‘Ringleaders of far-Right satanic cult' arrested for child abuse

Yahoo

30-04-2025

The alleged ringleaders of a far-Right satanic terror network that encouraged children to carve symbols into their flesh have been arrested by the FBI.
Leonidas Varagiannis, a US national living in Greece, and Prasan Nepal, from North Carolina, were named in an unsealed affidavit as leaders of 764, an online extremist group which the FBI alleges instructs its members to manipulate vulnerable children into 'setting themselves on fire, abusing their pets or siblings, and even suicide'.
Varagiannis, 21, who goes by the online moniker 'War', was arrested in northern Greece on an international warrant on Monday.
Nepal, 20, who admitted in a court hearing on Tuesday to being a founding member and leader of 764, was arrested on April 22.
The pair are accused of 'orchestrating one of the most heinous online child exploitation enterprises' US law enforcement has ever encountered.
Attorney General Pamela Bondi described it as a network 'built on terror, abuse, and the deliberate targeting of children'.
The unsealed affidavit from Andrew Rust, an FBI special agent, alleges that the pair produced and shared child pornography and 'methodically targeted' underage girls with mental health problems.
The children are said to have been coerced into providing evidence of them cutting symbols into their bodies in so-called 'cut signs' and 'blood signs'.
The affidavit alleges that the pair controlled a subgroup, known as 764 Inferno, in which instructions were posted on how other members should exploit 'vulnerable minor children' by way of extortion and blackmail.
Five other alleged co-conspirators were also identified in the affidavit, one of whom allegedly shared a video of a partially-clothed girl setting herself on fire.
One of the co-conspirators is said to have encouraged an underage girl living in the UK to perform grotesque sex acts.
Varagiannis gleefully rejoiced when he received an image of the aftermath, commenting 'I'm weak' and 'I'm literally rolling rn [right now],' the affidavit alleges.
'Members of 764 have also engaged in acts of real-world violence, such as destroying property, spray painting 764 monikers and iconography on public buildings, physical abuse of animals, and physical assaults on people, including stabbings and attempted murder,' the affidavit said.
Varagiannis denied the allegations and formally opposed extradition, according to Greek judicial authorities. A federal public defender for Nepal did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Kash Patel, the director of the FBI, said: 'Let me be very clear about our efforts.
'The FBI and our partners are determined to protect juveniles from predators, and we will track down and hold accountable those who engage in these criminal activities.
'We will continue to work closely with our partners at the Department of Justice to bring justice to the victims of such cruel abuse.'
Edward R Martin Jr, the US attorney for the District of Columbia, described the allegations as 'every parent's nightmare'.
He said: 'The number of victims allegedly exploited by these defendants, and the depths of depravity, are staggering.
'Justice demands that our response be swift in order to ensure public safety, hold the wrongdoers accountable, and bring the victims some sense of closure so they can heal.'
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