Overview

• The man in his twenties was arrested Tuesday, formally placed under investigation Wednesday in Évreux, and ordered into pretrial detention.
• Investigators say several thousand child sexual abuse files were seized, including videos the prosecutor described as unbearable, with uncertainty over whether the suspect commissioned them.
• Prosecutors allege he contacted suicidal teens on forums and, via webcam, forced about fifty girls to cut themselves or carve his name on their bodies.
• The suspect, previously unknown to police, admitted decapitating animals and confessed to impulses to rape, torture or kill, according to the prosecutor.
• The case is tied to the transnational ‘764’ network, founded in 2021 by American Bradley Cadenhead, with recent related arrests including a June case in Hamburg.