A former member of the Church of Scientology has claimed she was forced to work under 'horrific conditions' while catering to church leader David Miscavige and Tom Cruise.
Valeska Paris, 40, was a messenger at the church's headquarters in Clearwater, Florida, where she says she got a rare glimpse into the lives of high level Scientologists including Miscavige, the chairman of the board (COB) and his now reclusive wife, Shelly.
There, she was tasked with ironing Miscavige's clothes, making his coffee, and cleaning the bedrooms of other elite members.
In an exclusive interview with DailyMailTV, Valeska claims Miscavige later banished her to the notorious Scientology cruise ship Freewinds, where she was forced to do harsh manual labor on the decks before working in the restaurant and where she once broke the rules by serving Tom Cruise.
'He [Miscavige] hated me, I made his coffee 'p*** weak' he'd always complain,' Valeska says.
'His bedroom always had the best quality sheets, a dark orange floor, TVs in all the rooms, beautiful carpets, couches and kitchens, amazing food.
'My job was to clean the rooms, I would help iron his 100 per cent Egyptian cotton shirts and also wake up the other executives. I had to make sure they were up before COB otherwise they'd get in serious trouble.
'Everything he had was top of the range, his suits would cost thousands. He freaked the hell out of me, he has this presence.'
Former Scientologist Valeska Paris (pictured with a guest aboard Scientology ship Freewinds) has told how she was allegedly banished to the notorious cruise ship by church leader David Miscavige when she was 18
Valeska (left) who was born into the church, claims she was sent to work on the ship after her stepfather's suicide - which caused a publicity scandal after his death was blamed on Scientology
Valeska, a second-generation Scientologist, was born into the church in Switzerland through her parents Ariane Jackson and Jean Françoise Paris.
Rising up the ranks, first as a cadet at its headquarters in Saint Hill, England, she then signed a billion-year contract to be a full-time member of the Sea Org, even though she was only 14. She later moved to Clearwater, Florida, where the church is based.
After Valeska's parents split up when she was a child, her mother married Albert Jaquier, a Scientologist and successful businessman who she claims lost his entire fortune to the church, blowing $6 million on expensive courses.
She says he later committed suicide, leaving a diary, which denounced Scientology for pushing him over the edge.
Although they'd split up before his death, an incensed Ariane went public and exposed the church for their treatment of Albert.
With her mother causing a PR commotion, a panicking Miscavige allegedly ordered Valeska to be sent to the Freewinds ship, which is used by top management and members who pay huge sums to live on board for weeks at a time completing high-level Scientology courses.
Valeska previously worked as a messenger for David Miscavige and claims she had a close relationship with his wife Shelly Miscavige (right) 57, who has not been seen in public since 2006
Valeska claims members were not allowed to look at Tom Cruise in the eye, talk to him, and had to address him as 'sir' when he came around . Above he is pictured in 2008 with Katie Holmes and David Miscavige
Valeska was 18 years old when she was ordered to work aboard the Freewinds ship, which is used by top management and members who pay huge sums to live onboard for weeks at a time completing high-level Scientology courses
Valeska, who was 18 at the time, says she spent the next 12 years on the ship 'against her will.'
However, in a statement to DailyMail.com, the Church of Scientology denied that Jaquier's death was a suicide and said his death had 'no bearing' on Valeska being transferred to Freewinds.
In a death certificate provided by the church to DailyMail.com, Jaquier's cause of death was determined to be 'natural' from his history of heart disease.
They also claim he was worth about $1.2m at the time of his death.
'Ms. Paris served as a crew member aboard the Freewinds religious retreat as a volunteer religious worker from September 1996 to December 2007. She was an adult and there of her own free will as part of her religious commitment to the Church of Scientology,' a spokesperson for the church said.
Valeska says that during her first six months on the ship she was working on decks and in the engine room before being moved to the restaurant.
'When I was first on the ship, I had my passport seized, no days off for six months, no privileges, phone calls were not allowed. I was told by the captain I was never getting off the ship,' she claims.
'The ship was full of blue asbestos, every night we'd get on our knees, we'd be picking chunks of blue asbestos with our bare hands, to this day, I have this cough which won't go away. I finally got off decks and worked in the restaurant.'
She recalls one of the busiest times on the ship was during the annual Maiden Voyage, a special week-long event which saw many church VIPs come aboard the Freewinds.
'We worked many, many late nights. Before Maiden Voyage, we'd be working until 4 a.m., and during it, we wouldn't be sleeping at all. I would fall asleep on the toilet.
