NXIVM sex cult leader Keith Raniere could be moved to violent jail dubbed ... trends now Sex cult leader Keith Raniere is set to be moved to a violent, highly-segregated prison to live out the rest of his 120-year sentence - as his legal team launches a bid to block the transfer because he fears he'll be killed inside. Convicted criminal Raniere, 62, could transfer to one of the Federal Bureau of Prisons' two Communication Management Units (CMU) - known commonly as 'Guantanamo North' - which house some of the country's most violent offenders, terrorists, and extremists. The cult leader was convicted in 2019 on charges of sex trafficking, forced labor conspiracy, wire fraud conspiracy and racketeering charges with underlying acts that included possession of child pornography, extortion and identify theft. He was jailed at the US Penitentiary in Tucson, Arizona in January 2021 - but in September last year was the victim of an 'unprovoked' jail attack, his lawyers claim. As a result, he was sent to the prison's 'torturous' segregation housing unit for nearly 200 days. Now, Raniere faces being moved to either the CMU in Terre Haute, Indiana or Marion, Illinois. The prison branches are designed to completely isolate prisoners from other inmates and the outside world. Keith Raniere, the leader of notorious sex cult NXIVM, was told he will be transferred to a CMU- the Communications Management Unit, a prison that is designed to house violent inmates. Raniere, 62, was jailed at the US Penitentiary in Tucson, Arizona in January 2021 The entrance of the Federal Bureau of Prisons in Terre Haute, Indiana, that houses one of the CMU- the Communications Management Unit - that Raniere may be sent to. Raniere's power-of-attorney Suneel Chakravorty believes the transfer is 'retaliatory' since the cult leader is trying to challenge his conviction on the grounds that the FBI allegedly 'tampered' with evidence in his case One of the Federal Bureau of Prisons' CMUs are located in Marion, Illinois (pictured). They house some of the country's most violent prisoners including terrorists and extremists CMU’s house inmates who 'require increased monitoring of communications with persons in the community to protect the safety, security and orderly operation of Bureau facilities and the public.' Raniere's power-of-attorney Suneel Chakravorty believes the transfer is 'retaliatory' since the cult leader is trying to challenge his conviction on the grounds that the FBI allegedly 'tampered' with evidence in his case. He told DailyMail.com: 'CMUs are designed to clamp down on inmate communication. At this point, we have seven computer forensics experts, including four former FBI examiners, willing to testify about clear evidence of FBI wrongdoing.' Prisoners are banned from physical contact with visitors - and the prison manages and monitors all outside communication. Raniere opposed his transfer to the CMU and in the coming days plans to file a 2241 habeas petition asking that a judge order that he not be moved. But it is at the discretion of the Bureau of Prisons to determine whether he will be transferred to a low or medium security facility. In July 2022, Raniere was beaten up and knocked unconscious by Maurice Withers, 33, who was put behind bars on sex trafficking crimes in Madison, Wisconsin. He had also been housed with an intersex inmate next to a cage smeared with human feces. Chakravorty added: 'For the last 196 days, Keith Raniere has been kept in a windowless cell for 23 hours a day. He was placed there after he was the victim of an unprovoked attack. 'While his attacker is no longer at the prison, Keith has been kept in these torturous conditions ever since with no true explanation. His legal team has attempted to have him placed back in the general population but the treatment has continued for months months, and now a judge has ordered the prison to provide an explanation.' A court sketch of Raniere in June 2019 when he was convicted of seven counts including child porn and sex trafficking. Now, Raniere is actively participating in efforts to expose the FBI's alleged 'evidence manipulation' against him - and his legal team believe that this is the reason he may be transferred to a CMU prison Victims of the cult told prosecutors how Raniere and other leaders branded them with a burning piece of metal. Raniere was jailed for the crimes in 2021 Raniere, who Chakravorty argues has been a 'peaceful inmate' in Arizona, may now be housed with inmates such as Rodney Hamrick, a jihadi and former resident of Supermax in Colorado. In 2018, Hamrick took fellow inmate and 68-year-old white-collar criminal Robert David Neal hostage inside the facility, bound his hands behind his back, as well as his feet, then executed him, ISIS-style, nearly severing his head. Keith Raniere, the leader of notorious sex cult NXIVM, was assaulted in his prison in Arizona by another inmate, leaving him unconscious and nauseous for a week This comes as Raniere is actively participating in efforts to expose the FBI's alleged 'evidence manipulation' against him. Professor Emeritus Alan Dershowitz, who is supporting the issue, said: 'Multiple experts have concluded that government tampering of digital photos is, at the very least, a highly likely conclusion. 'If true, this represents a level of corruption that is so unprecedented and so high by whoever may be responsible the current situation is simply untenable. There must be immediate action.' Raniere's legal team believe that the evidence against him, which the prosecution said was 'at the heart' of the trial, was manipulated and planted, and tampered with while in FBI custody. His attorneys claim that his 'wrongful treatment,' including being banned from communicating with his close friends and power-of-attorney, is in retaliation for exposing the alleged government wrongdoing. The alleged retaliatory conduct by the BOP is the subject of an active civil rights lawsuit in Arizona, where Raniere's prison is located. In January, Judge Ranier Collins ordered that the Bureau of Prison ought to respond to the allegations of misconduct. Raniere has been forced to spend hours in cells smeared with human feces, is housed with an intersex female prisoner according to his lawyers. Pictured, the prison in Arizona, where he is currently being housed Raniere was assaulted in the dining hall of his prison by inmate Maurice Withers, 33, another convict put behind bars on sex trafficking offenses. He was then put into confinement inside the Arizona prison (pictured) The cult leader's legal team believe they have a chance to have his convictions thrown out over the FBI's alleged bungles and fabrications. Their report points to alleged 'anomalies with the FBI search', such as the unusual manner in which agents collected evidence from Raniere's study at a home in Halfmoon, New York in March 2018. They claim that investigators 'bypassed' several areas of the home and went 'straight to a study area where, under a desk, were the very first two evidentiary items they collected: the Canon digital camera along with its camera card.' Those two items were, 'notably,' the 'only two pieces of digital evidence the government used to prove the child pornography and child exploitation RICO acts, which would stem from an allegedly accidental discovery of photos eleven months later,' the report states. In an interview with DailyMail.com, a top former FBI cyber forensics expert hired by Raniere's attorneys believes there were bungled procedures, manipulation of evidence and even an apparent effort to 'frame' the cult leader for his child sex conviction. Richard Kiper, who used to train the trainers of FBI cyber forensics experts before he retired in 2019, told DailyMail.com that the Canon camera was made in 2004, but the timestamps on some of the photos were from 2003. Kiper also claimed that metadata on one of the photos shows it was manipulated in Adobe Photoshop. NXIVM was partially bankrolled by Seagram's heiress Claire Bronfman, who was prosecuted alongside Raniere and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to conceal and harbor illegal aliens for financial gain and to fraudulent use of identification in April 2019. Her lawyer, Duncan Levin, said the evidence of tampering by the FBI was cause to throw out all the NXIVM convictions. He said: 'Society cannot live in a world where law enforcement is tampering with evidence. If these allegations are true, it means that all of the defendants in the case should have all of the charges thrown out. There should be no opportunity for a do-over for the government.' All rights reserved for this news site (dailymail) and under his responsibility