Nicole DeVilbiss, a 35-year-old woman from Jacksonville, has been apprehended on charges of conspiring to produce and circulate “animal crush videos.”
If found guilty, DeVilbiss could potentially serve up to five years in a federal prison.
Criminal law on the federal level defines animal crushing as “actual conduct in which one or more living non-human mammals, birds, reptiles, or amphibians is purposely crushed, burned, drowned, suffocated, impaled, or otherwise subjected to serious bodily injury.”
As per court records, an inquiry into a mobile phone app group uncovered users planning the creation and exchange of videos showing the cruel treatment of primates, including their involvement in animal crush videos.
This chat group focused on the mistreatment, torment, and fatalities of monkeys across different age groups.
The investigation identified Devilbiss as one of the group’s administrators, and it was found that she removed members, commented on the primate abuse in the videos, and shared videos displaying primates undergoing torture.
The United States Attorney’s Office clarifies that a complaint is simply a formal accusation that a defendant has violated one or more federal criminal laws, and every defendant is considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.
