A WOMAN accused of being behind a sadistic global ring that paid for videos of baby monkeys being tortured has been arrested.
Suspect Nicole Danielle Devilbiss, 35, told cops in Florida she got a sick thrill imagining the animals’ pain.
Devilbiss who was seized by police in Jacksonville, confessed to helping to run a Telegram group that distributes the shocking abuse footage.
In the sick videos, filmed in Malaysia, monkeys are tortured to order by twisted customers via the app.
The defenceless primates faced horrific torture like snipping off fingers and being beaten to death.
Devilbiss was seized at her home on 31st October after police discovered she had helped to run the app.
She told police the head, who used the grim alias Mister Ape, would collect fees ranging from £82 to £188 depending on the degree of torture.
Members could not only choose how badly the monkeys were maimed but also whether weapons such as knives, pliers or fire were used.
A statement from the US Attorney’s Office, Middle District of Florida on 1st November, reads: “According to court documents, an investigation into a group on a mobile phone application revealed users were arranging the creation and sharing of videos depicting animal crush videos involving primates.”
It continued: “Animal crushing is defined under federal criminal law 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.”
The statement went on: “The group chat was dedicated to the abuse, torture, and death of monkeys of various ages.
“The investigation identified Devilbiss as one of the administrators of the group and determined that she removed people from the group, commented on the abuse of the primates in the videos, and shared videos depicting primates being tortured.”
If found guilty, Devilbiss faces a maximum penalty of up to five years in prison.