'If you have so little sleep, you lose your memory, I'd forget what people wanted to drink or even ordered to eat. During this time, I would be in COB's dining room, serving the food, and cleaning up.
'When he saw me on my first Maiden Voyage, he called me over and said: "I forgot I'd sent you here, how do you like it?" and I said: "No, I really didn't like it at first, but now I'm getting used to it.''
'He couldn't believe it, and said: "Why don't you like it?"'
Valeska said she once broke the rules and had to serve Tom Cruise and then-girlfriend Penelope Cruz on Freewinds in 2003. She claims females were forbidden by Miscavige from serving Cruise because, 'He's so good looking that if you serve him, you'll end up falling in love with him.'
Valeska was a second-generation Scientologist, starting off as a cadet at its headquarters in Saint Hill, England, she then signed a billion-year contract to be a full-time member of the Sea Org, even though she was only 14. She later moved to Clearwater, Florida, where the church is based
After Maiden Voyage in 2003, Tom Cruise and Penelope Cruz came aboard the ship and crew members were expected to follow a strict set of rules while tending to them, she claims.
'They'd spend all their time diving and playing around on a $2,000-a-day yacht with Miscavige, meanwhile, we'd be working under horrific conditions.
'We were shown pictures of Tom, Penelope and all his entourage so we knew who they all were.
'We were told not to tell anyone they were coming, otherwise you'd be sent to the RPF. You can't look at him in the eye, you can't talk to him, address him as "sir," and stay the f*** out of his way.
'We then found out that he was coming on the ship tomorrow, so COB was asking who was going to serve him. He ended up picking a man as he said no woman is allowed to serve him.
'He said, and this is the God's honest truth, right in front of me and two other women: "He's so good looking that if you serve him, you'll end up falling in love with him."
'The next morning, Tom had his breakfast while COB was sleeping - he was in bed every day until midday - and the guy who was meant to serve him overslept, so I ended up serving him.
'He had this egg white omelette with a bunch of vegetables. Penelope came in a white dress and she had a special diet as well.
'She was very nice, super calm, wearing no make up, laid back, but he was very hyper. Tom and COB only drank Smart Water, all meals were specially made. I also served Penelope for dinner.
'Any couples not married who came on the ship were not allowed to share a cabin, but Tom was allowed a room with her. Sea Org members were angry, there was hostility about that.
'Every night they'd watch a movie in the cinema room. He was very much in love with Penelope and happy. Penelope was getting audited at the time in 2003, she was doing Scientology for sure. When she left the Church, the auditor got in trouble.'
Valeska signed a billion-year contract to be a full-time member of the Sea Org at 14
The following year, after he split from Cruz, the Mission Impossible actor came back right after Maiden Voyage and it was his 42nd birthday, but Valeska was not invited.
Miscavige made sure it was a night to be remembered. Cringe-worthy YouTube clips have surfaced from the event showing Cruise, now 56, singing and dancing to the band, then proclaiming: 'This is incredible... It's the best birthday ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, and I mean: ever!'
Valeska says: 'The Starlight Cabaret, which is the entertainment and event space on the ship, was decorated for Tom's birthday, it looked ridiculous, there was every poster of every movie he'd ever done, apart from ones with Nicole Kidman. She was considered a Suppressive Person. No Nicole posters allowed anywhere.
'They also did a concert and all the songs were from movies he'd been in except Nicole ones. They flew his favorite Chinese chef to cook for him, this was all paid for by Scientology.
'I was one of the only people on the ship who was not allowed to go to his birthday, as I had the audacity to have a cold sore, I was so run down,' she says.
From then on, she claims, she was taken off the ship for every Maiden Voyage.
'I got put in isolation, had an ethics interview, and security check to find out what my evil intentions were to COB and Shelly: "Do you have an evil purpose to COB? Do you want to do something bad to him?" They do this line of questioning until they find out why I am evil to them. And when you come up with nothing you get yelled at and told to "confront your evil intentions,"' she says.
'It was all a blessing in disguise, as I can't dance, and everyone was ordered to dance. There were three girls, who did dance, and then accused of flirting with him, so they were locked in a room, told to write up their crimes for being "interesting" in front of Tom Cruise.
