Four men who an indictment claims espouse neo-Nazi beliefs have been charged with child exploitation in a case in which they coerced 16 children β including two in San Bernardino County β to create child pornography and other images showing them harming themselves, the U. Department of Justice said Thursday, Jan. CVLT members groomed children through a platform run by CVLT to produce the images through various means of degradation, including exposing the victims to extremist and violent content, a DOJ news release said.
CVLT specifically targeted victims who may be vulnerable, such as those suffering from mental health problems or from a history of sexual abuse. CVLT members pressured victims to kill themselves on a video live stream, the release said.
CVLT members exposed children to extremist and violent content, including women being raped and animals being tortured to death. When victims resisted or threatened to tell parents or authorities, CVLT members would threaten to β and in some instances did β distribute compromising photos and videos of the victims to their family and friends.
In the case of the San Bernardino County children, a boy, identified in the indictment as co-conspirator R. They were expected to appear in court in their states. The indictment also charges two men already in custody with one count of engaging in a child exploitation enterprise: Rohan Sandeep Rane, 28, of Antibes, France, and Kaleb Christopher Merritt, 24, of Spring, Texas.
Rane previously was charged with several child exploitation and related offenses in France and has been in French custody since Merritt is in custody in Virginia, serving a year sentence for child sex abuse crimes committed in and If convicted as charged, the defendants would face a minimum penalty of 20 years in prison and a maximum penalty of life in prison. By Brian Rokos brokos scng. Share this: Click to share on Facebook Opens in new window Click to share on Twitter Opens in new window Click to print Opens in new window Click to email a link to a friend Opens in new window Click to share on Reddit Opens in new window.
