Warning over terrifying online gang which pushes teenage victims to take nudes, hurt family pets or self-harm
A violent predator group has gotten the attention of the FBI after luring children into extreme behavior over the internet.
The sadistic group - known as '764' - is known as a nihilistic violent extremist network (NVE) that befriends teens through popular online platforms, then coerces them into performing cruel and sexual acts.
'We see a lot of bad things, but this is one of the most disturbing things we're seeing,' said FBI Assistant Director David Scott told ABC News.
'They will encourage them sometimes to commit suicide, they will encourage them to do cutting, they will encourage them to harm their pets.'
The FBI has over 250 investigations into 764 underway, with every single one of the bureaus 55 field offices across the country handling a case.
Two men accused of having leadership roles in the virulent online exploitation were arrested and charged last week.
Leonidas Varagiannis, 21, and Prasan Nepal, 20, allegedly led a core subgroup of 764 known as '764 Inferno,' which targeted vulnerable people, including children, with tactics designed to induce self-harm, the Department of Justice said.
The pair were also involved in making and distributing child sexual abuse material, which was combined with other 'gore and violent material to create digital "Lorebooks."'
The material was then traded among group members and treated as currency to recruit new members or maintain status within the network.
Nepal, known as 'Trippy,' was arrested on April 22 in North Carolina. Varagiannis, known as 'War,' is a U.S. citizen living in Greece. He was arrested there on April 28.
Nepal is accused of starting 764 with its Texas-based founder, Bradley Cadenhead, who is serving an 80-year-prison sentence after pleading guilty to several child pornography-related charges in 2023.
Cadenhead, who was 15 at the time, launched the online community on the social platform Discord and called it "764" after the ZIP code of where he lived, according to court documents.
The FBI warned of a sharp increase in 764 activity in a March 6 public service announcement.
764 goals include social unrest and the downfall of the current world order, including the United States Government, the agency said.
'These defendants are accused of orchestrating one of the most heinous online child exploitation enterprises we have ever encountered - a network built on terror, abuse, and the deliberate targeting of children,' U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said.
FBI Director Kash Patel said the network was designed 'to exploit children and created a guide for the disgusting online content they wanted.'
The criminal complaint filed against Varagiannis and Nepal included instructional material on how to manipulate and abuse girls.
'In order to manipulate into one producing content in your name, you must make her feel loved to the point she does not want to let go or lose you, and that's when you start requesting work like blood signs,' the instructions state.
'The best woman to target are ones that have depression or mentally ill ones.'
In one case, a 17-year-old girl from Connecticut was targeted on Roblox and Discord by a 764 member who convinced her they were a couple, reported ABC News.
Her coerced her into making graphic content, including a nude Barbie doll with '764' written on it and a note written in her blood calling the man who targeted her a 'god.'
She was even accused of helping direct a series of swatting threats to local schools, which she was eventually arrested for.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Review Geek
24 minutes ago
- The Review Geek
Poker Face – Season 2 Episode 7 'One Last Job' Recap & Review
Episode 7 The Murder Episode 7 of Poker Face Season 2 begins in a SuperSave store where we are introduced to Kendall, an employee who is good friends with his boss, Bill. Bill has just read Kendall's latest action movie script titled One Last Job. He tells Kendall he really ought to go to LA and give his talent a real shot but Kendall says he isn't ready yet. Unfortunately, Bill has also been ordered to let some personnel go and he fires Kendall, hoping this will give him the push to pursue his dreams. However, Kendall isn't happy about this and, in his anger, even helps a shoplifter named Juice. As a thank you, Juice buys Kendall a few drinks. Kendall mentions the heist story in his script and how it's based on the SuperSave where he works. Juice thinks it's a great idea, not just as a script but for an actual heist. After all, Kendall needs