Debate Over Evidence Seized at Salzman’s House and Whether Kristin Keeffe Will Be Called

In Featured, News, NXIVM

By Dianne Lipson

Today there was no testimony before the jury due to the illness of an alternate juror. The trial was adjourned and is expected to continue tomorrow starting with the ongoing testimony of former senior NXIVM member Mark Vicente.

VIcente has been on the stand since late last Tuesday and is still giving direct testimony. He has not been cross-examined by the defense. He testified all day Wednesday and Thursday last week.

Despite the adjournment, there was one matter discussed by the parties before Judge Nicholas Garaufis. [The jury was not present.]

The prosecutors plan to call a law enforcement agent as their third witness [when Vicente concludes] and they want jurors to see purported financial records of “enemies of NXIVM” such as federal judges, reporters, Edgar Bronfman, Sr., Rick Ross, various reporters, including some from the Albany Times Union, World Jewish Congress, federal judges, Toni Natalie, politicians, political operatives, political consultant Roger Stone, [who once worked briefly for Nxivm] Buffalo-based fixer Steve Pigeon, and Nxivm’s own lawyers.

These records were found at Nancy Salzman’s house when the FBI, during its raid on March 27, 2018, found then in a plastic box. A half million dollars was also found and seized from Salzman’s house.

It appears that the Canadian investigative firm Canaprobe provided some of these records and was in itself perpetrating a fraud on Nxivm.   Raniere’s attorney, Marc Agnifilo said the bank records produced by CanaProbe were bogus.

[Canaprobe was sued by the Bronfman’s in Montreal for providing bogus financial records for which the sisters paid the company $1 million to spy on enemies and perceived enemies. There is a fair chance the financial records were indeed bogus since two subcontractors of Canaprobe went to federal prison for faking financial records for other clients for Canaprobe.]

There was also emails from two email accounts, one of which had been created by Emiliano Salinas and one created by Kristin Keeffe [for Raniere] that the prosecution wants to admit in evidence.

Keeffe was legal liaison for Nxivm before she left with her son [also Raniere’s son] in 2014, making her the first member of Raniere’s “inner-inner” circle to defect from him. [His other inner-inner circle – Pam Cafritz and Barbara Jeske died in 2016 and 2014 respectively from cancer and Karen Unterreiner – who is expected to testify against Raniere.]

Keeffe has a son with Raniere and said she left to protect her son from the diabolical influence of Raniere. She has since become a whistleblower and provided damning information to law enforcement and attorneys about Raniere’s crimes.

Keeffe also tried to warn Nxivm leaders via email that Raniere was going to get them all indicted due to his criminal behavior. This was back in 2014-15 and her words today seem prophetic since five other Nxivm members were indicted and have plead guilty.

Assistant US Attorney Moria Penza said she wants to admit the two collections of emails in accounts she said were “entirely criminal.”

The defense wants the prosecution to call Keeffe as a witness to discuss what these emails and documents were about.

The prosecution prefers to admit these documents into evidence through their law enforcement agent- witness  – arguing they are not going to allege what was in these documents are true. They merely want to admit them to show how the Nxivm enterprise operated- i.e. targeting and investigating enemies.

There was a great deal of material and the defense said the prosecution was bringing a dump truck full of problematic evidence into the courtroom.  The defense said they were only informed at 1 am last night about these materials being introduced as evidence.

There was some push back from the prosecution, because even though there was some communication at 1 am, the defense has had the materials for some time.

The defense argued that the prosecution has a live, available witness [Keeffe] and are choosing not to call her.

The prosecution argued that the defense will have a chance to explain to the jury about this evidence and whether it’s bogus or not. The prosecution said Keeffe wasn’t necessary for this.

The judge has not ruled on whether he is going to require Keeffe to be called if these documents are submitted as evidence.

According to a report in the Albany Times Union, Raniere attorney Marc Agnifilo said the documents were hearsay and assembled on the orders of Keeffe.

Agnifilo suggested Penza wanted to avoid calling Keeffe to the stand.

Penza responded that whether they were real or fake was irrelevant, while the question of whether NXIVM believed they were genuine was of significant import in Raniere’s case, which has already involved extensive testimony about NXIVM’s strategy of using litigation to attack opponents, including former members.

