Europol Claims Children Are Being “Weaponized” Through Online Games to Commit Murder

Europe’s law enforcement authorities are intensifying scrutiny of online multiplayer games and gaming-adjacent platforms amid growing concern that criminal networks are using them to groom, manipulate, and exploit children for violent crimes.

Europol, the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation, announced that it partnered with authorities in eight countries to identify and remove extremist and violent content circulating on gaming-related platforms. The coordinated effort, carried out on November 13, involved Denmark, Finland, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, and the United Kingdom.

As part of its Referral Action Day initiative, Europol reported identifying approximately 5,408 links connected to jihadist content, 1,070 links tied to violent right-wing extremist or terrorist material, and 105 links containing racist or xenophobic content. The agency did not publicly name the platforms involved.

Europol executive director Catherine De Bolle discussed the findings in an interview on November 21, warning that criminal groups are increasingly targeting minors through online gaming spaces. According to De Bolle, these networks are recruiting children to carry out acts of extreme violence, including torture and murder.

“The weaponization of children for organized crime groups is what is going on at the moment on European soil,” De Bolle said. “They weaponize the children to torture or to kill. It’s not about petty theft anymore. It’s about major crimes.”

De Bolle described cases uncovered during the investigation as unprecedented in their cruelty, including one instance in which a child was allegedly ordered to kill a sibling. Europol stated that such cases represent a sharp escalation in how criminal organizations operate.

According to Europol, the grooming process often begins in public multiplayer chats, where criminals engage children in harmless conversations about everyday topics such as hobbies, family life, or pets. Over time, these interactions are moved to private servers, where children are pressured into sharing personal and sensitive information, including home addresses and family details.

With that information, criminal groups may attempt to bribe or blackmail minors into committing violent acts against others—or themselves. Europol said this tactic is designed to establish control and compliance.

The investigation also revealed that gaming and streaming platforms were used to reenact real-world violence, including terrorist attacks, executions, and school shootings. These acts were sometimes recorded, edited with extremist chants or symbols, and redistributed across mainstream social media platforms.

Europol claimed there have been at least 105 documented cases in which children were used to carry out violent crimes as a paid service, including 10 alleged contract killings. In some cases, minors were promised payments of up to $20,000, though investigators noted that compensation was not always delivered.

When children failed to comply, criminal groups allegedly resorted to intimidation tactics intended to reinforce control. These included acts designed to demonstrate that the perpetrators knew where the child lived and could escalate violence further.

De Bolle emphasized that no child is immune to this type of exploitation, regardless of background or mental health. She noted that criminal groups may also coerce minors into intelligence-gathering activities connected to broader geopolitical or hybrid threats.

“You also see this with hybrid threat actors who use a crime-as-a-service model,” De Bolle said, referring to cases where children were allegedly pressured to observe or report on sensitive locations or communications.

While Europol did not single out specific platforms in its report, concerns around child safety in online gaming environments have been raised repeatedly in recent years. Platforms with large youth audiences have faced increasing scrutiny from parents, lawmakers, and regulators over allegations of insufficient safeguards against exploitation and grooming.

Europol stressed that addressing these risks requires cooperation between law enforcement agencies, platform operators, parents, and educators. De Bolle urged families to maintain open communication with children about online activity, acknowledging the balance between privacy and safety.