Licking County man pleads guilty to distributing videos depicting monkey torture

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – A Licking County man pleaded guilty to creating and distributing videos of depicting acts of extreme violence and sexual abuse against monkeys.

According to the office of United States Attorney Kenneth Parker, Southern District of Ohio, a plea agreement was unsealed Monday in which Ronald Bedra, of Etna, just south of Pataskala, pleaded guilty to conspiring to create and distribute “animal crush” videos.

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.”

Bedra, according to court documents, conspired with others to create the videos, which depicted acts of sadistic violence against baby and adult monkeys, who were dismembered and sexually abused.

The press release said that conspirators used encrypted chat apps to direct money to individuals in Indonesia willing to commit the requested acts of torture on camera. Bedra also mailed a thumb drive containing 64 videos of monkey torture to a co-conspirator in Wisconsin.

Bedra appeared before a federal judge to enter his guilty plea on April 16 after an agreement was made eight days prior.

The plea agreement did not include a sentence recommendation. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office Southern District of Ohio, the crimes are punishable by up to five years in prison.