Agnifilo said, “This is not the type of evidence that can just be dumped in a jury’s lap … They’re making a judgment decision not to call (Keeffe) because they’re afraid of the cross-(examination) —and maybe they should be.”

“Mr. Agnifilo is the one afraid of Kristin Keeffe, because the defendant tortured her,” Penza responded. “That’s why he hasn’t spoken to her.”

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54 commentsOn Debate Over Evidence Seized at Salzman’s House and Whether Kristin Keeffe Will Be Called

  • The agent can testify as to where the emails came from, where they found them, who the emails were from and to. This is not hearsay.

    The agent is not testifying as to the truthfulness of the emails. He is only testifying as to how they fit in the bigger picture of the Criminal Enterprise and the operations to research, harass, and intimidate critics. This is allowable. The jury can then read the emails and make up their own conclusions.

    If the Prosecution wants to prove the contents of the emails, they can bring in the sender or receiver to testify.

  • Be careful what you ask for Marc

    Marc Agnifilo should be careful what he asks for.

    If he thinks Kristen Keeffe is fearful of standing up to Raniere now that there is a snowball chance in hell he’s going to see the outside of a prison or ever get visitation with a son he never claimed as his own, bahahahahahaha

    Keeffe was Raniere’s right hand lieutenant for all the dirty legal dealings during her time in NXIVM.

    Keeffe also know about the illegal dealings in court matters and the false charges in Mexico to set up four women to be put in prison, torture, raped until they signed confusions that they lied about Raniere. Somehow after that, they would disappear, never to be seen again.

    Keeffe knows how NXIVM changed information on their servers regarding income.

    Keeffe knows how they change information on their servers for the criminal trespassing case.

    Keeffe knows about the underage girls Raniere had sex with.

    Keeffe knows pretty much about all of NXIVM illegal activities.

    My mama used to say be careful what you ask for, Marc you should listen to my mama.

    • Keeffe (or Unterreiner) is probaby the Rat, the first whistleblower from the inner circle. Whoever is the Rat knowns a lot about Raniere’s crimes, even those from the cbl era.

      • The Rat was someone who at least presented themselves as being at the point of getting out, years ago. That fits much more with Keefe, though it’s also entirely possible that it was someone less known.

        Unterreiner seems to have seen the writing on the wall only towards the end, and quietly faded from the scene as things fell apart and the feds moved in, presumably cutting a deal to save herself. It will be very interesting to hear her story, particularly since she’s been around from the very beginning. But since she was Raniere’s original enabler and apparently saw nothing unacceptably wrong until the very end, her take on things may be rather strange and possibly even inexplicably apologetic of Raniere, perhaps blaming others like Mack for the collapse. I find it bizarre, for instance, that she still apparently lives in Raniere’s original sex lair going back to the 1980s (real estate records show 1987).

        • Good chances that Keeffe was the Rat. But Parlato has also good arguments pointing to Unterreiner. It cannot be someone else less known because The Rat for sure was part of the inner circle. Who else could it be- The Rat was also someone who knows about the Fernandez family. The rat even wrote that Adrian was filming Raniere’s intercourses with the sisters, which has only been a rumor so far. Did the Rat write only the truth or did he/she also spread some rumors to alert the authorities- Kristin wasn’t sure if Raniere slept with teenage Camilla when she was talking to Bouchey in the famous transcript.

  • Is Kristin even in the country-

  • I don’t understand why the prosecution wouldn’t want Kristin to testify. What are they hiding-

    • I got the impression that maybe they are sparing her and the boy. She said Agnifilo was afraid of calling her because Raniere tortured her. God only knows what Kristen and their son went through. Every day we are hearing what a monster he really is.

    • NXIVILLE OBSERVER

      It is the cross-examination that the prosecution is afraid of.

      • If the DOJ gives her immunity, any cross examination that makes her look bad makes Raniere look even worse. They gave deals to Lloyd and Vicente, why not Keeffe as well- However, all of them could be open to state criminal and/or civil charges.

    • Heidi,

      Maybe the prosecution is worried that Kristin would make a poor witness and hurt the overall case.

      That’s my guess…

  • I doubt Raniere’s lawyer can demand a certain witness be provided by the DOJ. If Raniere wants Keeffe to testify, he can subpoena her, assuming he can find out where she is!

    • Yes! Thanks for the link.

    • Scott,

      Thanks for providing the link.

