Ernest Chavez
Introduction
Ernest Chavez, an Arizona man, pleaded guilty on October 23, 2026, to conspiring to create and distribute so-called “animal crush” videos — recordings depicting extreme violence and sexual abuse against monkeys — becoming the fourth member of a Telegram-based torture-ring conspiracy to admit his role in federal court. The Justice Department announced the plea the same day, alongside the earlier guilty pleas of three co-defendants in North Carolina and Connecticut.
Background Information
Chavez was one of eleven people indicted in 2025 for involvement in online groups dedicated to the creation and proliferation of monkey torture videos, according to the Justice Department. The groups operated on Telegram, where participants gathered to discuss topics for upcoming torture videos and funneled money through online payment applications to individuals in Indonesia who were willing to carry out requested acts of torture on camera. Chavez is a resident of Arizona; the public record released so far includes no occupation or age.
The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation
Federal prosecutors say Chavez paid a man who then paid a child in Indonesia to commit brutal acts against monkeys and send the resulting videos back to the United States, according to Phoenix’s Fox 10, which cited the October 23 Justice Department release and court documents. The conspiracy’s structure was the same across the ring: stateside members commissioned and financed the torture remotely, and the recordings were then distributed back through the online groups.
The announcement covered four guilty pleas in all. Mary Longoria of North Carolina pleaded guilty on July 16 and is scheduled to be sentenced December 2; Kimberly Anglin of Connecticut pleaded guilty on August 12, also with a December 2 sentencing date; and Patrick Naylor of North Carolina pleaded guilty August 14 with sentencing set for December 17. Chavez, the release notes, pleaded guilty on the day of the announcement itself. All four were among the eleven defendants indicted in 2025.
Public Reaction and Consequences
The case has been prosecuted by the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division with the FBI and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Office of Law Enforcement conducting the investigations, an unusual pairing that reflects the wildlife-trafficking dimension of the conduct. Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson, U.S. Attorney Dominick S. Gerace II for the Southern District of Ohio, FBI Cincinnati Special Agent in Charge Jason Cromartie and USFWS Assistant Director Doug Ault made the announcement. Local coverage in Arizona, North Carolina and Connecticut framed the pleas as the latest turn in a case that has already produced a nine-year sentence for an Ohio man.
Current Status
Chavez has admitted the conspiracy charge; his sentencing has not been announced, while his three co-defendants await sentencing dates in December 2026. One source of the videos, Nicholas Dryden of Cincinnati, was previously sentenced to 108 months in prison for his role in the same conspiracy — a benchmark for where the ring’s sentences have landed so far. The plea is an admission, not an allegation, but Chavez’s ultimate punishment remains to be set by the court.
Impact on Their Career/Life
A federal conspiracy conviction tied to the animal crush statute carries serious prison exposure — the co-conspirator benchmark stands at nine years — and a permanent record as a financier of monkey torture. The indictment sweep that named Chavez in 2025, the guilty pleas that followed through 2026, and the December sentencings still ahead mark the collapse of an entire online subculture that assumed anonymity would protect it. For the animal-welfare advocacy world that has tracked these Telegram rings for years, the pleas are the most visible accountability yet.
Sources
- U.S. Department of Justice, “Four Individuals Plead Guilty to Conspiracy to Make and Distribute Animal Crush Videos Involving Monkeys,” October 23, 2026 — source
- FOX 10 Phoenix, “Arizona man pleads guilty for his involvement in ‘animal crush’ videos: DOJ,” October 23, 2026 — source
- WCTI News 12, “Two North Carolina residents among four who plead guilty in animal abuse video conspiracy,” October 23, 2026 — source