Mich. authorities raid spiritual group profiled in Netflix show

(NewsNation) — A former member of Twin Flames Universe says she’s relieved to learn the Michigan-based spiritual organization, which was profiled in a Netflix docuseries, is under investigation by state and federal authorities.

“I feel so validated for law enforcement to be taking this seriously, and I think that it’s a really big step in the right direction to getting justice,” Keely Griffin, who left Twin Flames Universe four years ago, told “Banfield” on Thursday.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel this week announced her office, the Michigan State Police and the U.S. Department of Labor-Office of Inspector General, were among agencies that executed search warrants on two residences associated with Twin Flames Universe. She described the group as a “largely online organization … that allegedly uses coercive control over its members, both in Michigan and across the United States.”

Nessel said her office believes “many of their actions may have been illegal.” She urged anyone with information about the group and its leaders, Jeff and Shaleia Divine, to contact her office.

Twin Flames Universe has romantically paired people, for a fee. Former members have said the organization exerted cultlike control over its followers.

“Jeff and Shaleia have an organization that’s perfect for exploiting peoples’ weaknesses or vulnerabilities because it’s all centered around sharing your most deepest secrets and your traumas, and they claim that they can heal those things,” Griffin said. “Instead, now they know your weakness and they can use it against you.”

In some cases, she said, leadership coerced members to change their genders and sexual orientations.

“Unfortunately, there have been members that have undergone serious surgeries because of their so-called ‘guidance,’” she said.

Cecilia Peck, who directed the three-part Netflix show “Escaping Twin Flames,” said she helped former members get in touch with prosecutors in Michigan.

“That led to the search warrants and this formal investigation. And so, it just indicates that they took the experiences of the former members very seriously,” Peck, who also directed the 2020 docuseries “Seduced: Inside the NXIVM Cult,” told “Banfield.”

Twin Flames Universe did not respond to a request for comment, but in a statement earlier this year, the organization denied allegations it mistreated members, saying it is a “community founded on love and mutual respect.”