      The interview of Frank Parlato is excellent and ties into some political back dealings.

      It’s definitely worth checking out !!!!!

      ****

      Frank you should have mentioned it on the Frankreport!!!!!!

      Frank you need to self promote more! 😉

  • Some women closely connected with Raniere died of cancer within a few years of each other. Has anyone ever thought maybe Raniere administered known carcinogens to them via the means of poisoning, etc.- Something to ponder…not to mention the apparent ‘suicide.’

    I hope these deaths are revisited by the relevant persons.

    • orangecountydreams - OCD

      I honestly think it was a manifestation of severely inadequate diet (very low protein), sleep deprivation, and unrelieved sadness and stress. All this leads to a depressed immune system.

      IMO, if Raniere were emboldened to murder (and I believe he was well on his way there), we would have seen more deaths of “enemies.”

      Of course, that is no reason not to investigate further. Especially when both gals left their money to him in one form or another.

      • Good thoughts, Orange, but we don’t know that there isn’t an “enemy” corpse and I personally believe assasination attempts may have been made but failed, if they did, by sheer luck or bumfuckery.

        • Heidi, one thing that I think and hope that prosecution is establishing is that Raniere’s psychopathy long preceded his various and scheming self-improvement and/or commercial business ventures. I keep wanting more evidence of this evil intent to be presented. His longtime behavior completely invalidates any pretense of Raniere ever having any good intentions whatsoever. The jury should be given the opportunity to witness this for themselves. Hammer it home. He was always pushing his own personal agenda and lost cause, lying to himself and therefore living a lie in front of all of his followers.

          You saw it firsthand, what with him sneaking through the window to establish power over your own loved one, beginning when she was so young. Words can’t begin to express how sorry I am for what happened to your sister. Consistently, one can see Raniere’s compulsion to molest and to abuse. To me the rest of his functioning has been window dressing to try to conceal his megalomania with threats, lies and conscious deception and the destruction of any opponents.

          • My sentiments exactly and yours are very much appreciated Shavani33.

            I’m on a “found guilty, found guilty not, found guilty” trip as I pick through the trial reports and, I agree, the prosecution may need to go there — where FR and few other media have gone long before — into KAR’s equally sordid past that firmly does establish him to be an irreparable, natural born psychopath from whom society direly needs protection.

            One of the things thar bothers me about, for example, this video — without seeing all of it the jury did — is KR does come across as a benign, silly perv boy, however crude. Coupled with all these reports that keep concluding “offensive, yes, criminal no” ….WTF, I counted 10 crimes in Sylvie Lloyd’s testimony alone!

            OK, back to other comments section hunting! Couple of Rolling Stone pieces Seem to be promoting KR as a play boy from time to time if you want to hit those I’ll see ya there anonymously. Thanks again Shivani33! I’m sure you realize I really like your comments since you’ve been on board!

      • Our US govt. has the means to insert cancer viruses in vaccines so why is this not plausible- It is evident that the govt .was complicit in NXIVM. They also have a proven record of doing away with witnesses to their crimes. i.e the clinton murders.

        • Listening to Alex Jones and Infowars-

        • Extraordinary claims

          Require extraordinary evidence. Got any –

          I didn’t think so.

          • If you’re talking to me, I believe there is extraordinary evidence. Certainly enough to warrent further investigation in NDNY or Alaska — other districts where these crimes may have taken place. What was the analysis on the pills found at Salzman’s den of inequity- The etiology of mass illness at V-week- The substance that could kill Toni’s dog could also kill or sicken a human in lesser quantity.

          • God, I hope that’s some quacky conspiracy theory with nothing real to back it up.

          • It’s actually out there, bizarrely. We’re seeing some of the weirdest stuff crop up here, stranger even than Raniere’s conspiracy theories.

            Snopes fact check:
            Did the CDC ‘Admit’ 98 Million Americans Were Given a ‘Cancer Virus’ via the Polio Shot-
            https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/cdc-admits-98-million-got-cancer-polio-vaccine/

            Scientology boards attract a fair number of people suffering from “gang stalking” paranoia, fueled by the reality that the organization’s harassment of some of its highest-profile enemies does actually approach that sort of thing.

        • Molly,
          Jack Ruby, the assassin of Lee Harvey Oswald died of cancer in 1967 less than 4 years after the murders of JFK and Oswald.
          Ruby was only 55 years old.
          Ruby himself believed he had been injected with a cancer causing virus.

