Former NXIVM member says she was invited to a secret sorority, then branded

Edmondson told ABC News and in a complaint to the New York State Department of Health that she thought they were going to get a tattoo , but then , as she said in our interview , they found out she and the other women were going to be branded .


Edmondson said each of the women would lie down naked and then was branded with a cauterizing device , without any anesthesia .


Former members who spoke with ABC News said Raniere is very protective of his teachings and requires participants to sign confidentiality agreements .


After attending NXIVM seminars for more than a decade , Edmondson said she was approached about an opportunity to join a secret sorority .


Edmondson said she and four other women , one by one , submitted to being branded by a woman named Dr. Danielle Roberts .


In her complaint to New York State Department of Health , Edmondson said she was told the brand was a Latin symbol but then said she realized it included the letters " K " and " R ," which she took to be the initials for NXIVM founder Keith Raniere .


In a letter posted on the NXIVM website , Raniere said , " There is no merit to the allegations that we are abusing , coercing or harming individuals ." Raniere said the secret sorority is " Not part of NXIVM and I am not associated with the group ." The letter also said , " Our experts say members of the sorority are thriving , healthy , happy , better off , and haven't been coerced ." When ABC News requested comment from Nancy Salzman , she referred us to this letter .