SAN ANTONIO, Texas — A federal judge sentenced the online leader of a Nihilistic Violent Extremist (NVE) group to 40 years in prison. In addition, he will spend the rest of his life on court-ordered supervision for charges related to child sexual exploitation and racketeering. 19-year-old Alexis Aldair Chavez of San Antonio was also ordered to pay $10,000 in restitution.
According to court documents, Chavez, who used the online profile names Zack and Zack8884, was an administrator and online leader of the “8884” network. The online network is related to a larger violent extremist group that shares common goals, including the promotion of social unrest and the downfall of the current world order, including the United States Government.
Members of the group led by Chavez hope to destroy civilized society through the corruption and exploitation of vulnerable populations, including young children. Chavez’s guilty plea comes after his arrest for actions within the group that extorted and coerced victims to engage in a variety of violent behavior, including self-mutilation, online and in-person sexual acts, harm to animals, sexual exploitation of siblings and others, acts of violence, threats of violence, suicide, and murder.
According to a federal criminal complaint, sometime around October 2023, Chavez and a co-conspirator made efforts to encourage an underage female to commit suicide during a video chat by overdosing on pills. The pair of conspirators recorded the suicide attempt and used the video content to maintain and increase their status within the violent extremist group.
Later, Chavez and the same underage female worked jointly to coerce a female outside the United States to disrobe on camera, mutilate herself, and engage in sexual acts. They also forced another victim to self-mutilate by cutting the name “Zack” onto her body.
According to court records, in December 2023, Chavez and a co-conspirator coerced another underage girl to cut her tongue during a live video call during which the victim was also ordered by the pair to kill a cat. During the same month, Chavez, along with another co-conspirator, groomed several young females, coercing one to light her arm on fire until it burned through her skin and deeper into her body while on a video call. Another victim, according to court documents, was forced to drink her own urine and attempt to overdose on unknown pills.
Chavez was arrested in October 2024 and was found to be in possession of Child Sexual Abuse Material. After his arrest, in December 2025, Chavez pleaded guilty to one count of racketeering, one count of distribution of child pornography, and one count of possession of child pornography, leading to the stiff sentence handed down during his sentencing hearing.
Acting Assistant Director Coult Markovsky of the FBI Counterterrorism Division commented on the case, saying, “Nothing is more abhorrent than those who prey on children and other vulnerable members of our society, and this defendant will pay a steep price for doing just that.”
Randy Clark is a 32-year veteran of the United States Border Patrol. Before his retirement, he served as the Division Chief for Law Enforcement Operations, directing operations for nine Border Patrol Stations within the Del Rio, Texas, Sector. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @RandyClarkBBTX.