764 leader Prasan Nepal pleads guilty to a child exploitation conspiracy carrying up to 30 years
Prasan Nepal, the 21-year-old who led the 764 child sextortion network, pleaded guilty Thursday and faces 15 to 30 years in prison. The Justice Department calls 764 a violent extremist network, but the count he admitted is conspiracy to commit sexual exploitation of a child.
The Watch · Security desk
What happened
- Court records say Nepal and his alleged co-conspirator, Leonidas Varagiannis, controlled who joined 764 and who reached its inner subgroup, "764 Inferno."
- The indictment accuses the pair of exploiting at least eight minors across multiple jurisdictions, some of them as young as 13.
- Varagiannis, known as "War," was arrested in Greece last year, remains detained there and is expected to face trial within six months.
- The indictment also lists the online monikers of 22 more alleged co-conspirators.
- Kyle William Spitze, an original 764 member who led an offshoot, was sentenced in late August to 77 years, the longest yet for a nihilistic violent extremist.
Why it matters
- What it limits constraint The plea caps Nepal at 30 years, so 764's leader can serve less than half the 77 years already imposed on one of its offshoot leaders.
- Who's exposed exposure The people behind the 22 listed handles are already alleged co-conspirators in a federal case whose leader has now admitted the conspiracy count.
- What doesn't add up contradiction Pirro presents the plea as a warning to others, while Unit 221B's Nixon doubts these offenders can be reasoned with and values the prison time, so the two disagree on whether the case deters new recruits.
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Nepal's admissions describe how 764 screened recruits. He admitted that anyone seeking to join had to make and share material showing child sexual abuse, self-mutilation, self-immolation, animal cruelty and violence against people and property [7]. Once members were in, he required them to keep producing and posting acts of self-harm, and he ordered victims to commit those acts [8]. Officials said members also extort victims to commit suicide and murder, and publish compilations of victims' photos and videos to gain notoriety inside the network [9].
The Justice Department describes 764 as a "network of nihilistic violent extremists who engage in criminal conduct in the United States and abroad, seeking to destroy civilized society through the corruption and exploitation of vulnerable populations, which often include minors" [5]. The count Nepal admitted carries 15 to 30 years [2]. His ceiling is about 39 percent of the 77 years Spitze received [22]. It is also below the 40 years given in July to Alexis Aldair Chavez, who led the offshoot 8884 [12].
The remaining co-leader case is Greek. Varagiannis faces charges there related to CSAM and participation in a criminal organization [15]. In the U.S. indictment, Nepal, Varagiannis and the 22 listed monikers add up to 24 alleged participants [23]. CyberScoop names five other alleged 764 members arrested since 2025: Baron Cain Martin, Tony Christopher Long, Erik Lee Madison, Zachary Sweeney and Aaron Corey [13]. The report does not tie those five to the 22 handles or say when any of the 22 might be charged. The plea follows a period of heightened law enforcement activity against 764 and affiliated groups, according to CyberScoop [14].
Both sentences CyberScoop cites went to people who came up inside 764 and then ran their own groups. Spitze was an original 764 member before he led one of its offshoots [11]. Chavez began associating with 764 as a child in 2022 and went on to lead 8884 [12]. Threat researchers tie 764 members to The Com, a worldwide collection of loosely linked groups whose crimes are financially motivated, sexual or violent, CyberScoop reported [6].
Jeanine Pirro, U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, called the plea "a warning to anyone who believes they can hide behind an encrypted screen: we will find you, and we will stop you" [17]. Allison Nixon, chief research officer at Unit 221B, put the value somewhere else. "I doubt these types of offenders can be reasoned with, and I don't think sending a message is the point," she told CyberScoop [18]. "The biggest value is getting them off the table. Reoffending rates for online gangs is extremely high, so making each prison stint count is important," she said [19]. "It is great seeing every generation of copycats get arrested even faster than the previous generation, and seeing the long sentences," Nixon said [21].
What to watch
- Varagiannis's trial in Greece, expected within six months, on CSAM and criminal-organization charges.
- Nepal's sentencing, and where the court lands inside the 15-to-30-year range set by the plea.
- Any charging document that attaches a real name to one of the 22 monikers in the Nepal indictment.
