Amanda Leigh Fourez
Introduction
Amanda Leigh Fourez, of Catlin, Illinois, was sentenced to 31 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release for her involvement with online groups dedicated to creating and distributing videos depicting acts of extreme violence and sexual abuse against monkeys, in violation of the federal animal-crushing statute. United States District Judge Christy Criswell Wiegand imposed the sentence on Fourez, who had pleaded guilty in April 2026 to distributing animal crush videos and conspiring with others to create and distribute them, per the Justice Department’s announcement.
Background Information
According to court documents and statements made during the sentencing hearing, Fourez paid thousands of dollars to commission bespoke sexual torture videos of monkeys, and later distributed the videos online. She was a member of several chat groups and private payment groups 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, per the announcement. The case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations New Orleans’ Cyber and Human Exploitations Investigations group, with the prosecution handled by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alyssa R. Angotti and Kelly M. Locher for the Western District of Pennsylvania and Trial Attorney Emily R. Stone of the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section.
The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation
Convicted and sentenced. Fourez pleaded guilty in April 2026 to distributing animal crush videos and conspiracy, and received a 31-month prison term in October 2026.
The conduct that anchored the case was not passive viewing but commission and redistribution: prosecutors documented that Fourez paid creators thousands of dollars to produce the custom torture videos to order, then passed them through the online groups where members traded and discussed the content. At the sentencing hearing, Judge Wiegand denied Fourez’s motion for a downward variance, observing that the videos Fourez created and distributed were “shocking and violent” and documented “agonizing torture” of animals, and noting that the sentence should deter others from this serious conduct.
Fourez was not the only member of these groups prosecuted. Another member, Joseph Garrett Buckland, of Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty in April 2026 to one count of conspiracy to create and distribute animal crush videos and is set to be sentenced on January 13, 2027, for his role in what the announcement describes as a conspiracy ring. Buckland’s case is documented separately; his plea and pending sentencing are noted here as the announcement states them.
Public Reaction and Consequences
“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, crediting the collaboration between HSI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in rooting out the conspiracy and prosecuting the case.
“The conduct in this case was unimaginably cruel and highlights the depraved nature of the online networks HSI is committed to dismantling,” said Special Agent in Charge Matt Wright of Homeland Security Investigations New Orleans. “HSI will continue to utilize advanced investigative techniques and vital law enforcement partnerships to track those who facilitate these heinous crimes across international borders.” The sentence itself — 31 months, above no recommendation issue noted in the release — came after the court rejected Fourez’s request for a below-guidelines variance.
Current Status
Fourez is serving the 31-month sentence and will follow it with three years of supervised release. Her April 2026 guilty plea resolved the two counts — distribution of animal crush videos and conspiracy to create and distribute them — and the court’s denial of her variance motion means the imposed term stands as sentenced. Buckland, the co-member of the crush-video groups named in the announcement, awaits his own sentencing on January 13, 2027.
Impact on Their Career/Life
Fourez’s prosecution documents a federal response to a corner of the internet — private payment groups and chat channels built around commissioned animal-torture videos — that previously operated in the shadows across international borders. For Fourez personally, the felony record and 31-month federal term followed by supervised release mark a permanent consequence for conduct the sentencing judge described from the bench as shocking, violent, and agonizing torture. The case now stands in the Western District of Pennsylvania’s record as the sentencing that followed the April plea round that also captured Buckland’s conspiracy admission.