Camp Pendleton-based Marine charged with stealing information from women in Torrance – Orange County Register

On Wednesday, February 9, a Marine stationed at Camp Pendleton was arrested on suspicion of hacking young women from his hometown of Torrance, officials said.

Johao Miguel Chavarri, 25, of Oceanside, was arrested Tuesday and faces federal spying charges, the US Justice Department said in a statement. He is accused of blackmailing the women by threatening to send or post sexually explicit photos and videos of them online or on pornographic websites, officials said.

“(Chavarri) created and used multiple online accounts to repeatedly stalk, harass and intimidate women who would not succumb to his demands that, among other things, they send him photos and videos that are nude, sexually explicit, or otherwise offensive to themselves,” the Justice Department said in a statement.

In many cases, Chavarri would also threaten to send pictures or videos to the victim’s boyfriend, friends, family or employer, some of whom he would name, officials said.

The cyberattack is believed to have occurred between 2019 and 2021, involving a number of victims whom Chavarri continued to harass for more than a year, according to the Justice Department. He also uses an alias, “Michael Frito,” officials said.

Chavarri is also accused of creating social media accounts posing as victims and then sending harassing messages to some of their friends and family members, the Justice Department said.

The suspect also allegedly sent an Instagram message to multiple victims saying he would spend “his life” ruining their lives, officials said.

If convicted, Chavarri faces five years in prison. The Naval Criminal Investigative Service is also investigating.

Chavarri’s current status with the Marines was not immediately clear.