Leader of extremist terror network from Hilo sentenced in federal court for possessing child pornography

A man from Hilo, identified as a leader of a violent extremist terror network, appeared in Hawai‘i District Court on Thursday, where he was handed a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in prison after pleading guilty to possession of child pornography.

Kalana Limkin, 20, pleaded guilty without a plea agreement on Feb. 13, 2025. His prison sentence is to be followed by 20 years of supervised release, according to a news release from U.S. Department of Justice.

Limkin was the co-founder and ringleader of an online violent nihilistic extremist (“NVE”) group known as “Cultists.” His charge was part of a broader course of depraved conduct in which Limkin and Cultists members engaged, according to the news release.

“Limkin – and the predatory, nihilistic extremist group Cultists – utilized heinous, sadistic online exploitation tactics to prey on children, forcing them into a cycle of self-harm, violence, and abuse,” said FBI Honolulu Special Agent in Charge David Porter, who investigated this case. “The FBI and our partners will exhaust every resource to protect the most vulnerable members of our community from online predators, and continue our efforts to dismantle these violent extremist networks, pull their members from the shadows of the internet, and bring justice to their doorstep.”

According to information presented to the court at sentencing, Cultists became a well-known and highly recognizable brand within the larger NVE community in part due to the shock value of the content and activities within its servers and digital spaces. Cultist members collaborated to victimize children in a systematic attempt to trigger social collapse and topple the current world order.

“Limkin used Cultists to incite children to self-mutilate, broadcast sexual acts, and film their own suicides,” the release stated. “By desensitizing them to gore and child sexual abuse material, Cultists groomed these minors for future violent behavior.”

Limkin showed one minor victim an image of a 5-year-old girl being raped to desensitize her. He sent naked pictures of her to her friends and attempted to groom her by making her take nude photos of her younger siblings. As Limkin explained to another of his minor victims, he “took advantage of the mentally unstable because they were easy to manipulate.”

Limkin extorted a third victim with her own sexual abuse material to convince her to commit suicide. In the recorded video chat, Limkin proclaimed, “We want her to die. Yes, we do. That’s the whole point of this. I threatened to leak everything.”

“Limkin represents a growing and depraved group of violent extremists who target vulnerable juveniles online for the sick pleasure they derive from causing their young impressionable victims to commit acts of self-harm, at times even encouraging them to commit suicide,” said United States Attorney Ken Sorenson. “We will tirelessly pursue and charge those who weaponize the internet to gain possession of child pornography and the reprehensible pleasure they seek to gain from urging children to commit acts of self-harm and mutilation.”