Four Individuals Plead Guilty to Conspiracy to Make and Distribute Animal Crush Videos Involving Monkeys

The Justice Department today announced that four additional individuals have pleaded guilty in connection with a conspiracy to create and distribute videos depicting extreme violence and sexual abuse against monkeys.

According to court documents, Ernest Chavez, of Arizona, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to create and distribute so-called "animal crush" videos. In addition, the following individuals pleaded guilty for their role in the conspiracy:

• Mary Longoria, of North Carolina, pleaded guilty on July 16 and is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 2.
• Kimberly Anglin, of Connecticut, pleaded guilty on Aug. 12 and is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 2.
• Patrick Naylor, of North Carolina, pleaded guilty on Aug. 14 and is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 17.

Chavez, Longoria, Anglin, and Naylor were among 11 individuals indicted in 2025 based on their involvement with various online groups dedicated to the creation and proliferation of monkey torture videos.

According to court documents, the defendants and their co-conspirators used Telegram, an online messaging application to gather online and discuss topics for upcoming torture videos. The conspirators would then funnel money to individuals in Indonesia willing to carry out requested acts of torture on camera using various online payment applications. Nicholas Dryden, of Cincinnati, Ohio, was one of the sources of videos at the time and was previously sentenced to 108 months in prison for his role in the conspiracy.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of the Justice Department's Energy and Natural Resources Division (ENRD), U.S. Attorney Dominick S. Gerace II for the Southern District of Ohio, Special Agent in Charge Jason Cromartie of the FBI's Cincinnati Field Office, and Assistant Director Doug Ault of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS)'s Office of Law Enforcement made the announcement.

The USFWS' Office of Law Enforcement and the FBI investigated the cases.

Senior Trial Attorney Adam Cullman of ENRD is prosecuting the cases.