Michael Macartney, 50, confessed to the BBC his role in an extreme monkey torture network.

A ringleader in a global monkey torture network exposed by the BBC has been charged by US federal prosecutors.

Michael Macartney, 50, who went by the alias “Torture King”, was charged in Virginia with conspiracy to create and distribute animal-crushing videos.

Mr Macartney was one of three key distributors identified by the BBC Eye team during a year-long investigation into sadistic monkey torture groups.

Two women have also been charged in the UK following the investigation.

Warning: This article contains disturbing content

Mr Macartney, a former motorcycle gang member who previously spent time in prison, ran several chat groups for monkey torture enthusiasts from around the world on the encrypted messaging app Telegram.

  • @Sconrad122
    6•2 months ago

    You can absolutely make that distinction, but speaking as another meat eater, it’s not really a given that factory farming is more like one than the other

    • @[email protected]
      1•2 months ago

      Yes, but you can expect that what these people do is closer to torture, and what factories do is further from it, because for them graphic torture is the main criterion, and for factory farming profit from selling meat is the main criterion.