An east Londoner who was found with indecent images of children and was linked to an online criminal group that blackmailed young teenage girls has been convicted.
The National Crime Agency investigated Richard Ehiemere, from Hackney, now 21, after receiving a referral from Discord in January 2021, when he was 17 years old.
The online platform was concerned about the activities of the CVLT group, which Ehiemere was linked to.
CVLT is a form of ‘Com’ network, which are typically made up of young males who share harmful and misogynistic content, and commit a range of online offences.
Members attempt to gain status within the group by committing or encouraging ever more shocking or harmful acts.
The investigation into Ehiemere established that the online moniker “Retaliate#1337” had logged on to Discord channels connected to CVLT 383 times and disclosed stolen email addresses and passwords, known as ‘combo lists. The profile is also believed to have shared indecent images of children (IIOC).
NCA investigators were able to trace these log ons back to Ehiemere’s home address in Hackney, where he was arrested in April 2021 with the assistance of the Metropolitan Police Service.
His mobile phone was seized and found to contain 29 IIOC, ranging from category A (the most severe) to category C. Conversations relating to hacking, selling unlawfully obtained material and how to avoid detection were also stored on it.
A computer tower was found with 142 combo lists stored on it, each containing personal details which had been stolen and could have been used to defraud victims.
A number of accounts and software associated with VPN providers – which are used to mask the user’s location – such as “ExpressVPN”, “NordVPN”, “MullvadVPN” and “OpenVPN” were also found. “ExpressVPN” and “MullvadVPN” were used to access the relevant Retaliate account when emails and passwords were shared.
More broadly, CVLT member targeted girls on social media platforms such as Discord. They used online monikers to communicate and persuade them to send intimate photos of themselves.
Members threatened to ‘dox’ their victims, which involves revealing real-world identities and publishing other personal information online, in order to coerce them into complying with their demands.
CVLT victims would often be targeted by one member of the group who would persuade them to send intimate images of themselves, either by coercion or consent. This material would then be used by the wider group to blackmail the victim into sending increasingly extreme content.
Girls were forced to join group calls, where they would be instructed to carry out sexual acts and acts of self-harm for their audience. In severe cases, vulnerable victims were encouraged to kill themselves on camera.
Ehiemere was charged with two fraud offences and three IIOC offences and convicted by a jury at Aldersgate Nightingale Court today (25 February), following a seven-day trial. He is due to be sentenced at Snaresbrook Crown Court on 1 May.
Steve Laval, Senior Investigating Officer at the NCA’s National Cyber Crime Unit, said:
Richard Ehiemere was a key enabler for this harmful online group, providing stolen data which they could use to defraud hundreds of victims.
“Com networks like CVLT are dangerous online environments in which members encourage each other to commit a range of harmful and often depraved offences.
These networks are built on extremist or misogynistic ideologies and promote violence against women and girls, who are forced to comply with their extreme demands through fear.
The NCA and policing are committed to reducing the threat caused by Com networks through working with industry to identify groups, pursuing their members or those linked to them, and removing harmful content, as well as raising awareness with parents and educators to help them spot deviant behaviour.
