‘Depraved’: Illinois woman guilty of paying for, distributing ‘gruesome’ monkey torture videos

CATLIN, Ill. (WTVO) — An Illinois woman has been sentenced to 31 months in federal prison for her role in distributing and helping commission videos depicting the torture and sexual abuse of baby monkeys, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

The U.S. Department of Justice announced that Amanda Fourez, of Catlin, Illinois, was sentenced by a U.S. District Judge to 31 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. Fourez previously pleaded guilty in April to distributing animal crush videos and conspiring with others to create and distribute the videos.

Federal prosecutors said Fourez participated in online groups dedicated to creating and sharing videos that showed acts of extreme violence and sexual abuse against monkeys.

According to court documents, Fourez and others pooled money to commission the production of the videos and later distributed them through online chat groups and messaging platforms “dedicated to the creation, distribution, and discussion of sexual and violent videos depicting monkeys being tortured, including baby and adult monkeys being burned and their genitals mutilated.”

Prosecutors said Fourez paid thousands of dollars for custom torture videos and then distributed the videos online on at least 10 occasions.

“We stand ready to prosecute this depraved conduct,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of the Justice Department’s Energy and Natural Resources Division (ENRD).

“Amanda Fourez commissioned mutilation of helpless animals on video, and then disseminated those gruesome videos to an online community of people who were seeking content that portrayed the infliction of severe pain and suffering,” said U.S. Attorney Troy Rivetti for the Western District of Pennsylvania. “Today’s sentencing demonstrates the ongoing commitment of the Department of Justice and our law enforcement partners to investigating and prosecuting these serious federal crimes involving cruelty to animals.”

The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the FBI. Prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania and the Department of Justice’s Environment and Natural Resources Division handled the case.