Valeska says she considered Shelly (pictured left, and right, with Leah Remini) a 'mother figure' who took her under her wing
This is the Scientology base in Twin Peaks, California, where Shelly is believed to live
Valeska doesn't believe Shelly is living in a 'Scientology prison' as others have suggested and thinks she is not there against her will
'The only Scientology celebrity that COB likes is Tom Cruise, the others are all below him. Tom Cruise would call him on the phone, they'd be on the phone all the time,' she claims.
Although Valeska feared Miscavige, she claims she had a close relationship with his wife, Shelly Miscavige, who has not been seen in public in more than a decade.
'But my relationship with Shelly was great, she kept an eye on me, and was keen for me to keep up with my education. Scientology didn't care, and we were never sent to school as Sea Org members,' she claims.
Valeska says Shelly was like a 'mother figure' to her and she kept in touch with her through letters even after she was sent away on Freewinds.
'We wrote letters for years, she took me under her wing. When I was first engaged to a guy, she wrote two pages demanding to know everything. From the age of 15 to 25, for ten years we would write back and forth,' she says.
August marked the 12-year anniversary since Shelly was last seen in public.
Former church members have speculated that she has been at a secret Scientology base called Twin Peaks in the San Bernardino Mountains since 2006.
Valeska, however, has a different theory and doesn't believe Shelly is living in a 'Scientology prison' as others have suggested.
'She's not there against her will, the treatment she'll be getting is a lot better than most would receive. She's living in the mountains and, yes, sure, she's under security watch and it won't be like before, as she was living like a queen,' she says.
'Yet, it's not like she'll be in RPF (Rehabilitation Project Force) conditions. Imagine his wife going into the RPF, she knows more than anyone about COB's secrets, he is going to have to keep her happy.'
The church has long denied any rumors suggesting Shelly is missing and have insisted that she is devoting her time to the work of the Church of Scientology.
Valeska says she used to see Shelly on the ship when she came aboard for Maiden Voyage and the two kept in touch through written correspondence about their personal lives, including Valeska's first marriage.
Weddings were common among Sea Org members and most married as teens and twenty-somethings since sexual contact is not allowed before marriage.
'When I was on the ship, I married a guy called Roberto, I was only 20. Shelly was pleased, she told me: "Good, you have someone to look after you, I don't need to do it." She wanted to see all the photos from my wedding album,' she says.
Valeska eventually fled the church after completing RPF (Rehabilitation Project Force) in Australia. She now lives with her husband and three kids - Declan, eight, Evan, six, Rhys, in Brisbane
Valeska and her husband Chris Guider. She claims Scientology has 'destroyed' her family and she remains disconnected from her father and brother
'I wrote to her when I first got there, saying: "I hate it, I don't want to be here, please get me off the ship," but I was told that the letter didn't even get to her, it had been destroyed. You can't criticize Scientology. All letters are read before they leave the ship.
'I would always tell her good things after that first letter, we couldn't say anything negative. I would write to her about anything going on in my life.
'She would always send me letters on her letterhead 'Michelle Diane Miscavige.'
As a child, Shelly had encouraged Valeska to get an education, something that was not encouraged in Scientology, she claims.
'One day she drove me home in her car, she told me that her biggest regret was not getting an education, she had joined the Sea Org as one of founder L. Ron Hubbard's messengers at the age of nine and stopped going to school. She wanted me to do some schooling.
'She personally ordered me a whole set of math tapes, and had me listen to them every day for a couple of hours. Every time I saw her, she would test me on my math, and would always ask me what I learned.
'She ordered me to go to school and I went for a couple of hours a day, but that stopped after barely two months as Scientology had to pay for it, and that was considered too "expensive,"' Valeska alleges.
'COB had also told me in an earlier conversation that school was a waste of time.
'Despite all she did, I left school at 14 with no grades, no education and no guardians as my father was in the Sea Org at Saint Hill and my mom had escaped the Sea Org with her new husband and I was left behind.'
Valeska thinks Shelly doted on her because she didn't have her own children.
'Shelly loved animals, she would go out every day at the Hacienda [Sea Org accommodation] and feed stray cats, she had real empathy and love for any animal, I think that's the maternal instinct.
'She seemed to really want kids, but didn't have any, and I was a child. She was really good with Jenna, Miscavige's niece, as well,' she adds.
Valeska claims that problems with Shelly's began after the death of Scientologist Lisa McPherson in 1995.
The 35-year-old was reportedly denied medical treatment by the church after a car crash, and the Florida State medical examiner called it 'negligent homicide.'
The Church was indicted on two felony charges that were later were dropped after the state's medical examiner changed the cause of death from 'undetermined' to an 'accident.'
