There exists a "monkey torture network" that made money by producing and circulating sadistic videos of monkeys, mostly juveniles, getting tortured and killed in the most horrible ways possible.
After a few men found this heinous way to get rich, several primates reportedly lost their lives in Indonesia after suffering terrible atrocities. A BBC investigative report revealed that a network of monkey torturers used the Telegram app to identify people from all over the world who would like to see the animals tortured and killed. After taking money from these people, monkeys caught from the forests of Indonesia were tortured or killed the way they demanded, the BBC team found out.
Michael Macartney, who has confessed to this role in the centre of the network, said that he decided to run several such groups although he was shocked by the kind of cruelty the baby monkeys were subjected to in order to meet the cruel fantasies of the customers. Here is breaking down the heartbreaking findings from the investigative report:
- Michael Macartney, a former motorcycle gang member, was in charge of multiple Telegram groups where the horrific videos were shared. The man, who has been to prison before, provided a platform for people across the world who liked to see monkeys tortured.
- Macartney, who lives in USA's Virginia forwarded demands of the group members to his pals in Indonesia. Once the members of the groups paid up, monkeys were tortured or executed in the way they demanded.
- The admins and moderators of the Telegram groups conducted polls on how the monkeys should be tortured. Taking the opinions and preferences of the group members, they passed the information to their associates in Indonesia. In the archipelagic state, the animals were tortured and killed and the act was shot. Once they receive their payment, the video is shared in the Telegram groups for the members to watch and "enjoy."
- Many long-tailed macaques were killed as they underwent immense pain for the videos to be shot.
- Mutilation of monkeys, burning them alive, and putting them inside a blender were among the genres of the videos available. Polls were set up, allowing the group members to choose the tools using which the monkeys were to be tortured. According to the investigation report, these people were allowed to choose whether they wished to see the monkeys harmed with a plier, screwdriver or hammer.
- While the US Homeland Security has confirmed two more arrests other than that of Michael Macartney, Indonesia has confirmed the arrest of a couple of men, while three women were picked up in the United Kingdom, the BBC said.