An Arizona man has pleaded guilty to conspiring to create and distribute animal-crush videos through online groups that paid for the torture of monkeys in Indonesia.
Ernest Chavez entered the plea on October 23. He was among 11 people indicted in 2025 over groups that used Telegram to plan requested acts, collect money and pay people in Indonesia to carry them out on camera.
Federal law criminalises the creation and distribution of certain depictions of intentional animal crushing, including extreme violence that meets the statutory definition. The charge concerns the conspiracy to commission and circulate the recordings, rather than passive viewing alone.
Three other defendants named in the Justice Department’s announcement—Mary Longoria, Kimberly Anglin and Patrick Naylor—had entered guilty pleas in July and August. Those older pleas are background; Chavez’s plea is the current procedural development. Another participant was previously sentenced to nine years in prison.
The guilty plea establishes Chavez’s liability on the admitted conspiracy count. Sentencing remains pending, and the court will determine the penalty after considering the statute, advisory guidelines and the individual record. Proceedings against other defendants retain their separate procedural status.
