Robert “Robin” Westman, the 17-year-old who killed two children and injured 17 others at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis, was reportedly tied to shadowy online extremist groups that prey on vulnerable youth.
According to The Daily Mail, Westman’s writings and symbols suggest connections to the so-called “764 network” — a collection of nihilistic, satanic, and neo-Nazi communities that encourage violence, mass shootings, and even self-destruction. Groups within the network, including 764, COM, No Lives Matter, and the Order of Nine Angels, operate in secret through encrypted platforms like Discord, Telegram, and Terrorgram.
Experts say these communities target young people, particularly those struggling with identity or isolation, and pressure them into acts of self-harm, animal abuse, or mass violence. “It never fails that these shooters come from these places,” said News Junkie host Shawn Wasson. “These deranged people hatch in these shadow communities and unleash their nihilistic worldview on convenient victims.”
Idaho State professor David Riedman, who runs the K-12 School Shooting Database, said Westman’s use of coded Cyrillic writing pointed toward allegiance to these networks. He noted the shooter referenced Nashville Covenant School attacker Aubrey Hale, who herself cited Columbine killers, showing how each new attack feeds into extremist “lore” online.
Westman’s now-removed YouTube video showed him saying, “I wanna kill myself” and blaming his mother’s opposition to his transgender transition for fueling his rage. He added that he felt “good about the anticipation” of the massacre.
The extremist networks Westman is believed to have engaged with are not only violent but also criminal. The FBI has linked 764 members to child exploitation crimes, including the 2023 conviction of founder Bradley Cadenhead, sentenced to 80 years in prison for child pornography. Another California man was arrested this week for using the network to extort minors.
The Order of Nine Angels, a satanic fascist group dating to the 1970s in the UK, has been referenced in terrorism cases abroad. Its stated goal, according to the BBC, is to dismantle Judeo-Christian society and replace it with a brutal new order built on fascism, social Darwinism, and occult ideology.
Authorities continue investigating whether Westman had active ties to these extremist groups and how online radicalization played a role in the attack.