money if he wants to go to Hollywood. Kendall is soon convinced. They make a plan to rob the store in the half hour between the cleaning crew's exit and the arrival of the armoured truck which transports the cash. They use a Polaroid photo to block the security camera in the vault room. Kendall then uses a UV light to see Bill's fingerprints on the vault's keypad (his fingerprints show up thanks to the canola oil on the crisps he likes to eat). While Kendall is trying different combinations, Juice hears a noise and goes to check it out. Inside the vault, Kendall finds a lot more than 200k and bags it all. He even keeps a part of it in his own employee locker. However, Kendall then finds himself face to face with none other than Bill. He's in pyjamas and seems to be sleeping here. He recognises Kendall even in the mask but before Kendall can explain, Juice shoots him dead. He says he'll take care of the body, leaving Kendall shocked. The Investigation We skip to a few days before the heist when Charlie is working for an Indian restaurant. She delivers food to Bill and the two flirt with each other. The night before his birthday (the day of the heist), Bill asks Charlie out for dinner. Jenny, Charlie's co-worker, is a rom-com fan and gives her some tips. On her advice, Charlie approaches Kendall and asks what Bill would like as a gift. He suggests she get something related to Bill's bike. Charlie turns up for the date and gifts Bill a guardian bell for his bike. Bill loves it! He takes her for dinner inside the SuperSave, where he's arranged a romantic dinner set up. He admits he's been living out of his office and the security cameras are on loop. He also shows Charlie a button that can call the cops in five minutes. The conversation moves to Kendall and Bill says he hopes getting fired will push Kendall to go to Hollywood. The two spend the night together and have a lovely time. At the end of the night, he tells Charlie he wants to see her again and she seems optimistic about it. However, when Charlie finally gets a call to deliver food at the SuperSave the next day, she finds the place swarming with cops who are investigating the break-in. A news reporter tells a camera that about $400,000 was stolen. Kendall, meanwhile, tries to get to his employee locker to get the money but he isn't allowed. Charlie looks through the store and eventually finds Bill's body, hidden in plain sight as a mannequin of Santa Claus. The cops believe this was a heist gone wrong but Charlie tries to explain that Bill loved this store and would never rob it. When they tell her about the Polaroid gimmick, taken from Mission: Impossible III, Charlie begins to suspect Kendall. Kendall goes back home only to be confronted by Juice, who watched the news and found out that there was more money in the safe and Kendall cheated him. They fight and Kendall ends up stabbing Juice with one of his collectible swords. That night, Charlie sneaks into the room with the employee lockers and breaks into Kendall's locker. She finds the bag of money and realises everything, only to see Kendall himself pointing a gun at her. He's leading her out of the store when she reveals she's pressed the button that calls the police. They are also interrupted by Juice, sword and all, who attacks both of them with a machine gun. A chase ensues in the store until Juice finally collapses. And just as Kendall is making it to the door, the police arrive and he puts his hands up. The Episode Review If you're a movie fanatic, you will probably love Poker Face Season 2 Episode 7. The episode is chock-full of movie references, not just in the dialogue or Kendall's obsession with heist movies but also through the details in the plot. Such as Charlie's use of TV screens to get the better of Juice, Kendall's final scene with the flying cash, and more. It's all incredibly well executed, in a polished way that ties into the story, and even with the right amount of tongue-in-cheek — Charlie boldly proclaims they aren't in an action movie just before Juice makes his grand machine gun entry. As a result of the focus on movies and references, though, we don't get as much insight into Kendall as a person, the way we generally do with other characters who open the episode. We also don't see much of Charlie's lie detection here. Although it was pretty nice to see her play her part in a rom-com for a little bit, there! On the whole, though, if you aren't that familiar with these easter eggs and references, the episode could feel a tad lacklustre. Previous Episode Next Episode Expect A Full Season Write-Up When This Season Concludes!
