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The Department of Justice (DOJ) on Friday charged five men from across the United States with running an online “child exploitation enterprise” called “Greggy’s Cult,” which allegedly used Discord servers to terrorize, blackmail, and force minors to commit “horrific acts of self-harm.”
The indictment unsealed by federal prosecutors accuses five individuals of “conspiracy to produce child pornography, conspiracy to receive and distribute child pornography, and conspiracy to communicate interstate threats.”
Hector Bermudez, 29, of Queens, New York; Zachary Dosch, 26, of Albuquerque, New Mexico; Romaldo Valdez, 22, of Honolulu, Hawaii; David Brillante, 28, of San Diego, California; and Camden Rodriguez, 22, of Longmont, Colorado, were arrested Tuesday and will be arraigned in the Eastern District of New York at a later date, according to the Department of Justice.
Prosecutors described a “horrific online platform”, alleging that the Gregory Group carried out “depraved behaviour” that included “repeatedly encouraging victims to kill themselves or encouraging them to insert household objects into their genitals or anuses”.
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FBI Director Kash Patel said that the five leaders of the “Grighi” group “exploited, threatened and harassed” children on online platforms. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
“These five defendants allegedly targeted at-risk children and others via online platforms — exploiting, threatening and harassing them, and encouraging horrific acts of self-harm,” FBI Director Kash Patel said in a statement. “The FBI is sending a message to those individuals engaged in criminal activity through violent Internet networks: You cannot hide in the shadows hovering over your keyboard – we will find and hold accountable those who engage in these illegal and heinous acts.”
The indictment stated that the defendants engaged in the “production and distribution of child sexual abuse material” between January 2020 and January 2021, and also engaged in other forms of “exploitation and harassment” of both minors and adults.
According to prosecutors, the defendants and other members of “Greggy’s Cult” met on Discord servers and “directed the young victims, who joined a video call on Discord or another video conferencing platform, to engage in sexually explicit or other degrading conduct.”
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US Attorney Pam Bondi (left) and FBI Director Kash Patel announced on December 2 that five men had been charged with leading a “child exploitation enterprise.” (Kevin Deitch/Getty Images)
The group is also accused of finding victims on gaming platforms such as Roblox and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.
Cult members allegedly took screenshots and recordings of “sexually explicit conduct” before sharing them with other Discord servers and with each other, according to the Department of Justice.
Attorney General Pam Bondi responded to the indictment, stating that “no child should ever be terrorized or exploited online, and no online platform should provide a refuge to predators.”
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Leaders of “Greggy’s Cult” met on Discord servers and directed minors to “engage in sexually explicit or other degrading conduct,” prosecutors said. (Tiffany Hagler-Gard/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“The Department of Justice will continue to protect children, support survivors, and hold accountable anyone who preys on vulnerable people — online or off — with every tool we have,” Bondi added.
Prosecutors also accused the defendants of blackmailing their targets, alleging that they attempted to portray adult victims as pedophiles or send malware to minor victims, which was then used “as a means to induce victims to engage in humiliating acts on camera.”
The defendants were allegedly able to convince the victims to commit “degrading” acts, including making them “belong” to a cult member as a show of loyalty, or writing the names of cult members on their bodies, which prosecutors referred to as “fan signing.”
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FBI Director Kash Patel said that the office will hold accountable anyone involved in violent Internet networks. (Getty Images)
Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew Galeotti of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division said in a statement that the defendants were charged with “the unspeakable act of coercing and blackmailing children and adults to engage in self-harm and other degrading acts.”
U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. for the Eastern District of New York called the alleged behavior “brutal,” adding that the children were “at times pushed to the brink of suicide.”
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The Justice Department said five men allegedly took screenshots and screen recordings of “sexually explicit conduct” before sharing them with other Discord servers and with each other. (Fox 2 Detroit)
The Justice Department stated that the Gregory Group was formed before the emergence of the 764 Network, another online child exploitation group that the FBI launched an extensive effort to eliminate.
“764” members allegedly use popular online platforms such as Discord, Telegram and Roblox to recruit and manipulate minors.