Scientology Leader's Allegedly Missing Wife the Focus of New Documentary

Having reportedly been missing since 2007, the wife of the top leader in the Church of Scientology is the focus of a new documentary. Shelly Miscavige, wife of David Miscavige, is said to have been missing for nearly a decade, even though church officials claim that is not true. Now, Shelly is the focus of a new investigative documentary titled Vanity Fair Confidential: Scientology's Vanished Queen.

"The series takes viewers deep inside the Vanity Fair vaults for a closer look into some of the esteemed publication's most shocking stories, featuring exclusive interviews with those closest to each case — including insights from the Vanity Fair writers and editors who worked on the original article," read a press release sent to Fox News. It is reported that members of the Church of Scientology do not ask about Shelly's whereabouts, as they risk being shunned. Defectors from the group have asserted that they believe he was sent to one of "several secretive and heavily guarded bases the church owns in remote western locales."

They have added that anyone banished to one of these facilities endures a life "of isolation, menial labor and penury." On her critically-acclaimed TV series Scientology and the Aftermath, former Scientology member Leah Remini spoke with someone who alleged that David had been the one to send Shelly to one of the isolated facilities. "She was sent there when she displeased David Miscavige," claimed Mike Rinder. "Shelly was privy to everything that went on with Dave."

Remini then explained that she had filed a missing persons police report for Shelly; however, police reportedly closed the case, claiming that they spoke with her in person. Remini, however, is not convinced. "I'm still following up on because there's still answers that I need. I do not know that she is alive. I do not know that she's not being held against her will," she said.

The Church of Scientology has seen itself become more and more highly scrutinized as of late. In the fall of 2017, an ex-Scientologist came forward to reveal a list of celebrities she claims the church was actively pursuing to turn into converts. Karen Schless Pressley recently spoke with reporters and divulged that when she was the Commanding Officer of the Church of Scientology's Celebrity Centre Network, she witnessed "down and dirty" tactics by the church to get celebrities to join them.

"We were always on the hunt for 'raw meat.' Our goal was to use existing celebrities to be the recruiters and we would teach them how to go out and contact people and bring them to understanding," Pressley said. "That is the process of being on the hunt for raw meat: contact, handling, salvage, bring to understanding."

Pressley also revealed that Scientology recruiters would find out where celebrities were filming and attempt to get onto the studio lots or sets, and would also ask celebrities who were already "stable" to provide lists of their celebrity friends who they think would benefit from the church, according to The Daily Mail. She claims the list of celebrities included Brad Pitt, Demi Moore, Sean Penn and Juliette Lewis, among others. Pressley recently published Escaping Scientology, An Insider's True Story, a memoir of her time in Scientology.