On October 14, police arrested a 22-year-old man from Hoofddorp who is a member of the Com (“the community”), specifically the 764 group. The man is suspected of serious assault and sextortion. Within online Com groups, young perpetrators share extremely violent videos and encourage youths to harm themselves or others. The suspect allegedly forced youths to carve his username into their bodies. The examining magistrate has decided he will remain in custody for the time being.
The man from Hoofddorp reportedly shared in various online chat groups that he has made multiple victims of so-called cutsigns. He is also suspected of sextortion. The suspect allegedly blackmailed youths with nude images and forced them to carve his online username into their legs and breasts with a knife. Actual images of such cutsigns were found in chat groups on Telegram. These are presumed to have been sent by the suspect.
Growing Threat
Radical online groups such as 764 and No Lives Matter pose a growing international threat. The young members normalize and glorify extreme violence. The goal is to pressure youths into committing (sexual) violence against themselves or random others, or for example their pets, brothers, and sisters.
Victims are encouraged to film everything they do. These images are then spread online by the perpetrators. This gives them more status and allows them to (further) blackmail victims. The ultimate goal is to drive their victim, often youths in their early teens or younger, to (self) suicide. Members gain more prestige and status by sharing increasingly extreme material.
Complex Cases
These types of cases are complex for law enforcement because they involve nihilistic, right-wing extremist, and accelerationist supporters. The arrest of the 22-year-old man from Hoofddorp is the result of close cooperation among specialists from the Investigation and Intervention Unit (LO) in the fields of terrorism, child pornography, and cybercrime. The investigation is led by the National Public Prosecutor’s Office.
The investigation is ongoing. On October 28, the court’s council chamber will further consider the suspect’s pretrial detention.
