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Smallville actress Allison Mack arrested in connection with notorious sex cult NXIVM

The statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office said the actress recruited women to join what was sold as a female mentorship group that addressed their weaknesses.

Smallville actress Allison Mack was arrested on Friday, April 20th for ties with sex cult, NXIVM. The 25-year-old actress was charged with sex trafficking and forcing women to be slaves in the controversial self-help group, which has been branded as a sex cult by many.

A statement from the U.S. Attorney's office in the Eastern District of New York confirmed that Allison faced charges of sex trafficking, sex trafficking conspiracy, and forced labor conspiracy. If convicted, she faces 15 years in prison. 

According to People, the actress will be arraigned in federal court in New York City, however, she has not entered a plea. So far, there's been no statement from her camp.  Her representative declined to comment and it's not yet clear if she has an attorney who will speak on her behalf. 

Allison's charges are in connection to the role she played at NXIVM, a New York-based sex cult which calls itself a self-help group. The founder of the organization, Keith Raniere was accused of forced labor and sex trafficking in March 2018. 

The statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office said the actress recruited women to join what was sold as a female mentorship group that addressed their weaknesses. In reality, however, the group was created by the founder to exploit women sexually."The victims were then exploited, both sexually and for their labor, to the defendants’ benefit," Richard P. Donoghue, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, said in the statement.

FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Sweeney said the actress's case brought to light an "inconceivable crime" and referred to the cult as a "pyramid scheme" in which Keith stood at the top with levels of female "slaves" underneath him. He added that Allison was on the first level below Raniere in this said pyramid.

In turn, she had a number of "female slaves" who worked for her. Sweeney added that the actress needed two women to engage in sexual activity with the cult's founder. "In exchange, for this, Mack received financial and other benefits from Raniere," he said.