A North Carolina man, Robert Craig of Charlotte, has been sentenced to 28 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for his involvement in online groups that created and distributed videos depicting extreme violence and sexual abuse against monkeys. Craig pleaded guilty on June 25, 2025, to conspiring to create and distribute "animal crush videos."
Court documents reveal that Craig utilized encrypted chat applications to share and discuss these obscene videos. A statement of facts signed by Craig confirmed that the videos included numerous depictions of severe violence and torture against monkeys, which had been specifically requested by him and his co-conspirators.
The announcement was made by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD), U.S. Attorney Dominick S. Gerace II for the Southern District of Ohio, Special Agent in Charge Jason Cromartie of the FBI Cincinnati Field Office, and Assistant Director Doug Ault, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Office of Law Enforcement. The case was investigated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the FBI.