Clarity's read
What the record supports and how the coverage leans. The claims behind it follow.
Reality
- Evidence55
- Adoption
- Not scored
- Hype gap+15
- Incentives
- Not scored
- Confidence62
Claim ledger
Ranked by verification strength, evidence, and original report placement.
- [1]
Prasan Nepal, a 21-year-old from North Carolina, pleaded guilty in federal court Thursday, the Justice Department said.
- [2]
Nepal pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit sexual exploitation of a child as part of a plea agreement and faces at least 15 years and up to 30 years in prison upon sentencing.
- [3]
Nepal, also known as 'Trippy', joined and helped establish 764 as an underage teenager, quickly emerged as its leader, and ran the network for almost four years until his arrest last year.
- [4]
According to court records, Nepal and his alleged co-conspirator Leonidas Varagiannis controlled membership in 764 and access to a subgroup of highly involved members known as '764 Inferno'.
- [5]
The Justice Department describes 764 as a "network of nihilistic violent extremists who engage in criminal conduct in the United States and abroad, seeking to destroy civilized society through the corruption and exploitation of vulnerable populations, which often include minors."
- [6]
Members of 764 are affiliated with The Com, a global collective of loosely associated groups that commit financially motivated, sexual and violent crimes, according to threat researchers.
- [7]
Nepal admitted to requiring prospective members to produce and share child sexual abuse material, self-mutilation, self-immolation, animal cruelty, and acts of violence against other people and property.
- [8]
Nepal regularly monitored activity in the group, required members to continue producing and posting acts of self-harm, and ordered victims to commit these acts.
- [9]
Officials said members of 764 also extort victims to commit suicide and murder, and publish compilations of photographs and videos of targeted victims to gain notoriety within the network and spread fear.
- [10]
Varagiannis, also known as 'War', was arrested in Greece last year, remains detained there and is expected to face trial in the next six months, the Justice Department said.
- [11]
Kyle William Spitze, an original member of 764 and leader of one of its offshoots, was sentenced in late August to 77 years in prison, the longest imprisonment ever imposed on a nihilistic violent extremist.
- [12]
Alexis Aldair Chavez, who began associating with 764 as a child in 2022 before leading an offshoot called 8884, was sentenced to 40 years in prison in July.
- [13]
Other alleged 764 members arrested since 2025 include Baron Cain Martin, Tony Christopher Long, Erik Lee Madison, Zachary Sweeney and Aaron Corey.
- [14]
Nepal's guilty plea follows a period of heightened law enforcement activity targeting members of 764 and affiliated groups.
- [15]
The charges Varagiannis is expected to face at trial in Greece relate to CSAM and participation in a criminal organization.
- [16]
The indictment accuses Nepal and Varagiannis of exploiting at least eight minor victims, some as young as 13, across multiple jurisdictions.
- [17]
"Today's plea is a victory for every child they sought to harm, and a warning to anyone who believes they can hide behind an encrypted screen: we will find you, and we will stop you."
- [18]
"I doubt these types of offenders can be reasoned with, and I don't think sending a message is the point."
- [19]
"The biggest value is getting them off the table. Reoffending rates for online gangs is extremely high, so making each prison stint count is important."
- [20]
Prosecutors listed the monikers of 22 additional alleged co-conspirators in the indictment against Nepal and Varagiannis.
- [21]
"It is great seeing every generation of copycats get arrested even faster than the previous generation, and seeing the long sentences."
- [22]
Nepal's 30-year maximum is about 39 percent of Spitze's 77-year sentence, less than half.
- [23]
The U.S. indictment identifies 24 alleged participants: two named defendants plus 22 listed by moniker.
Sources
2 independent publishers whose own reporting we read for this story.
- cyberscoop.comLeader of 764 pleads guilty, faces up to 30 years in prison
1 article · October 8, 2026
- scworld.comLeader of child sextortion group 764 pleads guilty
1 article · October 11, 2026
Topics and entities
Topics
- Nihilistic Violent Extremism
- Child sextortion
- Cybercrime Prosecution and Sentencing
Entities
- Kyle William Spitze
- U.S. Department of Justice
- Leonidas Varagiannis
- The Com
- Allison Nixon