- NXIVM leader Keith Raniere was arrested in MexicoSundayand charged with sex trafficking and conspiracy to commit forced labor.
- "Smallville" actress Allison Mack is making headlines for her reported connection to the alleged sex cult.
- Kristin Kreuk, another "Smallville" actress, has also responded to reports about her previous involvement in NXVIM.
- Kreuk vehemently denied claims that she recruited Mack and was heavily involved in NXIVM,saying that she simply attended a program in the past and has had no contact with anyone in the group since.
"Smallville" actress Allison Mack has been making headlines this week in connection with an alleged sex cult called NXIVM.
According to Buzzfeed, NXIVM leader Keith Raniere wasarrested by the FBISundayin Mexico and charged with sex trafficking, sex trafficking conspiracy, and conspiracy to commit forced labor.
Raniere"displayed adisgusting abuse of powerin his efforts to denigrate and manipulate women he considered his sex slaves," FBI official William Sweeney reported, including allegedly branding followers in dedication ceremonies.
This isn't the first time NXIVM has made headlines.
The New York Timesreported in 2017that the "self-help organization" involved allegedly branding members with a cauterizing device and forcing female members into near-starvation diets, among other practices.
Following that report,Raniere allegedly left the US for Mexico, according to the Daily Mail.
Now Mack, best known for playing Chloe Sullivan on the teen drama "Smallville," is in the news for her involvement in NXIVM. TMZ called her the "second-in-command" to Reniere and several outletshave shared footageof a blonde womanstanding helplessly by while Raniere was arrested, withsome publishing that it was Mack.
Multiple reports have linked Mack with Raniere and NXIVM, and her own website lists him.
"Over the course of several years, Mr. Raniere mentored Allison in her study of acting and music," herbiography section reads. "As such, she has developed a deep connection to the nature of humanity as it relates to acting as an art form, and a tool for personal evolution."
INSIDER reached out to Mack's listed talent representative, but they did not immediately respond.
Mack isn't the only "Smallville" actress caught up in the news.
AfteraformerNXIVM spokesperson Frank Parlatotold theNew York Postthat actress Kristin Kreuk was in the cult's "inner circle" and recruited Mack, the actress felt compelled to speak out.
Kreuk, who played Lana Lang,released a statementvehemently denying reports that she played a part in recruiting "sex slaves."
"When I was about 23, I took an Executive Success Programs/NXIVM 'intensive,' what I understood to be a self-help/personal growth course that helped me handle my previous shyness," she wrote. "I left about five years ago and had minimal contact with those who were still involved. The accusations that I was in the 'inner circle' or recruited women as 'sex slaves' are blatantly false. I am horrified and disgusted by what has come out about DOS."
Sign uphereto get INSIDER's favorite stories straight to your inbox.
