Scots mum jailed over monkey torture footage which saw macaques crucified & being dipped in boiling oil

Scottish Sun

a day ago

Sick Natalie Herron, from Airdrie, was sharing hundreds of barbaric videos in online chats
BARBARIC Scots mum jailed over monkey torture footage which saw macaques crucified & being dipped in boiling oil
A WOMAN involved in a disturbing global monkey torture network has been jailed for more than two years.
Natalie Herron, 39, joined online chat groups which encouraged torture of macaques by offenders based in Indonesia.
Advertisement
2
Natalie Herron appeared at Airdrie Sheriff Court
Credit: Andrew Barr
2
Natalie Herron encouraged the torture of baby macaques in warped online forums
The mum-of-two, from Airdrie, Lanarkshire, became a group administrator for the network and shared hundreds of images and videos of the abuse.
Barbaric acts of cruelty included crucifixion, machete attacks and one video showed a baby monkey being dipped in boiling oil.
Herron made contact online with Michael Macartney, the US-based ringleader of the network who used the alias 'The Torture King'.
The group paid people in Indonesia to carry out and film the atrocities on baby long-tailed macaques.
Advertisement
Investigators from the National Crime Agency alerted Police Scotland and a raid on Herron's home in 2022 discovered an iPhone with 1,084 images and videos of monkey torture.
Officers also discovered 4,000 messages on a WhatsApp group which had been sent by Herron discussing torture and hatred of the animals.
Messages included "Oh my God the little b*****d is making my ears bleed," and "I am shocked how easily the drill went through the skull, it was like butter".
Another message read: "Trying to find a video where they will kill the mum and the babies watch."
Advertisement
Herron appeared at Airdrie Sheriff Court where she was sentenced to two years and three months imprisonment.
She had earlier admitted two charges of possessing and distributing obscene material, namely videos depicting animal torture, between October 2021 and September 2022 at her home address.
Shocking moment dog walker drags animals by their leads & hurls them into home as owner's pal slams 'sickening' footage
She admitted a further charge of behaving in a threatening or abusive manner likely to cause fear or alarm by sending messages to various online and social media groups which described and promoted animal torture.
The court was told she made payments to Macartney but she claimed it was not for the videos but to "help him".
Advertisement
Nicky Matteo, defending, said: "In all the years I have been practising I have not seen a case like this. It has not been a pleasant experience.
"She has had horrific problems in life and she built up a connection with other group members.
"She was trying to ingratiate herself with other members, it was a false sense of escapism.
"She is no longer the person that was responsible for sending those messages. She recognises the severity of it."
Advertisement
Sentencing Herron, Sheriff Derek Livingston said: "The fact you not only joined these groups but then helped to facilitate them only helped to increase the animals' suffering."
A BBC investigation uncovered the warped network that began life on YouTube before it moved to private groups on the messaging app Telegram.
The online group paid for baby long-tailed macaque monkeys to be taken from their mothers in Indonesia and then tortured and killed.
Members, who claimed they were angered at the monkeys destroying land in Indonesia, even voted on proposed methods.
Advertisement
Last year Adriana Orme, 56, from Upton-upon-Severn, and Holly Le Gresley, 37, from Kidderminster, were jailed after admitting being part of the global network.
Worcester Crown Court heard graphic details of the suffering experienced by young macaques in Indonesia - with the footage sold to people around the world.
Le Gresley was jailed for two years while Orme was handed a 15-month term.
Macartney, 51, was also jailed last year after pleading guilty in the US state of Virginia to conspiracy to create and distribute animal cruelty videos.
Advertisement
He was given three years and four months behind bars.
This investigation was part of a wider operation with the National Wildlife Crime Unit, which saw Herron arrested on Wednesday, 7 September, 2022 following intelligence from the National Crime Agency.
This is the first time someone has been sentenced in Scotland for cruelty that took place abroad, making it a landmark case.
Officers said this was one of the most horrific cases they had dealt with and the material was like nothing they had seen before.
Advertisement
Detective Sergeant Karen Murray said: 'This was a long and complex investigation which involved a number of organisations including the National Crime Agency (NCA) and the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU) and was the first of its kind in the UK.
'Thanks to the work of these organisations Herron will now face the consequences of her actions which led contributed to the cruel torture and immense suffering of a number of innocent animals.
'Through dedicated police work, the investigation team was able to show that Herron was watching and distributing this horrific material and I would like to take this opportunity to thank all who worked on it.
'This was one of the most disturbing and graphic cases we have worked on and we hope this sentence shows that even though the cruelty took place abroad, that these types of crimes will not be tolerated and we will use all the tools at our disposal to hold people accountable.'
Advertisement
Detective Inspector Mark Harrison from the National Wildlife Crime Unit said: 'This investigation is truly shocking and unsettling.
"The people involved are not just motivated by money, this is also about getting some sort of gratification from watching animals being tortured and then sharing those images with others.
'It has been well documented in the media recently what impacts these sorts of online images can have on people, especially young people and there are proven links between those involved in animal cruelty and violence towards people, so we take it very seriously.
'This investigation is part of a larger transnational investigation that the NWCU has been assisting with and the NWCU would like to thank Police Scotland for their hard work and dedication on this case.
Advertisement
"It shouldn't be underestimated the impact that working on a case like this can have on those involved.
'Wildlife crime can occur in many forms and the NWCU will continue to work with partners from across the world to ensure that we have the expertise, resources, and skills to fight this type of crime however it may occur.'
Anyone who has any concerns around this type of behaviour is asked to contact Police Scotland on 101.