Photo: Dan Dawson | CC BY 2.0 | Wikimedia Commons
Illinois Woman Pleads Guilty In Federal Sexualized Animal Torture Video Case
An Illinois woman pleaded guilty Tuesday, April 28, 2026, to federal charges after paying for videos that showed sexualized torture of monkeys, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors said she paid members of an online group for the videos and that investigators called the behavior "sick."
The episode traces back to a probe into a network that exchanged animal-abuse material online; that inquiry led to federal charges and the guilty plea in court on Tuesday.
She will be sentenced at a later date, and prosecutors said the case highlights online networks that traffic in illegal animal torture content.
Show source details & analysis (1 source)
📌 Key Facts
- Earlier in April 2026, Amanda Leigh Fourez of Illinois pled guilty to conspiracy to create and distribute animal crush videos and to distributing such videos.
- ICE and DOJ say she paid thousands of dollars to commission bespoke sexual torture videos of adult and baby monkeys and then archived and shared them online.
- The investigation was led by ICE Homeland Security Investigations New Orleans Cyber and Human Exploitation Investigations and the FBI.
- Fourez faces a maximum of five years in prison on the conspiracy charge, seven years on the distribution charge, and fines up to $500,000.
📰 Source Timeline (1)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time