Eighteen-year-old known as Chai was active in networks notorious for their sadistic exploitation of young people
A Swedish teenager known as Chai has been sentenced to more than 10 years in jail for attempted murder, rape and aggravated assault – crimes committed via the internet, including against a teenage girl in Australia.
The district court found that Chai, 18, was active in online networks notorious for their sadistic extortion of young and vulnerable people, coercing them to create sexually explicit material or engage in acts of violence – and for the youth of those involved.
The teenager was between 15 and 17 when the offences were committed.
Chai was convicted of two counts of attempted murder against a young person in Germany, and multiple sexual and violent offences against the Australian teenager, among other offences.
Jenny Östling, a senior public prosecutor at Sweden’s national unit against international and organised crime, said the court had understood the phenomenon of “nihilistic violent extremism” and the Com – an umbrella term for a loosely connected online network that engages in cybercrime, extortion and violence.
“I’m really glad that they realise how serious this is and what it is,” she said.
She noted that the sentence was among the longest possible in Sweden for someone of Chai’s age. The court also found that it was possible for someone to be convicted of violent offences even where they were committed remotely via the internet.
“That is a very important tool for us when we proceed [with] these kinds of cases,” Östling said.
The crimes committed by those involved with sadistic extortion networks, such as one globally known as “764”, often cross borders, with cases in the US, the UK, Germany and Australia, and alleged victims in multiple jurisdictions.
Material is often created and traded among participants to build status and control, lawyers and researchers told the Guardian as part of its investigation into these groups, as well as a means of accessing closed servers and chatrooms.
“These are young people recruiting other young people,” Bjørn Ihler, the founder of the security firm Revontulet, said at the time. “It is a youth phenomenon.”
Chai’s conviction is one of several cases that have resulted in significant terms of imprisonment for young men found to be involved in this ecosystem, including an American, Kyle Spitze, 27, who was sentenced in August to 77 years in prison – the longest federal sentence yet imposed on someone the US government has labelled a “nihilistic violent extremist”.
During the trial, Chai underwent a forensic psychiatric examination that found he was not suffering a serious mental disorder when the offences occurred.
His lawyer, Emily Tovedal, told the Guardian: “The defence’s view is that the court has made an error of judgment regarding a large proportion of the charges.” Authorities internationally have raised the alarm about sadistic online exploitation of young people, detailing potential warning signs including self-harm and isolation.
“Sadly, I’m confident that … they will probably grow,” Östling said of these networks. “And we will also be aware of more of them, because now we know what to look for.”
In Australia, support is available at Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636, Lifeline on 13 11 14, and at MensLine on 1300 789 978. In the UK, the charity Mind is available on 0300 123 3393 and Childline on 0800 1111. In the US, call or text Mental Health America at 988 or chat 988lifeline.org.