          Was Lee Harvey Oswald’s killer Jack Ruby injected with cancer to stop him revealing who really shot JFK-
          https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/lee-harvey-oswalds-killer-jack-9577093

          CIA Targeted Assassinations by Induced Heart Attack and Cancer
          The 1975 Church Committee hearings

          Can you give a person cancer-
          If cancer in animals can be caused by injecting them with cancer viruses and bacteria, it would certainly be possible to do the same with human beings!
          https://www.globalresearch.ca/cia-targeted-assassinations-by-induced-heart-attack-and-cancer/5326382

      • There is scientific evidence that lack of sleep can lead to cancer, but I was not able to find any indication that malnutrition can as well. “Fortunately,” these women were subjected to both, so it doesn’t matter.

    • I don’t think Keith took his vengeance out on anyone worse than Toni Natalie. She was enemy #1. Literally.

      Kristen Keefe spilled the beans and told Toni that Keith killed Toni’s dog by poisoning it.

      Toni’s brother – who happened to be Toni’s biggest defender and the closest person Toni had to a bodyguard – died of a mysterious suicide.

      Mysterious suicides and cancer in Keith’s lovers has been a consistent part of Keith’s life.

      • NutJob’s makes a some good points.

        I think it’s fair to say Keith Raniere is capable of anything.

      • It’s a crime that there will likely be no possibility for recompense for Toni and some of the other whistleblowers who suffered the brunt of Nx’s Bronfman-financed vengeance the longest — often at the hand of the very govt. officials they turned to for help and protection.

        Joe O’Hara is another example of this — harassed by Nx for decades like Toni and falsely indicted 3 times over his falsely alleged crimes against them. Joe wound up serving prison time for a 4th indictment he was, unjustly, convicted of in an alleged “unrelated” (HA!) matter.

        He allegedly made a $5000 campaign donation to an elected official — an amount over the legal limit —and saw more prison time for that offense than Clare Bronfman faces for the tiny fraction of crimes she’s plead to.

        In fact, by stark contrast to Joe’s “bribery” allegations, Bronfman has not been charged at all with the illegally bundled bribes accepted by Hillary Clinton.

        One more thing about Joe and Toni — they LEFT when they discovered what Nx was about, contacted authorities repeatedly (to worse than no avail), sounded the alarm to others (also often to no avail or worse) and continue to help Nx victims to this day despite what those valiant efforts have cost them that will never be repaid except to, hopefully, see an end to their torment.

    • I remember reading, (probably on here) that he would make Pam drink these concoctions that he would make that would supposedly “heal her cancer”. Sounds like something right out of an Agatha Christie murder mystery.

  • Can Keeffe refuse to testify if called-

    • Like any other witness called to testify, she will either have to answer any questions asked of her – or plead the Fifth Amendment. If she simply refuses to testify, she will be almost surely be found to be in contempt of court by Judge Garaufis – and imprisoned for up to 6 months.

      Those who have signed cooperation agreements – and who subsequently refuse to testify — can also have their pleas revoked.

    • Not if she’s subpoenaed. She can refuse to answer questions that may incriminate her, however.

  • Videos are powerful evidence: https://nypost.com/2019/05/14/new-videos-show-nxivm-guru-keith-ranieres-alleged-sex-lair/ Raniere is creepy, and the media completely missed the “official” vs. “fish-hole” analogy. It was a raunchy joke I would expect from some dirty stand-up comedian, but he is supposed to be NXIVM’s “leader” and put it on video, which shows he’s not that smart, how much he hates women, and has far too much free time on his hands. Did you notice how the NYP NXIVM story blends into the weird stuff that goes along the “Recommended” stories at the top of the website-

    • Correction: “A fish-hole.”

      • It’s not even funny. He doesn’t even deliver that in a way that’s remotely funny at all. It’s just embarrassing. For him.
        You’d think the “world’s smartest man” would understand how to deliver a joke. The set up and the punch line… He doesn’t even get that right. He just massacres it. How the hell did he hold these people’s attention for so long-
        Not only does he not seem like he’s uber intelligent, he sounds like someone with a severe learning disability or developmental disorder.

        • One of the few things Raniere never claimed to be is a comedian. I can imagine a raunchy comedian with good timing could get some laughs out of the joke when everyone in the audience is drunk.

