Seagram heiress Clare Bronfman is jailed for six years and ordered to pay $500,000 fine for bankrolling Keith Raniere's NXIVM sex cult

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Clare Bronfman, 41, was sentenced to 81 months in prison on Wednesday at the US District Court in Brooklyn.

She was also ordered to pay $500,000 for her role in the NXIVM case
is the first member of the notorious NXIVM group, led by disgraced founder Keith Raniere, to be sentenced .

Bronfman pleaded guilty last year to charges of racketeering conspiracy and conspiracy to commit identity theft.

NXIVM leader Keith Raniere was convicted last year of turning women into sex slaves who were branded with his initials.

In a letter to the court last month, Bronfman wrote that she 'never meant to hurt anyone' but that she couldn't disavow Raniere because he'd changed her life
Bronfman has denied any involvement in the sex slave arm of the cult.

Her lawyers argued she deserved leniency because she had no direct involvement in the most disturbing allegations.

They also said she has a health condition that could put her at greater risk of contracting COVID-19 if incarcerated