An 18-year-old from Pennsylvania charged federally with traveling cross-country to abuse a teen in Castaic as part of a nihilistic cult is due back in court in September, per court records.
U.S. Judge Sheriyn Peace Garnett ordered a September hearing for the Department of Justice’s case against Matthew Edward Pysher, who stands charged with travel with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity and enticement of a minor to engage in criminal sexual activity.
Pysher is accused of grooming his alleged 13-year-old female victim, who was found in the Rodeway Inn in February.
In court, his defense attorney filed a motion regarding her trial schedule for other cases, which sought to move Pysher’s hearing to September.
Court records indicated a status conference hearing will be held on Aug. 26 with a trial continuation from May to Sept. 29.
Pysher’s arrest earlier this year made national headlines, as it was tied to a federal effort to crack down on online groups that federal officials have described as “nihilistic extremist groups.”
The groups are alleged to have used online chats and gaming platforms to target vulnerable children in what federal law enforcement officials called “modern day terrorism.”
“In attempting to achieve 764’s goal of destroying society, they typically exploit minors ranging from the ages of 10 to 17,” according to a message from Ryan Maxwell, who leads the FBI’s Counterterrorism Program in the Chicago Office. “They’d build trust with their victims and later coerce them into sharing personal information and explicit pictures and videos. 764 members then use these photos and videos to blackmail their victims into a cycle of escalating manipulation.”
The aim of the assailants is to get their targets to commit “unspeakable acts,” according to officials, which have included sexual assault, animal abuse and even suicide.
The lead prosecutor for the L.A. office called the allegations “chilling,” and described the situation as a wake-up call for parents.
“If your children have access to use the internet, sadistic predators may have access to your kids,” Bill Essayli, first Assistant United States Attorney, said in the release. “Law enforcement will continue to aggressively investigate and prosecute those who seek to harm children. We advise parents to keep their kids offline.”
According to an affidavit filed with the complaint, from at least December 2025 until Feb. 20, Pysher groomed and encouraged the victim to send him material of herself engaging in sexually explicit acts. He also encouraged the victim to cut herself and engage in other acts of self-harm.
On Feb. 10, the victim’s mother contacted the FBI because she was concerned her daughter was being encouraged to harm herself by a person named “Matthew,” whom the victim met on the Discord online platform. The victim encountered Pysher on a Discord server related to individuals suffering from mental illness.
On Feb. 20, Pysher traveled to Los Angeles to engage in sexual activity with the victim, the Department of Justice release said, adding that, on that day, Pysher met the victim near her home and took her to a motel in Castaic.
Pysher is being held in federal custody without bail until his next hearing date.