  • I hope Forbes doesn’t hurt their arm patting themselves on their own back: https://www.forbes.com/sites/willyakowicz/2019/05/15/keith-raniere-the-leader-of-the-nxivm-sex-cult/#5394cffe35a9 A single story before the truly weird stuff stuff started and was exposed does not a hero make.

    • Scott,
      I will tell you the real story about Malcolm Forbes who published the magazine until his death in 1990.
      Malcolm Forbes of Forbes magazine was a homosexual with a liking for men.
      Young men.
      Very young men.
      Perhaps underage males.
      And the mainstream media covered up for him even after his death.

      In March 1990, soon after his death, OutWeek magazine published a story with the cover headline “The Secret Gay Life of Malcolm Forbes,” by Michelangelo Signorile, which outed Forbes as a gay man.[11] Signorile was critical of the media for helping Forbes publicise many aspects of his life while keeping his homosexuality a secret. The writer asked, “Is our society so overwhelmingly repressive that even individuals as all-powerful as the late Malcolm Forbes feel they absolutely cannot come out of the closet-“[12] Even in death, the media was reluctant to disclose his sexuality; the New York Times would refer only to him as a “famous, deceased millionaire”[11] while reporting on the controversy. Since Malcolm Forbes’ death, his son Steve Forbes has been editor-in-chief but the business is no longer family-controlled.
      Donald Trump, in his 1990 memoir Trump: Surviving at the Top, alleged that his temporary removal from the Forbes 400 in the year Forbes died was due to a feud that had arisen after Trump had not allowed Forbes to bring “two young men who appeared to be well under the legal drinking age” into the bar at the Plaza Hotel. Trump stated that Forbes “lived openly as a homosexual… but expected the media and his famous friends to cover for him.
      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malcolm_Forbes#Personal_life

  • “201415” Oops

    • Thanks for the link, it’s a great piece from the point of view of an experienced prosecutor. She gets into interesting detail about both the legal strategy, and how NXIVM is actually rather typical of how larger, hierarchical human trafficking operations work; it’s well worth a read, and this is just a taste at the beginning:

      “But despite the high-profile names, strange “cult”-style practices, and bottomless bank accounts associated with NXIVM, the broad strokes of the trial are not all that different from cases against street-level pimps, according to former federal prosecutor Krishna Patel, who specialized in sex trafficking cases first in the Southern District of New York and later in Connecticut. The nuts and bolts of making these cases—proving a level of fraud, force, or coercion that made victims unable to say no—remain the same, she said.

      Patel, who served in the Department of Justice from 1999 to 2015 and now works for the anti-trafficking advocacy organization Grace Farms Foundation, told VICE that the first few days of the trial have followed a pattern she has personally used to convict sex traffickers. It’s a strategy in which victims paint a picture of a subculture used to enforce control, and juries learn about their close attachment to the defendant.”

      • Another brilliant idea on Sara Berman’s part. Bringing Nx down from these lofty heights of uptown woo-woo to the real-life gutter trash, sex trafficking swindle NXIVM is — from a real, pimp prosecutor’s perspective.

  • Heidi, you may point at something pivotal – the Rat’s cooperation would be limited unless she were given complete immunity, since there’s a lot they would be implicated in themselves. And if it was Keefe, or even if she’s in similar situation, then that might not look good in court, and thus prosecutors might not want to put her on the stand. Plus as I noted in regards to Unterreiner, some of the women may still be oddly loyal, and having trouble owning up to all of what really went on.

  • Kristin, I feel strongly that you and Gaelen will never be safe unless and until the whole truth is told publically about the Salinas / PRI party connection. It’s even more important than who wrote Gina’s death chart, the Rat’s identity and the other mysteries. Gina’s not coming back but her death can mean something if it helps others. You know that’s what she lived for and maybe died for. Let her spirit while she lived be your guide. She loved you and longed for your freedom and happiness in her darkest dreams. I hope Frank’s shared her writings about you and Keith with you. I know you had a part in what was going on with KAR’s experiments on her and both of yours on me. I know you were tortured and experimented on as well. I need, the world needs to know who or what else was involved if you know. And we need to know now to help you and Gaelen. I forgave you long ago if you didn’t know. I’m sure Gina did, too. ❤️

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