
NJ man, 23, accused of ‘Cult’ network targeting child victims
⭕ NJ man accused of child exploitation
⭕ Alleged activity with global internet group
⭕ Faces federal crime
A 23-year-old New Jersey man has been accused of being active in a globally dangerous, neo-Nazi child exploitation group that operates largely on the internet.
Colin John Thomas Walker, of Bridgeton, was arrested on Friday, facing a federal charge of engaging in a child exploitation enterprise.
Three other men from Hawaii, Texas and France were also part of the same indictment announced by federal prosecutors, connected to the group called Cult (spelled “CVLT”).
At least as early as 2020, Walker joined the organization that law enforcement said groomed and then pressured minors to produce child sexual abuse material and images of self-harm.
The group allegedly victimized at least 16 children around the world, including two in Southern California.
They specifically targeted vulnerable victims, including minors who suffer from mental health challenges or a history of sexual abuse, federal officials said in a press release.
“Victims were encouraged to engage in increasingly dehumanizing acts, including cutting and eating their own hair, drinking their urine, punching themselves, calling themselves racial slurs, and using razor blades to carve CVLT members’ names into their skin,” Department of Justice officials said.
If met with resistance, the defendants would allegedly blackmail victims by threatening to publicly release already-obtained compromising photos and videos of the minors.
Two of the defendants were already in custody when the indictment was unsealed — Rohan Sandeep Rane, 28, of Antibes, France and Kaleb Christopher Merritt, 24, of Spring, Texas.
Merritt has been incarcerated in Virginia, serving a 50-year sentence for child sex abuse crimes committed in 2020 and 2021.
Rane previously was charged with several child exploitation and related offenses in France and has been in French custody since 2022.
Clint Jordan Lopaka Nahooikaika Borge, of Pahoa, Hawaii, was the other defendant arrested on Friday.
If convicted, the defendants would each face a minimum of 20 years in prison with a maximum penalty of a life sentence.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in 2006 to fight child sexual exploitation and abuse.
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