NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — If you had trouble processing shocking video showing how a Hitler-loving, Jew-hating character targets innocent children online, Lauren Martin wants you to know you're not alone.
That video, showing neo-Nazi Jon Minadeo interacting with kids, was first uncovered by NewsChannel 5 Investigates.
"I had a very visceral reaction to it,” Lauren Martin, a licensed counselor, said.
“I was shocked but also not shocked—because anything is possible in this season. And my brain just immediately went to: How is this able to continue?"
Our NewsChannel 5 investigation revealed how Minadeo, 42, goes into roulette-style video chat rooms where he often meets kids, berating children of color while trying to groom white kids. He encourages them to get guns and prepare to “kill n*****s.”
Related story: Meet the neo-Nazi targeting kids online, teaching them to hate and to prepare to kill
Minadeo livestreams those interactions to his neo-Nazi followers without informing the children or asking for their consent.
On one hand, Lauren Martin gets why some kids are attracted to Jon Minadeo's schtick when they encounter him in their video chat rooms. He uses video filters to alter his appearance, along with music and sound effects to create a show-like atmosphere.
"He's a character,” Martin explained. “If I saw him at a party, I'd be like ‘that is a character.’"
And she understands why some children play along. "They're probably super uncomfortable—and that was their way to get through it."
NewsChannel 5 Investigates noted, "But some of the kids are really enjoying it."
Martin agreed. "And that's like where it feels edgy. This is entertainment. It's a joke," Martin said. "They're in it for the plot."
What the licensed counselor does not understand, however, is how the neo-Nazi treats the innocent kids he meets online.
In one video, Minadeo encountered a boy who claimed he was 14 years old. The neo-Nazi leader quickly moved from talking to the kids about Black people to pretending that he was going to commit suicide on camera.
"If I've got to go to heaven with n*****s, I'm just going to f—king kill myself man—I just can't," Minadeo told the boy, pretending to cry while sticking the barrel of an assault weapon beneath his chin.
"Don't," the kid quietly pleaded.
The boy then rose from his chair in anticipation.
For Martin, it was a disturbing moment. Attempting to explain the child’s reaction, Martin said: “It’s almost like ‘he's not being serious—or is he?’—almost like confusion. And so you're trying to make sense of what's going on."
Minadeo then used a sound effect to pretend that he fired the gun, then he slumped back in his chair.
The teen just kept staring blankly into the camera.
NewsChannel 5 Investigates asked, "Tell me from a therapist standpoint, how bad is the fact that he would do this to a child?"
"You don't have to be a therapist to know that—it's not good," Martin answered.
What she saw in the Minadeo videos, Martin said, would be considered by most mental health professionals to be child abuse.
"But regardless of the semantics, it's not okay,” she added. “It's potentially psychologically damaging to kids. And, if anything, it definitely leaves an imprint on their nervous system."
One of the video chat rooms most heavily used by Minadeo is one called OmeTV, a roulette-style app designed to allow strangers to meet for conversation.
The app, owned by a company based in Portugal, is supposed to be only for those 18+, but there are no controls to block the children who seem to find amusement in the online interactions.
When NewsChannel 5 Investigates went online, we found a lot of kids looking for entertainment and conversation, along with both men and women exposing themselves.
There, we met 18-year-old Norah and her friend Jack.
"Grandpa, what the f—k are you doing on here? Get the f—k off here, Gramps,” Norah joked.
After we identified ourselves, the pair had stories they were willing to tell.
"Let me tell you, this app is weird as f—k," Norah replied.
Jack agreed. “It's for pedophiles. You can tell them that."
They described encounters on OmeTV that included disgusting sex acts so bizarre that we can't even describe them here.
We asked Norah and Jack, "Are you making that up?"
“No!” they both exclaimed.
Norah added, "This is actual stuff that happens on here."
"People do this s—t on OmeTV because they know there's no consequences," Jack added.
Norah continued, "I've been on this app since I was 12. I was groomed on here multiple times."
And we heard similar stories from a young man named Sani.
"I’ve run into a lot of grown men just, like, doing inappropriate things, like, in front of kids," Sani recounted.
"Seriously?" we asked.
"Yeah, seriously. Like grown men full on touching themselves."
Norah said everyone probably has a similar tale about what they have experienced on OmeTV.
"I've heard of so many stories of like different experiences people have had on here, like weird guys and all types of different things," Norah said.
So why are she and Jack on the app?
"It's funny, and it's fun,” Norah quickly explained.
"Entertainment," Jack interjected.
Norah agreed. "Entertainment, it really is. It's good entertainment."
In August, Australian's eSafety commissioner issued a warning to the Portugese company behind OmeTV that its app had become a hunting ground for child sexual abuse offenders seeking to groom children.
"We know that this service is popular with children and, for this reason, it’s also popular with adults seeking to sexually prey on them,” Commissioner Julie Inman Grant said.
“Stranger danger used to mean warning kids not to talk to people they didn’t know on the way home from school. Today, randomized video chat apps like OmeTV allow those same predatory strangers to anonymously manipulate, coerce, and groom children through devices in the privacy of their bedrooms."
As a result, Google and Apple have now pulled the app from their stores.
But it's still available on the web, providing a target-rich environment for trolls like neo-Nazi Jon Minadeo to target kids.
OmeTV did not respond to NewsChannel 5's email seeking comment.
NewsChannel 5 Investigates asked Martin, "What is the risk of these children being desensitized to this hate and this racism?"
"I mean, it's huge,” she responded.
The mental health professional sees in Minadeo's hateful videos another reminder of why it's critical for parents to be mindful about the online spaces their children may be exploring.
"I know that we're already overwhelmed, I know that we have a lot to monitor,” she said. “But we have to stop sticking our heads in the sand,” simply assuming that our children would not dare to be on such an app.
Lauren Martin’s tips:
- Stay informed about gaming platforms, chat apps, and online spaces where kids connect by following resources like Common Sense Media.
- Keep devices in shared family spaces where you can naturally check in on online interactions.
- Teach kids to trust their instincts and remind them they can always walk away, block someone, or come to you without consequences.
- Set clear expectations from the start that you will review their online activity.
- Help kids understand that harmful people often build trust by being friendly and finding common interests before introducing dangerous ideas.
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Do you have information that would help me with my investigation? Send me your tips: phil.williams@newschannel5.com
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