Tacloban shooting suspects may have been groomed by online extremist group 764: Hontiveros
There are indications that the Tacloban school shooting on June 22 was influenced by an online extremist group called "764," according to Sen. Risa Hontiveros.
During a hearing of the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations, and Gender Equality on July 1, Hontiveros said adults connected to the US-based 764 may have groomed the Tacloban shooting suspects, who are 14 and 15 years old.
"May mga indikasyon po na ang naganap na pamamaril sa Tacloban ay may impluwensya ng grupong tinatawag na 764," said Hontiveros, the committee chair.
"Ang modus ng grupong ito, maghanap ng bulnerableng minors online at hikayatin na gumawa ng kahindik-hindik na bagay," the senator continued.
On June 22, the suspects in the Tacloban tragedy killed three students and wounded 20 others during a shooting spree at the San Jose National High School. Police investigation found that at least one of the suspects supposedly regularly played the violent video game GoreBox. Both suspects are in police custody, with the 15-year-old, alias Rod, facing criminal charges.
The group 764 has been identified by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation as an NVE or "nihilistic violent extremist network," with an international reach.
In the US, Atlanta Police and the FBI revealed in an April press conference that the number of incidents linked to the group is increasing. As of April, Atlanta Police was tracking five potential cases in the city connected to 764, as the FBI reported 50 valid tips across the state of Georgia.
764 was started by a certain Bradley Cadenhead, naming the group after his zip code in Texas.
The grooming process
According to Hontiveros, targeted minors are befriended online and given a "sense of belonging. "Atsaka unti-unting hinihikayat sa mas madilim at mas mapanganib na gawain."
Leaders of the group then supposedly push the children "to create graphic pornography, to harm family pets, to cut themselves with sharp objects, or to even die by suicide," Hontiveros said, adding investigators have uncovered sextortion materials as well as tutorials on making weapons and explosives.
She further alleged that NVEs hook potential victims through games popular among the youth, such as Roblox, Minecraft, and GoreBox.
Hooking the Tacloban suspects
According to Hontiveros, independent investigators found a Facebook profile supposedly created by the 14-year-old Tacloban shooting suspect, alias Nash. His profile photo shows him wearing a shirt bearing the name of German industrial rock band KMFDM.
While the band is not connected to 764, investigations have shown that many members of communities like "764" use the band shirt as a symbolic tribute to the Columbine killers.
According to an AP News report, on April 20, 1999, two high school seniors at Columbine High School in Colorado shot and killed 12 of their classmates and one teacher, leaving 23 others injured. The suspects then took their own lives.
The Facebook account of Alias Nash turned out to be a dummy account with just one friend, which was Nash's alternative profile called Date Larping. After the Tacloban shooting, supportive comments appeared on the account, apparently written by members of 764 and the Columbine supporters.
One comment left by a certain Sedykh Ryazzanov read, "Na-edit na kita boy sa TikTok. Make sure na-delete mo ang Discord, Reddit, Telegram para walang evidence mahanap." According to Hontiveros, investigators believe the commenter is the adult who groomed the Tacloban shooters.
The commenter's account and alias Nash's were deactivated soon after the shooting, "meaning may totoong tao sa likod ng mga profile na ito," said Hontiveros.
Her team has sent a list of the complete details regarding the profiles of others who left similar comments on alias Nash's Facebook account to the National Bureau of Investigation for verification and further investigation.
"Posibleng may mas malawak na network at kailangang mahuli ito bago pa magkaroon ng susunod na mabibiktima," Hontiveros said.
True Crime community
Since October 2025, the Philippine National Police Anti-Cybercrime Group has conducted 17 rescue operations. To date, the group has rescued 24 minors, and "all of them manifested that they are members of a True Crime community," said PCol Richmond L. Tadina, deputy director for Administration of the PNP-ACG.
Under the True Crime community, PNP-ACG has identified subgroups No Lives Matter and the 764 network. The members of the community apparently know each other and have one interest, "which is violent extremism," said Tadina.
Common characteristics among the members of the community promote coercion, self-harm, exploitation of minors, and violence. According to Tadina, groomers initially identify child gamers who appear lonely. They engage the child in friendly conversation through the mobile game.
Once they gain their potential victim's trust, "they migrate to other social platforms, including Discord, Telegram, Instagram, Snapchat, where they can have end-to-end encrypted one-on-one chats," said Tadina. The groomers then gradually expose the victim to violent videos, banking on the child's personal insecurities, including an unstable family life.
Out of the 24 rescued children, PNP-ACG found they were all exposed to violence through GoreBox. Five of the minors displayed self-harm behavior.
Parents' role
"Online games and social media make up only some of the risk factors that push a child to perform violent acts," said Professor Liane Alampay from the Ateneo School of Psychology, adding that not all children who use social media or play mobile games commit violent acts.
"It's a combination of risk factors," Alampay said, mentioning mental health issues, a violent family or school life, and experiences of bullying. According to her, when children lack a feeling of belonging at home or in school, they may look to online communities to give them a sense of belonging, making them more vulnerable to NVEs.
"We must strengthen the capacities of adults in the children's environments," said Alampay, adding it shouldn't be limited to parents setting a time limit for screen time.
Parents need to know what their children are doing online, said Alampay. They must also foster trust in their relationship with their children so kids are not afraid to tell their parents what's happening online.
"We have to do a better job as adults and as parents to engage with our children as best as we can in what they do online. That's the best way for us to know what's going on and to protect them," said Alampay.
