After the sentence, US lawyer talked about online terrorist groups’ threats regarding child sexual abuse • Michigan Advance

Content warning: This story contains details of child sexual abuse and suicide.

Children face a new and growing threat to their safety from organizations engaged in terrorism by producing sexually explicit material with the aim of subverting the government and society, Mark Totten, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan, said at a press conference with national security experts. That follows the sentencing Thursday of a Michigan man affiliated with one such group.

Totten said at the beginning of his press conference with reporters that it is not a common procedure to hold a press conference after sentencing in child abuse cases, but because of the violence that online sexual blackmail, or “sextortion” of children, has become widespread in the United States. The Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation wanted to draw attention to the violence.

“It is difficult to even fathom such shocking and inhumane violence targeting innocent and defenseless children, but we cannot look away,” Assistant Attorney General Matt Olsen of the Homeland Security Division said at the press conference.

Early Thursday, Richard Anthony Reyna Densmore, 47, of Northern Michigan, was sentenced to 30 years in federal court for sexually exploiting a child on the social platform Discord.

Prosecutors in the case alleged that Densmore manipulated an underage girl in October 2022 into sending a video of herself naked with the username “Rabid” written on her chest.

Olsen said Densmore was part of a dangerous network of violent extremists known as “764.” In fact, Densmore had become infamous in 764 for forcing children to record acts of self-harm or provide sexually explicit material in order to force them to kill themselves live on air for the entertainment of 764 members.

There is FBI published warnings There are about 764 and other similar groups targeting children on online platforms, and local and national partners in national security are increasingly concerned about alerting parents to the existence of groups committing terrorism, Olsen said.

“These groups often target young people struggling with mental health issues, as the defendant in this case, Richard Densmore, allegedly operated chat rooms and Discord servers that facilitated the exchange of child Sexual Abuse material,” Olsen said. “He forced children to cut themselves and produce graphic material and is now being held accountable for his crimes. “Today’s 30-year sentence underscores the Department of Justice’s commitment to stopping acts of terrorism and disrupting online groups engaging in these heinous behaviors, and demonstrates our determination to use every tool available to counter these threats.”

FBI Detroit Assistant Special Agent in Charge Rebecca Marriott said sexual blackmail can happen anywhere online. There is an illusion that it takes a long time to manipulate someone using sex blackmail, but in reality it can take as little as minutes or hours.

Such was the case of 17-year-old Jordan DeMay in the Marquette area in March 2022. DeMay thought he was messaging a young woman on Instagram, but in reality, foreign scammers manipulated him into sending a suggestive photo and then tried to blackmail him. for money.

Within six hours of beginning negotiations with the crooks, DeMay killed himself.

The case has spread to the northern Michigan community, government officials said at a news conference in September where local law enforcement spoke about legislation aimed at curbing racketeering.

“One case is too many. One family’s grief is too many,” State Representative Jen Hill (D-Marquette) said at a September press conference. “We must act now to protect our children, prevent further heartbreak and ensure more families don’t experience this heartbreak.”

At a September press conference, Michigan law enforcement officials outlined how sexual extortion affects children in their communities, noting that the problem is growing in the state.

Marquette County Sheriff Gregory Zyburt said in September that what happened to DeMay will be with him forever, and he wants kids to know that if they end up in a similar situation, if someone threatens them with an explicit photo, “it’s not going to be the end of the world and it’s not worth taking their own lives.”

Marriott noted Thursday that the FBI requested parents should know the dangers children face from predators onlinetalking to their children about who they talk to online and watching for signs of mental distress.

But federal agencies have an interest in talking about groups like 764 because Totten said what they do isn’t necessarily motivated by extortion for money, but rather has political roots.

Totten did not elaborate on whether the ideology of groups like 764 was outside the destruction of society, but 764’s members were also affiliated with each other Nine Angles Ordera Satanist neo-Nazi group promotes pedophilia as a way to destroy civilization.