In a disturbing case of animal cruelty, a man has pleaded guilty to federal charges after paying an operator in Indonesia to brutally torture a young monkey and film the horrific act.
Kenneth Herrera, a pharmacist from Soldiers Grove, Wisconsin, admitted in U.S. District Court that he paid an individual in Indonesia $100 in December 2021 to torture a young macaque using pliers and a hammer, and to create videos of the torture.
Sentencing is scheduled for December 20. Herrera faces up to seven years in prison and fines up to $250,000.
As part of his plea agreement, Herrera has committed to providing a “full, complete, and truthful statement” and to cooperating with investigators in efforts to charge other members of an international monkey torture ring. This ring was first uncovered by Lady Freethinker (LFT) and the UK-based nonprofit Action for Primates (AfP) in 2021.
The investigation conducted by LFT and AfP revealed that individuals were commissioning acts of horrific violence against macaques through online social media platforms, including YouTube, Facebook, and Telegram. The findings were shared with law enforcement and provided intelligence to the BBC, resulting in the chilling documentary “The Monkey Haters” and subsequent criminal charges in the US, the UK, and other countries.
“Paying for the torture and killing of baby monkeys for online ‘entertainment’ – or for any reason – is appalling and must never be tolerated,” said LFT President and Founder Nina Jackel. “We are relieved that this individual, who is responsible for unimaginable cruelty, was prosecuted, and hope it will deter others from carrying out similar sadistic acts.”
Lady Freethinker continues to appeal directly to social media platforms to remove content depicting animal cruelty and to ban channels and users who post or facilitate such content.
The organization expresses gratitude to the more than 34,900 individuals who have signed their petition urging accountability for these companies and users. If you haven’t already, please sign and share the petition to help raise awareness and protect these defenseless animals.