The Independent
28 minutes ago
- The Independent
Trump raising cash off Los Angeles protest mayhem with ‘attack on the homeland' email
The chief fundraising arm for Donald Trump 's campaign is using protests in Los Angeles to solicit donations from supporters. The Trump National Committee Joint Fundraising Committee — which has sent more than 1,000 fundraising emails since the president's inauguration — issued a 'breaking Trump alert' on Monday after three days of demonstrations in Paramount and downtown Los Angeles against a series of immigration raids. The subject line in the latest message reads: 'Looking really bad in LA!' 'ATTACK ON THE HOMELAND,' reads the message, under a photograph of Trump surrounded by the words 'BREAKING TRUMP ALERT.' The message goes on to promote the president's sweeping ban on entry into the United States from travelers and immigrants from more than a dozen countries, which takes effect Monday. 'We will not allow people to enter our country who wish to do us harm,' the message says. 'That's why I announced the new TRUMP TRAVEL BAN…but I really need to make sure we're on the same page!' Message recipients are asked to complete a 'citizens only survey' to answer whether they support 'defending the homeland' and 'instituting a Trump travel ban to keep America safe.' Links surrounding the text of the message take supporters to a fundraising page that asks whether the recipient is an 'American citizen' or 'illegal alien' — if they choose the latter, they're told to 'end survey immediately.' 'We've seen terror attack after attack carried out by foreign visa overstayers from dangerous places,' according to the message. Joint fundraising committees — in which individual campaigns and political actions committees can join — effectively act as one-stop shops that allow donors to make large contributions shared across those entities. Campaign fundraising committees supporting the president — using his images and signature as if the messages were sent by Trump himself — have routinely relied on his scandals to raise millions of dollars. His criminal indictments — including his mugshot, which has been branded in products from T-shirts to Christmas wrapping paper — are featured in hundreds of messages. His attacks against 'activist' judges who delivered court rulings against his administration's immigration enforcement decisions are included in dozens of recent emails. Militarized law enforcement officers fired tear gas, stun grenades, rubber bullets and pepper spray against crowds of protesters following growing outrage against the administration's ramped-up immigration arrests. Some protesters tossed rocks and bottles or launched fireworks at law enforcement vehicles and set fire to a handful of self-driving Waymo vehicles. The president labelled demonstrators 'insurrectionists' as he defended his administration calling up the National Guard to support local law enforcement. Trump has long sought a showdown with a major Democratic-led state over a signature campaign issue, rapidly drawing the most populous county in America into the administration's plans to escalate a federal law enforcement crackdown on immigration enforcement. On his Truth Social, the president claimed Los Angeles has been 'invaded and occupied' by 'violent, insurrectionist mobs,' and directed administration officials to 'liberate Los Angeles from the Migrant Invasion.' Trump deployed 2,000 National Guard troops to the city without the consent of California Governor Gavin Newsom, who said the president's invocation of the National Guard without his approval was 'inflaming tensions.' Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has also suggested Marines at Camp Pendleton could be mobilized 'if violence continues.'
Telegraph
38 minutes ago
- Telegraph
‘Something going on in jury room' at Weinstein trial, judge told
Jurors in Harvey Weinstein's MeToo retrial appeared far apart on a verdict as they returned to court on Monday for a third day of deliberations. The jury asked to be reminded of the definition of reasonable doubt and rules about avoiding a hung jury, and the foreperson sent a note saying he wanted to speak to the judge 'about a situation that isn't very good'. The foreperson told Judge Curtis Farber that he was concerned about 'something going on in the jury room'. He was then taken behind closed doors to discuss the matter with Mr Farber, prosecutors and the defence team. Weinstein waived his right to be present for that conversation, which was held in Mr Farber's robing room, outside the view of reporters and the public. It was not immediately clear what the foreperson said. Mr Farber has yet to give jurors the instructions they wanted reread to them. Juror asked to be removed After the closed-door conversation, Weinstein's lawyers returned to the courtroom and huddled around the court stenographer's machine, jotting down notes while Mr Farber heard another, unrelated case. The jury of seven women and five men began weighing charges against the former movie mogul on Thursday. Weinstein, 73, has pleaded not guilty to two counts of committing a criminal sex act and one count of rape. On Friday, a Weinstein juror asked to be removed from the case, saying he felt other jurors were treating one member of the panel in an 'unfair and unjust' way. The judge told him he had to keep deliberating and also denied a defence request for a mistrial over the issue. Weinstein was originally convicted in New York in 2020 of one count of rape and one count of sexual assault in a verdict considered a landmark in the MeToo movement. But the conviction was subsequently overturned, leading to his retrial – with an additional accuser added last year – before a new jury and a different judge. Weinstein was also convicted in Los Angeles in 2022 of another rape. After the 2020 conviction was thrown out, Alvin Bragg, the Manhattan district attorney, opted to charge Weinstein again almost immediately, eventually bringing two counts of first-degree criminal sexual act and one count of third-degree rape against him. Weinstein denies the charges, alleging the sexual encounters were consensual. His lawyer Arthur Aidala said the Oscar-winning producer had 'mutually beneficial' relationships with his accusers, who ended up with auditions and other show business opportunities.
