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Nicholas T. Dryden of Cincinnati was sentenced to nine years in federal prison for helping create and distribute videos depicting the torture of monkeys
NEED TO KNOW
- Nicholas T. Dryden paid a minor in Indonesia to create videos of monkeys being tortured and sexually abused
- The videos, known as “animal crush videos,” were sold online to others through groups administered by Dryden
- The case was investigated by the FBI and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Content warning: The following article contains disturbing descriptions of animal abuse.
A Cincinnati man was sentenced on July 21 to nine years in federal prison for helping create and distribute videos depicting the torture and sexual abuse of monkeys. He will also serve three years of supervised release.
Per court documents, Nicholas T. Dryden, 28, paid a minor in Indonesia to create videos of monkeys being tortured and abused. Dryden then sold the so-called “animal crush videos” through online groups that he administered to numerous other individuals.
According to a Justice Department press release citing statements of fact signed by Dryden, the videos depicted baby and adolescent monkeys being tortured in numerous ways, including having "their genitals burned and cut with scissors."
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“Dryden, who resided in Cincinnati, paid a minor on the other side of the world to film the torture and abuse of monkeys and then sold those videos to others,” said U.S. Attorney Dominick S. Gerace II for the Southern District of Ohio. “This sadistic and obscene conduct is unacceptable in any civilized society and Dryden will rightfully spend time in prison for his actions.”
“This was an extraordinarily disturbing and heinous case of animal cruelty,” said Assistant Director Doug Ault of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Office of Law Enforcement. “Orchestrating the deliberate torture and murder of baby primates is unconscionable. Our agents worked tirelessly to support the pursuit of justice. Today’s sentencing reflects our unwavering commitment to protecting the most vulnerable and sends a clear warning to anyone who would commit such acts: we will find you, and you will be held accountable.”
The case was investigated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the FBI. Senior Trial Attorney Adam C. Cullman of the Energy and Natural Resources Division’s Environmental Crimes Section and former Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Oakley for the Southern District of Ohio helped prosecute the case.
Read the original article on People
