Network leaders, "War" and "Trippy," charged over alleged child exploitation

Two leaders of what authorities described arsenic a convulsive online web person been arrested and charged for allegedly operating "one of the astir heinous online kid exploitation enterprises" officials person ever seen.

The leaders, 21-year-old Leonidas Varagiannis, who is besides known online arsenic "War," and 20-year-old Prasan Nepal, besides known arsenic "Trippy," could walk the remainder of their lives successful situation for their alleged crimes, which see targeting susceptible children online and "coercing them into producing degrading and explicit contented nether menace and manipulation," the Justice Department said successful a news release Tuesday.

Some contented was traced to kids arsenic young arsenic 13.

"The allegations successful this lawsuit are not lone disturbing, they are besides each parent's nightmare," U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin Jr. for the District of Columbia said successful the quality release. "The fig of victims allegedly exploited by these defendants, and the depths of depravity are staggering."

The network, known arsenic 764, "seeks to destruct civilized nine done the corruption and exploitation of susceptible populations, which often see minors," the Justice Department said. Its activities took spot from precocious 2020 done aboriginal this year.

According to the Justice Department, Varagiannis and Nepal led a halfway subgroup wrong 764 that operated done encrypted messaging apps, and they allegedly directed and participated successful the accumulation and organisation of kid intersexual maltreatment material.

"These defendants allegedly recruited others to exploit children and created a usher for the disgusting online contented they wanted," FBI Director Kash Patel said successful the quality release.

Nepal was arrested successful North Carolina past week and Varagiannis was arrested connected Monday successful Greece, wherever helium resides, authorities said. Varagiannis, who was arrested connected an planetary warrant, denied the allegations and has formally opposed extradition, his lawyer and Greek judicial authorities said, according to The Associated Press.

"Throughout the play during which the alleged offenses took place, helium was residing successful Greece," Xanthippi Moysidou, Varagiannis' lawyer, told the AP. "Therefore, Greek instrumentality and courts person jurisdiction implicit the case, and his extradition is explicitly prohibited."

In:
• Child Sex Abuse
• Child Abuse