A civil suit brought by her family against the Church was settled in 2004.
An email conversation between Valeska and her father Jean-Francois Paris, shows how leaving that church has forbidden her from speaking to her own dad
The negative publicity rocked the church and Miscavige.
'I would hear him scream at the top of his lungs while I was working in the kitchen next to the execs room, I would be shaking, it was so scary.
'When Lisa McPherson happened, he changed. All of the execs he was friends with, that all disappeared. His circle went even smaller,' she alleges.
Shelly's usually strong relationship with her husband began to falter - he dismissed the whole of his board of executives in favor of younger, more eager to please, dedicated Sea Org members, such as Lou Stuckenbrock, for whom he created the position 'COB Communicator'.
'Shelly became more and more stressed out. COB would be in the dining room with his Communicator Lou and she would eat afterwards,' Valeska claims.
'In her letters she would never say anything, but she was writing less and less, I got the sense she was more stressed. She wasn't perfect, but she stood by COB for years, and I never saw them argue, but I always saw that he was very close with Lou.
'In 2005, he said in a meeting that Shelly had been taken "off his lines," but he wasn't going to divorce her, he was way too qualified to ever marry any other Sea Org member. She was extremely dedicated to him. His words were: "She messed up his communication lines."'
Shelly has since retreated from public life; once a prominent member of the church, she was even absent at Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes's wedding in 2006.
In 2013, Hollywood actress and famous Church defector Leah Remini filed a missing person report with the Los Angeles Police Department for Shelly.
Police eventually said that they had interviewed Shelly and confirmed she wasn't being held against her will and didn't want to make any public statement.
Valeska's correspondence with Shelly came to a stop after she left.
She says her time at the church worsened in 2007, after she was sent to England 'on a mission' during Maiden Voyage.
Only days into it, Valeska got into hot water for daring to speak to a married man and she was ordered back to the Freewinds and sent to the engine room.
After all this treatment, Valeska was suicidal and desperate to get out.
'In my mind, I was either going to end it or get off that ship,' she adds.
But Valeska also had no skills for the real world, her brother Raphael, 36, and father Jean, 66, were and still are in the church today, she'd never be allowed to see them again if she absconded.
She'd also 'disconnected' from her mother Ariane and younger sister Melissa, 38, 14 years ago when they left the Church.
'They wouldn't let me off this ship. I had served COB and knew their dirty little secrets. It was still hard to leave, I'd been in the Sea Org since 14, I had no education, no money, never had a bank account, I had no idea how to live in the real world.
'I'd lose my brother and father instantly, I didn't know if my mom or sister would reconnect or where they lived. I'd been indoctrinated that Scientology is life,' she says.
Valeska was sent to the RPF in Australia, in the hope that it would 'rehabilitate' her.
During this time, she met Chris Guider, a former rugby league legend in Australia who gave it all up in the 80s for Scientology.
'After graduating the RPF, they started making my life hell again. They were threatening to send me back to the ship, but I'd already decided I would never, ever go back to that place again,' she says.
'When we finally got free, we had no one to judge us, I could watch TV when I wanted to, I had a normal room that wasn't a dormitory, I felt so much freedom. That's when I realized that Scientology was, in a nutshell, s**t.
'I hadn't seen my mom and sister for ages. I hadn't seen my mom for so long that when I first saw her, I went up to the wrong person. We didn't recognize each other.
'My dad sent me a text saying he was going to disconnect from me for talking to my mom and sister, this was at the same time as I was eight months pregnant with my first child.'
Today, Chris and Valeska now live happily in Brisbane and have three children - Declan, eight, Evan, six, Rhys, three - but still live under the shadow of Scientology's disconnection policy.
Valeska said: 'I have three children who've never met their grandfather. I haven't spoken to my brother since 2010. My family is destroyed. But we got out and we're having a good life. Hopefully my dad and brother will wake up one day, and my door will always be open for them.'
In a statement to DailyMail.com the church said: 'What has been said about us all too often—as is the case here—is pure propaganda. It is inaccurate and intentionally avoids showing who Scientologists really are and what we do.
'Propagandists look to capitalize on the growing curiosity about Scientology. They have manufactured controversies where there are none while refusing to show the Church, its organizations, its humanitarian programs as well as its unprecedented growth in Churches worldwide. That is the real story—a dynamic movement and crusade spanning 167 countries on six continents helping people live better and happier lives: www.scientology.tv.'
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