Camp Pendleton Marine Arrested on Charges Alleging Cyberstalking Young Women in Sextortion Campaign

LOS ANGELES – An active-duty Marine stationed at Camp Pendleton was arrested Feb. 8, on charges that he cyberstalked multiple young women with ties to his former hometown of Torrance in a “sextortion” campaign.

Johao Miguel Chavarri, 25, of Oceanside, was expected to make his initial appearance Feb. 9 in United States District Court in downtown Los Angeles.

According to the criminal complaint, from 2019 through 2021, Chavarri, using the online alias “Michael Frito,” created and used numerous online accounts to repeatedly stalk, harass, and threaten women who would not give in to his demands that, among other things, they send him nude, sexually explicit or otherwise compromising photos and videos of themselves. This is commonly referred to as sextortion. The complaint alleges, in some cases, his cyberstalking, threats and sextortion demands continued for over a year.

According to the complaint, Chavarri threatened multiple times that, if his victims refused to comply with his demands, he would publish sexually explicit photos and videos of the victims online or on well-known pornography websites. He also allegedly threatened to distribute the photos or videos to the victims’ boyfriends, friends, families or employers, whom he would often identify by name.

Chavarri allegedly also created fake social media accounts mimicking some of the victims’ names and sent harassing messages to some of the victims’ friends and family members.

Chavarri is charged with stalking. If convicted, he faces a statutory maximum sentence of five years in federal prison.

The FBI is investigating the case, with assistance from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.

Anyone who believes they are a victim in this case or is aware of a victim in this case is urged to contact the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office at, 310-477-6565.