage, becoming Lord Janner of Braunstone.
At the time of his death in December 2015, at the age of 87, he was facing 22 charges of child sexual abuse, relating to nine different boys, but had been deemed to be too ill to stand trial. He had consistently denied the allegations.
In his absence, a trial of the facts was scheduled but it was cancelled when he died. A report the following year by the retired judge Sir Richard Henriques concluded that the Crown Prosecution Service had missed three opportunities to prosecute Janner for indecent assault and, as it then was, buggery.
There have been a number of police investigations into Janner’s alleged activities in 1991, 2002 and 2006.
The inquiry will examine whether his “public prominence led to deferential treatment” from institutions including Leicestershire Police, the CPS, Leicestershire county council and the Labour party.
Daniel Janner QC, Lord Janner’s son, who is not a core participant at the inquiry, has opposed the hearings. In a series of tweets in the run-up to the hearings, he condemned the “Kafkaesque IICSA show trial of my late father”.
Announcing her decision in March to go ahead with the Janner hearings under such restrictive conditions, the chair of IICSA, Prof Alexis Jay said: “This is not an investigation into Lord Janner’s guilt or innocence. It is not a proxy criminal or civil trial.
“It is an investigation into institutions, and into how they responded to the allegations made against Lord Janner. Among the questions the Investigation will seek to answer are whether those institutions gave Lord Janner preferential treatment, and if so why. “
In that preliminary ruling, Jay revealed that lawyers advising the inquiry recommended that the substantially closed hearing should not go ahead. They had argued that a closed hearing “risked offending the fundamental principle of open justice [and] closed hearings may not allay public concern and could create considerable public unease”.
Jay concluded that the inquiry strand should go ahead, stating that her main reason was that “there remain, in my view, too many unanswered questions about institutional responses to the allegations made against Lord Janner.
“Those allegations were extremely serious, and they span a period of decades. For most, and perhaps all, of the complainant core participants, this investigation represents the last opportunity to get answers to those questions.”
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